Automobiles – Investing Education

Car Insurance

By Ariel Hulse on Wednesday, October 17, 2012

After college or before it many people start to find themselves owning their first car. Something that many people have trouble deciding is what insurance they need for their car. It is important to consider a few things while buying insurance. The amount of coverage you are required to have, the amount of coverage you actually want, and what company fits your needs best.

By law you are required to at least have a minimum of coverage and car insurance to legally drive a vehicle. The coverage varies by state and it is important to look at what your state requires for a minimum of insurance coverage. This is meant to protect all people on the road.

You may indeed want to buy more coverage than is required and this may be the best thing for you to do. Minimum coverage does mean minimum cost, but it also means minimum protection. Some minimum coverage’s might not protect your car or you well enough. It is important to look at different coverage plans and determine which things you want covered such as personal liability coverage, which helps to protect you from lawsuits in case of an accident.

It is also important to shop around and get quotes from different companies, and to always checkout reviews about the companies you get quotes from. If you get the exact same coverage from one company for a cheaper price than it would be from another, than it is probably a good idea to choose them.

Automobiles Buying Renting Tips

Should You Buy or Lease a Car?

By Richard Adams on Friday, August 24, 2012

The decision on whether to buy or to lease a car is influenced by two major aspects of an individual: the financial position or priorities he or she has as well as his or her personal references in terms of what ownership of a car would mean to them.
buying a car
The financials, we would hope, take top spot in this one, one would hope, though of course human decision making is as subjective with purchases as it is with everything else. If you can afford to buy a new car, then this may be the preferred option. You are able to recoup most of the money if you get one whose market re-sale value is high and if your insurance and maintenance are up to scratch.

Also, if you are employed, it is easy for you to get a loan that can help with financing your preferred dream car. The significant increase in low-interest financing and cash-back offers makes loan financing an attractive option and thus means more and more people prefer buying to leasing a car.

In fact, in the current global economy, with fuel prices rising and lease payments almost equivalent to car-financing payments, leasing is increasingly a less financially viable option.

Leasing has always had the a number of traditional advantages, which include the ability to upgrade quickly to another model and enjoy new technological and safety benefits from newer models. It also helps the person leasing the vehicle to actually enjoy a comprehensive test-drive period of sorts before deciding on whether he should purchase the vehicle while at the same time removing that old albatross that comes with car-purchasing: you have an asset that has a depreciating value.

But these advantages can be eaten into by a number of considerations, including the fact that maintenance is a prime condition of the leasing process, and the constant payments (which, unlike financing, do not result in ownership of the vehicle) can be moral sapping.

Comprehensive insurance for a purchased vehicle, which is also a definite on one which has been financed means the burden of servicing and maintenance is not carried by the person purchasing the vehicle, as opposed to someone leasing.

And with cars built to last longer and upgrades to them made easier over the years, the benefits of new technology can be added without necessarily changing cars, which is a significant advantage that leasing may have had in the past.

Against a backdrop of paperwork and red-tape involved in the leasing process as well as the fact that it only really makes financial sense if you want to write it off as a business expense (for a firm) or if you are dealing in a market with rising interest rates (this making car financing more costly), leasing rarely holds the edge over actual car ownership.
And besides, for the individual, there is always the satisfaction of knowing that the car in your garage or parked in your drive way is your car.

Automobiles Buying

My First Car Payment

By Ariel Hulse on Friday, February 4, 2011

One of the most important decisions a person will ever make is the purchase of a car. There are so many things to consider when purchasing a vehicle. Of course its lots of fun when deciding color, make, model, interior and features but there are some difficult decisions to make when buying a car. First, consider the required down payment and the monthly payments. Always have the car payment you desire in mind as well as the maximum amount that you can afford to pay. Because the sales process can get pretty intense you should have these figures firmly planted prior to going shopping. You don’t want to end up with a vehicle you neither want nor can afford.

Buying a car — Is buying a car right for you?

When considering the car payment also consider due dates as they relate to your pay dates. Some finance companies will require payments correspond to paydays while others may require the 1st payment due 30 days after the contract is initiated. The next important detail to consider is the method of payment when making the car payments. Most finance companies offer several different payment options. Among the options are usually walk in payments, online payments, pay by phone and direct debit options. Remember that the method of payment you commit to should be one that is available to you consistently to avoid late payments.

Most car dealers have a network of finance companies that they work with closely. Once the loan is approved remember to take your time and read the contract completely prior to signing. The contract is a legally binding document effective the moment after you sign. Take the time to research any points and facts that you are not familiar with. There are representatives available at the finance company that can further explain the contract. Look up the value of the car with the options you choose to make sure that the total cost of the vehicle with the interest is not more than the car is worth. Sometimes companies have an option to lease a vehicle instead of buying it. In some cases this may be a wiser decision. People usually base their decision to lease based on the amount of wear and tear they traditionally put on a vehicle. Also, it may be wise to take into consideration the amount of travel and what the primary use will be for the vehicle.