1st of all, you make it sound like he's going to drop the whole $30K on something. Is he? You can buy a pretty nice used Jeep of any kind for 1/2 that. Now this, I mean really, this is the way. Is this guy in to cars? Does he want a hot rod? Are you trying to live vicariously through this guy's dough and "help him along"? I don't mean anything bad by that, just that what many of us like does NOTHING for most people. But turning and burning cars, well everybody likes money. It's a dangerous game to play. You have to be ready to lose. You have to buy smart, hard and fast. You're better off KNOWING what someone or what some areas prefer. We all think early stuff is awesome and priceless. B U L L S H I T. Look at the classifieds. How many things just sit there? A lot of em do. SBC finned valve covers and finned flathead heads at 1/2 price? Sure, they disappear in a hurry BECAUSE THEY'RE 1/2 PRICE. Only the jumbo deals are selling. It's very tough to do and be a winner at it besides. In the end, leave the "kid" alone. Don't judge him and don't advise him. Tell him what you've done or are doing, not what you would do. Hey, you asked...
what I would do it buy a 2006 honda civic for about $5500, they are reliable and get 40 MPG a gallon (I have one as my DD and girls love the dash for some reason) then find a 50s rod between 5-8k you can find a fun reliable driver for that money that will not need work to drive on the road, take the remaining money and sit on it or use it for a cheap condo down payment....chicks like it when you own your own place over a cool car and a condo around 70k with a 15k down payment will have cheaper mortgage payments then a new 30k jeep
I'd tell him to extinguish that burning hole and keep adding to it. 30k seems like a lot, but it's nothing compared to 300k.
Sounds like this kid is smart enough to make his own decisions. If he has $30,000 extra let him do just that.
Highlander - not offended, he did ask me what i would do. he also told me i could drive what ever he bought. so maybe a little bias. now probably wont drop all of it. but a decent chunck. then finance a little to make payments and get his credit score up there. hes looking at a pretty loaded wrangler. however he has had a hard time making up his mind. he has talked about the wrangler, or a new camaro, or a clasic car, or a pickup. i just dont think that buying a brand new car that cost him almost 30k is a smart decision. thats why i said old hot rod. he can find something he likes for way less, enjoy it... he can learn. if he figures he dont like it then he can sell it for probably the same money. maybe less. but he would loose alot less then if he puts that into a new vehicle. he is already doing other investing so that is smart. whenever does move out hes looking at renting. im trying to tell him that is a mistake. his big concern is what if the air conditioning blows up. i think buying a house is smart. thats what we did my wife wanted to rent, i said no. im not giving my paycheck to someone else.
I was in a similar situation two years ago. I bought a house in my early 20s, fixed it up and sold it at a $20,000 profit. I didn't want another house and wanted an apartment in the city, so I bought a car that would more or less hold it's value. I had two old cars at that time, so I bought a 1999 Porsche 911 Carerra4 AWD for bad weather driving. Let me tell you, it was fun! I got bored with it and sold it a year later on consignment. I drove it 10-12,000 miles and lost maybe $2000 bucks. Not bad, plus I got that expensive, fast and fancy car stuff out of my system... It's not bad high rollin' when you're single and in your 20's. Would I suggest it? Maybe. I WOULD NOT! buy a brand new car. Wranglers/JKs hold their value pretty good, get a clean used one Rubicon and a project car. Does he have a garage to work on it? Having fun with your money is something you can do with you're younger and it should be done for the sake of fun. But not foolishly spent. Two years after the sale of my 911 I have a nice chunk in the bank again. But guess what - this time around I am starting a side auto business, getting married and eventually putting money down on a house. At that time I wanted to have fun, now I am ready for a different kind of fun. Hope this helps.
If it were me I would drive the 95 Mustang, save another $30,000 while at mom and dad's (which should be a year or so) and then I would do the following: $30,000 down on house $10,000 in the savings account $10,000 for newer daily driver $10,000 for hot rod project
Why does he have to go to college? I make more than most my college buddies and I learned a trade not bought a piece of paper. Why does he need to buy a home? Homeownership isn't for everyone... I sometime wish I hadn't bought mine... Why didn't you guys say.. "start saving for your first kids college fund." " what if you lose your job?"
Shame for telling the kid to spend it on a Jalopy. That's a good waste of 30 thou, which is not a lot money these days. The kid should invest let the money work and multiply for the next 30 years.
finances are a very difficult thing to discuss. To each is own. If the kid wants a car and a car is his focus, he should buy a car. Now what the car will be is another question. Think dreddybear said buy a $5000 rod and learn. as for real estate. 30,000 here is nyc wouldnt get me a pot to piss in.
If this world of cars was in his blood he wouldn't have $30k spare and he'd have a cool car in the garage already, a list of mods not yet done that he can't afford and fu** all money in the bank. Jeeps are his thing and leave him to it.
$30K is $30K, but it means different things to different people. How long did it take for him to accumulate $30K? If it's his life savings and would take a long time to replace, then he'd better be careful how he spends it. If he saved it in 6 months and can replace it in 6 months, then party on dudes! Living with mom & dad can save a guy a fortune but it usually doesn't last forever. I bought my first house when I was 24 and still living with my parents. I rented out the house I until I got married and then bought a second house. I ended up selling the first place for more than 2X what I paid for it (and the end profit was about 10X what I had invested in it) because all the carrying costs were paid by the rent income. Now is a good time to buy real estate again, especially income properties that can be rented to those folks losing their homes. Cars (except high-end collectibles that aren't driven) are basically toys that depreciate with wear and tear. Sure, sometimes money can be made by fixing and selling them but most cars are sold for alot less than the owner invested.
I like the guy up the street...he stopped by to 'admire' my '55 F100 a coupla years back. Every time after that, he'd stop by to talk, and always a 'critique'. "You know, that F100 isn't getting any younger...maybe you oughta trade it in for something new while you can." I laughed. Then he stopped by to show me his new Chevy...all he could talk about. Had it 2 months, then lost his job...told me he thanked God he'd bought this new Chevy, he could sell it for what he'd paid for it. I laughed again. Stupid bastard went back to the dealer, bailed out and only lost a few thousand dollars. Guys that buy new cars (nowadays) make me laugh.
Here's another plan for your friend: take a portion (10 - 25%) of his $30k and find some other dumbass who blew his $30K on a car that he can no longer afford. If the car is something your friend is looking for, he can buy it at a fire sale price and invest the balance of his cash in something that will earn a profit. Of course, this is coming from an old geezer ... if I was again young and foolish, I'd still probably blow the money on a hot rod or a new camaro.
1. Find a home where you can live comfortably with a nice garage or working area. 2. Find a cheap project car to work on. 3. Finish the project and sell it to help finance the house and the next project. 4. Keep every third or fourth project when finished, if you like it. That worked for me to pay for my home and my 6 cars,but I never had a new one.I never missed it either....
Use tha money to Wine and dine a rich "cougar/widow", get married and have all the cars you want. Simple, you can marry more money in five minutes than you can save in fifty years.+
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