How do I get my father to let me buy a car?
Thursday September 25th, 2008
Posted Under: Buying & Selling
Alex asked:
I am 21 and am in college. I have steady income and cash to buy a car however, for the next year my father will be paying my insurance. I have asked him to let me buy a car. Obviously if I was paying my own insurance i would do that. Insurance is very expensive and it would be a push for me to afford both. I can’t seem to get a straight answer out of him. One day he’s ready to buy one with me and the next he doesn’t even want to talk about. I hate being young and poor and feel hopeless. How should I help my situation?
Alex asked:
I am 21 and it would do that. I can’t seem to talk about. I can’t seem to let me to afford both. I was paying my situation?
Become as self sufficient as possible, as quickly as possible. Buy your own car AND your own insurance.
In the meantime, maybe if you ask him “why” he’s reacting in this way, you might at least get some anwsers.
your an adult,buy a cheaper car so you can afford insurance as well
you may be able to get the bank to include it in the loan or go on monthly payments with insurance company
you shouldn’t buy a car on your own until you can afford all the expenses that go with it, like maintenance and insurance
GOOD GOLLY! You are 21! You buy an older used car and put liability only insurance on it. You cut your daddy out of the loop. You drive a beater for a couple of years and when your insurance rates drop, you buy that first new car, which you will enjoy that much more and apprecitate it. Stay away from the bottle, stay in school till you can be gamefully emploed and grow up. I am not abusing you. I am a father and I was 21 at one time, also. Love ya, man!
i know exactly how you feel. I didnt buy my first car until i was 25 as lame as it sounds i am greatful my dad didnt let me buy a car before. It is too much responsibility trust me when i say that even if you dont like it your dad knows best when it comes to perfect timing on buying a car. Its a dad thing. When i started college i thought i had the money to afford a car and my dad had said that he would help me get a car so i thought it would be fair that i buy the car(the most expensive part of the deal) and he’ll get me the insurance… He didnt let me and i hated him for the next four years that i begged for a car… But finally at 25 my job changed to a better one and my dad helped me to get a car. this time I bought the car and I got the insurance. My car is a great car i got new on credit and the insurance is the best and the cheapest “for me” of course. I had a flat tired when i least expect it and if i didnt have this job i wouldnt have been able to afford it. You never know what can happen and car maintenance is very expensive.. the obvious reason and the best here is if you cant afford insurance than you probably cant afford a car because things happen unexpectedly and you are going to need dad again and again and again… jobs come and go too we think that it is a stable job but in this case myself… in the middle of me begging my dad for a car with a stable job (i thought) i had a back injury that led to me leaving my job.. IMAGINE!! if i had a car? i would have been in debt. Anyway, be patient, you’ll find the right car at the right time. Trust your dad k?
Ok, here’s a couple quick thoughts:
1.) Because you indicated that you are in college, do you actually NEED a car? When I was in college I never needed one until I was home for the summer. Yes it’s great to own one because there’s a sense of freedom that comes with them, but do you NEED one? If you give some serious thought to this question and the answer is “No” or “Not Really” or “I’m not sure”, wait. Although a car can be great, it can also be expensive if it breaks down unexpectedly. Waiting another year if a car isn’t necessary now could get you “over the hump” to affording one in the near future.
2.) If you are serious about purchasing one now, do your homework before talking to your dad again. Get insurance quotes, shop around for a reliable vehicle that is a few years old but doesn’t have a lot of miles on it (Honda’s are always a good choice IMHO - reliable and relatively cheap to insure), check on financing and put a realistic budget together to show your dad that you can afford your part of the car AND still save money. Present him with the facts and show him that you are truly serious about buying one and what the costs (both his and yours) are likely to be.
3.) If that still doesn’t work, your dad may be experiencing some financial difficulties (paying for college?) that make him not want to talk about the additional burden of another vehicle. You won’t find that out until you can have a serious conversation about the car with all of the costs of ownership on the table.
I would see if you could work out a compromise. You should look at lesser expensive vehicles that you could either purchase out-right or without your father co-signing on a loan. I don’t blame him for be apprehensive about co-signing a loan. Make sure whatever you purchase you can afford to pay…don’t start your credit history off on a bad note…See if the two of you could meet in the middle or else you may be looking at waiting until you are able to afford both insurance and a car payment.