this post was submitted on 07 May 2024
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Dude im driving a 33 year old car as my daily. Sub 100 thousand miles and gets better mileage than quite a few modern cars, gotta love government fleet cars. Anyways take your classist shit and shove it, just cause you can and your ilk can buy a new car every other year doesn't mean most people can, will, or want to.
Buying is the first mistake. I’ve never done it, I don’t know anyone who has. Leasing is the way. A depreciating asset like a car is the perfect thing to lease.
Leasing is you paying the estimated depreciation of the lease period. The 1st 3 years is when a car depreciates the fastest and you have nothing to show for it.
That’s all rentals, just much much cheaper than a true rental. And no, leasing rates are completely flexible and much more goes into them than just a basic calc of depreciation. I’m not here to say that all leasing offers are great, probably most are bad and screwy. But if you look for a while you can find great lease offers. For example if a new model of a car is about to be launched, the maker will try to get rid of all their stock of the previous model. Like happened with the Audi A4 a few years back.
Coming from someone who sold cars via a dealership (sorry): leasing is a perfect way to get fucked in the ass every day of the year, and twice on renewal day. Yes, it is a titled asset. Yes, it has a depreciating value. BUT - the only way leasing makes financial sense is: 1) you can expense the lease payment to a self-owned business (and it needs to be a pretty big percentage), or 2) accept that you are paying a gobsmackingly large amount of money to eat the absolute shit out of the depreciation you're seeking to avoid, only to do it again in 3 years, for the ability to drive that new car off the lot on the regular.
Yes 1. is the norm and of course you have to look for good offer and not just get the first one you see - same as with buying. For example, I used to lease a $90000 car for $240 / month with no money down, and including all-risks policy. It's almost too good to be true, but possible because the maker had a "lease our cars" campaign running when I was looking for one. Meaning this price is subsidized by the maker for marketing reasons for a limited time. But I had to compare offers for about 1 week and had to be flexible with the choice of car, if you want to lease your "favorite car" regardless of campaigns and special offers, then it'll be too expensive as you say.
You'll have to pardon my skepticism on that claim of a $90,000 lease for $240/mo, even subsidized to the moon. Combined with the earlier statement that they were all employer-provided.
Never said all. Used to, and current, are different things. Also I’m not living in the 2nd world but a country with consumer rights.
Depreciation is a myth. A car is a tool not an investment. And if depreciation is a real worry for normal people then why do houses not depreciate? They don't last forever. In fact on average they only last 50 years. But their prices never go down. Not until they get condemned. Why doesn't the price on a 5 year old car go up instead of down? It's got 10 more years in it easily and it's proven not to be a lemon.
But you know what the real insanity is? Paying 400 dollars a month for years for a car with extra restrictions and then having to turn it in or pay even more to own it. Subscription cars need a lot more consideration, like full warranty, maintenance, and insurance for the entire lease period. Upgrade deals at the end. Because the way it is now you're just giving shit up to keep paying a corporation.
I’m not paying the lease, the company is. Don’t know anyone who pays for transportation
Where the fuck do you live that everyone drives company cars? Where I live the closest ya get is company trucks with the water or electric company.
Tanzania
Ok, that fucken explains most everything. I dont know how folks over in Germany do things, but im gonna presume that theres a decently functional public transit system available in most regions. That doesnt exist here in the US for the most part, need to get anywhere you'll probably be driving, and if you need to guarantee that the vehicle will work then you will probably own your own car.
Oh oh fuck wow excuse me here, you’re saying the US is not the best in everything and all other countries are the 3rd world compared to it???
No, you're right, the US sucks in a large way, in many, many areas. What we're all a bit put off by, and maybe it's the time zone difference, or a cultural communication difference, is that we're having g a discussion, receive information that doesn't fit the pattern of our experiences. For example, and I'm not quoting your words, just how I received them: everyone I know leases, oh, and the company pays it, oh, and this is in Germany. This Information wasn't presented initially, and I suppose it is on us and our assumptions, but the reader had to sus it out over several threads and we are lambasted as insipid when we're not in possession of all the relevant data.
As stated, perhaps that is our fault. Maybe when first presented with an outlier claim, we should ask: "oh, wow - that's amazing - what country do you live in?" and that would promote a more upbeat dialog.
Anyway, guten tag
The only place I've heard of everyone in the company driving company cars was in California, a water manager was stealing water and selling it on top of some other scams. He spread the spoils around to keep people quiet it took over 20 years before he was caught.
So you have a company car. And you think that's normal?
It is where I live?
I saw elsewhere you're in Germany. Most countries do not have a rule requiring companies to provide cars for work. It's only available for executives or workers that often have to travel without being near a company office. That's why we're all so incredulous that you consider it normal.
There are no such rules here either but if a company wants to keep you from quitting, you have the leverage to get a car. Most high level execs automatically get a car. Not required by law but just a usual part of the compensation package.