Starting a car fund for the next van: $250 a month
No payment on the next vehicle, if we can help it. Where the $250 comes from, where it sits and how long it takes to reach $15,000.
All posts in Buying & Selling Cars
We're keeping the Sienna one more winter
At 205,000 miles the van owes us nothing. The repair math against a car payment, and the three things that would change our minds.
What a newer minivan would cost us now
I priced 2019 and 2020 vans at three lots in St. Joseph and Kansas City. The sticker prices, the fees and why we closed the laptop.
Selling my dad's 1998 Ranger for $2,450
Dad is 75 and done with a stick shift. Photos, the listing, nine messages and one cash buyer. How we sold an old truck without a dealer.
Should we sell the Silverado at 145,000 miles?
A neighbor asked if the truck was for sale. Private-party numbers, what a replacement would cost and why I didn't take his offer.
Titling Garrett's $6,400 Civic at the license office
Signed title, bill of sale, a safety inspection and proof of insurance, then sales tax. What the Missouri paperwork cost us in December.
We bought Garrett a 2012 Civic with 142,000 miles
$6,400 cash from a retired couple in Savannah, Missouri. What we checked, what we negotiated and every dollar Garrett put in.
The $125 inspection that talked us out of a Corolla
A clean 2010 Corolla, a nice seller and a mechanic who found an oil leak at the rear main seal. Why we pay for an inspection every time.
Shopping for a first car: 23 listings, 4 phone calls
Online listings, a sign in a window on Frederick Avenue and a coworker's cousin. How we search for a cheap used car and what we skip.
Setting a budget for Garrett's first car: $6,500
Garrett has $2,300 saved from mowing. How we decided on a total, who pays what, and why we said no to anything that comes with a payment.
What our two old vehicles are actually worth
I priced the Sienna and the Silverado on three valuation sites and asked a dealer. Trade-in, private party and the number that matters.