to ask how you afford your posh car?

[SteveHarringtonsChestHair]

My DS (22) is becoming increasingly frustrated by the disparity between the life he aspires to and the one he thinks is possible!

As a car enthusiast on a good wage, he is constantly surprised by the number of brand new premium brand cars (BMW, Mercedes, Volvo etc) that he sees on the roads, which he feels he has no hope of ever affording.

He’s asked my to ask you all, if you drive a premium brand car, paying presumably £400-500 a month to buy or lease, what type of job do you and (if it’s not too rude to ask, what sort of salary are you on?) And if your spouse also drives a similar car, what do they do/earn?!

I know there are lots of factors here including whether you’re paying a bit mortgage, is it a company car etc? But just a snapshot of who is driving these expensive new cars might help him put it all in perspective. TIA

btw I earn NMW and drive a 10 year old car so I’m no help here!

When I was 22, I had a company car, then I went onto having a car allowance. I wouldn’t prioritise a fancy car though. A decent reliable one - yes.
I remember working with a lady 20 years ago whose kids were a similar age to me but it was too expensive for them to move out. They all had really expensive cars and tyres were over £200 each. (It shocked me so much I still remember!) Held my tongue though and didn’t comment on their choices.

Either finance or company cars usually, they wouldn't be able to afford them any other way. It's not the real world. He needs to get on the property ladder first. Wheels that can you get you from A to B are just fine for anyone, especially a 22 yr old just starting out.

I can’t understand how you both have to ask this, and don’t know, the people who have these cars, and this includes us, either earn enough to pay for them outright (us) or have a job /income which gives them enough disposable income to lease one.

if he wants a house and a certain type of car he needs to be looking at jobs that pay enough to get him that.

he’s not suddenly going to go, blimey I want to earn lots so I think I will be a doctor or lawyer or accountant and start applying for those jobs.

DH drives a car worth circa 50k, but it's a company car. We earn around 85k joint and there is no way we could afford it ourselves. We both work full time but have large mortgage and two in childcare so my car is nearly 20 years old!

I work in a school and, without exception, the younger members of staff (including TAs who are on low salaries) all have fabulously expensive / brand new cars - living at home they have fewer outgoings.
Personally for me a car is just to get from A to B but I get that for others they would rather do it in style!

😂😂😂

I know a couple of people with SUV type vehicles that aren't top of the range, but are still very expensive to buy outright. They've got them because they've got kids and felt they 'needed' a big car, but the reality is they have them on lease (so they don't have to budget for repairs etc) and on a really low mileage allowance which keeps the costs down. Typically because they don't use them for commuting or only commute very locally, use them for UK holidays and are limited to 6k or 8k miles a year.
Personally I don't see the point in spending hundreds a month on a car that you have to avoid using, but each to their own I guess!

My brothers and parents have always had high end cars- My brothers from about age 20- Bmw, Audi, Range Rovers. They work hard (Mechanics) earn a decent wage ,always have- Both in their early 30s now.
My parents own a haulage buisness and have had nice cars only in the last 20yrs, hard work paid off.
Me and my other sibling, basic cars- finaced, Im on my 2nd finance- Its a modest people carrier, I earn just above NMW.

Aren't they all company cars for sales people? That's what I assume, maybe wrongly. Even young account managers where I used to work had shiny new BMWs.

If he's 22, the insurance could be more scary than the repayments.

Don't know. But our household income is reasonable (Company director of a small family company and solicitor part time) and I have a 13 year old VW and DH has a 16 year old ford that we own outright.

A colleague of mine has a lovely car she pays £800 a month finance for. Her salary is circa £54 k. Her DH is really into cars. He is a self employed plumber and has a similar posh car. But they rent an extremely modest flat and have no kids and spend whatever is left over on holidays. Its where they are right now in life and we are where we are right now in life.

Around here, I'm afraid it's either finance deals (particularly young people living at home), or involvement in organised crime. Audi's seem particularly popular with the latter group....

Most people don't own them (despite what people on this thread are saying). They simply have enough disposable income to finance the PCP deal. PCP is predicated on you wanting to change your car every few years (cos you can never afford to actually buy one).

We have a second hand Merc C Class. Paid cash, will keep it for years and then buy again. Last car kept for 7 years with no issue. I can't get my head around paying £400 per month, indefinitely, with nothing to show for it at the end (I know cars depreciate, but they are still an asset of some value if you own them)

Oh and household income of £110k, not London and we only have/need one car

@Teridavis actually I have two older teen sons who often see my MN screen and ask about threads and the responses.

@SteveHarringtonsChestHair lots of car companies want new cars on the road for visibility and so lots of people who work for those companies get given brand new cars every 6 months or so. This also helps put second hand cars onto the market every 6 months encouraging sales and a price drop from the brand new price.

PCP for car ownership compares well to leasing brand new cars if you never want to make the balloon payment at the end of the 3 years for PCP. Prices for leasing are crazy at the minute due to a lack of brand new cars even available. But on some websites it does show the price the lease has been for the last year so you can see when a car was £800 a month and is now £300. It is an affordable way for people to buy cars rather than stumping up tens of thousands immediately.

However, at 22 he should be concentrating on the house purchase rather than a car. Sad but sometimes we have to wait for things.

We have one car that is quite smart, in that it’s new and quite big (although not flashy) & it is a leased car that is half paid for as part of my DH employment package.
I earn slightly more than him but drive a small, unsmart car that I bought second hand with low mileage using HP and am paying off around £120/month over 3 years.

Its not about attracting women! He already has a lovely GF who doesn't care what car he drives. He has his priorities straight, but he is frustrated that his financial situation, while better than average, still doesn't afford him a house or a posh car! And for reference his idea of an aspirational car is Volvo v90 T6 apparently!

He's in a very responsible job earning well above the average salary already, saving £1k a month towards his house deposit and driving a very sensible reliable and not in any way impressive car! He's just trying to make sense of the disparity he sees around him rather than attempting to emulate those people, he's interested to hear how people can actually afford these cars.

Maybe its confirmation bias, he's looking out for them so he's seeing them. But its just trying to work out how, with the cost of living as it is, he can afford a house, a decent car and a family if he chooses to have one.

Could I ask what you both do?
And if they're careers with salaries built up over many years, or highly paid early on?
I just can't even imagine!

That's interesting Gates. Thank you.

Inherited it. British classic supercar.

We bought our main car brand new outright for £26k which isn't much compared to some cars but felt like a lot for us. We intend to drive it into the ground. It's 6.5 years old and has cost us nothing but new boots, petrol and oil thus far, touch wood. If we get 10 years out of it before it costs us any major repairs then it will have broadly cost us the same as buying crappier cars and keeping them maintained and roadworthy.

It’s not only sales. In my work, 80% of staff have company cars, because they travel quite a lot, or those who have been with company for ages, as a perk. When my car broke and I had to pay quite a lot of money, at least 5 people told me “you should sell it”. Thanks for the useful advice, person who pays fraction for new company car. That day I promised myself that if anyone gives me the advice even though I didn’t ask for it, I will give one in return too, like “oh and I think you should got married before you had a baby, Brenda”.

Audi is a company car included in DHs package. We are both allowed to drive it and only pay for personal use.

Our owned car is a Seat Terraco. Even that cost £24 at 18months old. Not what you are asking for, but that was bought outright with profits from seeking old car and work bonus.

A well paid job and then buying with cash when we could afford it.

I’d always wanted a Porsche 911. But I didn’t actually get one until I was 47 and our finances were sufficiently well sorted. And then it was a “nearly new” one, rather than absolutely new.

When I was 22 I had a one third share with my housemates in a £200 old banger.

SiL drives a 250k combine harvester, does that count?

He neither owns it or leases it, he’s currently testing it for a farm machinery company (farmer)

I think so much is to do with age. We have a good joint income & have a 10 yr old car. Mortgage eats up all the money.