ET80 Posted March 29 Share Posted March 29 2 hours ago, Ty21 said: That’s the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me I once named you my son. That's at least 1.5x nicer than this. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skywindO2 Posted March 29 Share Posted March 29 On 3/27/2024 at 10:12 PM, Sugashane said: I can't wait for his commercial. *Limp Bizkit cracks open a can of Hot Dog Water then looks into the camera "It's just one of those days" Mayhem. I've listened quite a bit of Limp Bizkit this week since this post and it's made for a great week. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skywindO2 Posted March 29 Share Posted March 29 3 hours ago, Ty21 said: That’s the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me Welcome back! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sugashane Posted March 29 Share Posted March 29 1 hour ago, ramssuperbowl99 said: No. I don't have nearly enough confidence that I could learn all of the repair skills or have an idea of how to affordably/easily source the parts I may need once the company goes out of business for long enough to make the decreased up front investment worth it. If I was a car guy, I'd consider it. But I'd view that more like a hobby expense that may end up paying off down the line instead of a cash savings opportunity. My current car is 10 years old and I'm hoping to get at least another few more years out of it, but have started paying attention to the car market again and it seems like people have started to wise up to how affordable the standard sedans are overall because lord they got more expensive. An entry level BMW or Audi isn't really much more expensive (sticker price) than an Accord or Camry these days and it only took me about 5 minutes to realize the used market has gone even more bonkers. So I absolutely get the impulse to want to save money on the up front purchase because it feels like I'm gonna be spending Mercedes C class money regardless, but ultimately I couldn't sacrifice the convenience of being able to easily/affordably get the thing repaired without worrying I'd be cutting into the longevity of the car. I'm at the point I doubt I even spend over $15K on a vehicle any more (minus any necessary work vehicles or something that will generate income). I just don't get anything out of it. I have a mechanic that does REALLY good work, and he just replaced the motor on my Navigator. It went out after 250K+ miles, so I looked around and Powertrain sold remanufactured motors for my SUV that were $4K. So between $4K for the motor, $500 for the install kit (filters and such that cost just over $600 when priced individually) and my mechanic charging $1600 for the remove and install I got a newer engine with a 3 year, 100,000 mile warranty. The next best I could find were rebuilt engines that had 130K miles for $3200ish and they only came with a 3 month warranty. Its been just over a month and my Navigator is running beautifully. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sugashane Posted March 29 Share Posted March 29 28 minutes ago, skywindO2 said: I've listened quite a bit of Limp Bizkit this week since this post and it's made for a great week. I've been ripping CDs since I was 16 and now I travel the seas, so I have a massive library of music my kids have listened to. Both my older ones are familiar with a lot of the music I grew up on. My daughter even has a few posters of bands like Linkin Park, Breaking Benjamin, and Matchbox 20. lol 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
naptownskinsfan Posted March 29 Share Posted March 29 51 minutes ago, Sugashane said: I'm at the point I doubt I even spend over $15K on a vehicle any more (minus any necessary work vehicles or something that will generate income). I just don't get anything out of it. I have a mechanic that does REALLY good work, and he just replaced the motor on my Navigator. It went out after 250K+ miles, so I looked around and Powertrain sold remanufactured motors for my SUV that were $4K. So between $4K for the motor, $500 for the install kit (filters and such that cost just over $600 when priced individually) and my mechanic charging $1600 for the remove and install I got a newer engine with a 3 year, 100,000 mile warranty. The next best I could find were rebuilt engines that had 130K miles for $3200ish and they only came with a 3 month warranty. Its been just over a month and my Navigator is running beautifully. Car debt is how we’re keeping America poorer. And it’s insane to me the amount of people who will finance a new car every 80-100k because they “want to avoid putting money into it.” 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sugashane Posted March 29 Share Posted March 29 32 minutes ago, naptownskinsfan said: Car debt is how we’re keeping America poorer. And it’s insane to me the amount of people who will finance a new car every 80-100k because they “want to avoid putting money into it.” Exactly. Its the whole 'keeping up with the Jones' mindset. Do I like the newer models and features of the 2022-2024 vehicles? Sure. But do I care enough to pay even $1000 more for it? Nah. I want the best value per dollar. I'll spend more on good clothes, kitchenware, mattresses, etc due to the cost per use but I've got a Navigator over 10 years old and my wife's charger still runs REALLY well. No debt left for either. I get that a lot of people struggle to save and I'm in a good spot so I don't have to do any sort of loan, but if it was between having a junker $1000 car that looked like total *** or spending $600 per month for a nice vehicle then I'll take the crappy car, then save until I get a better one. Some of the debt we get brainwashed into accepting is astonishing to me. Debt type Average balance (2023, Q3) Total Balance (2023, Q4) Mortgage debt (Excluding HELOCs) $244,498 $12.25 trillion HELOCs $42,139 $360 billion Auto loan $23,792 $1.61 trillion Credit card debt $6,501 $1.13 trillion Student loan debt $38,787 $1.6 trillion Total debt $104,215 $17.50 trillion I know a lot of that is inflated from massive cities but just wow. I have several credit cards and have it set so each pays one bill and then is automatically paid off from my checking account on set dates. Helps boost the credit score and I haven't carried any of the cards in a long time so less impulse to buy whatever. They're in my office desk and I see them maybe once a month when I check over all the bills. I buy cars used and would rather have a 5-10 year old car and do some maintenance and repairs rather than pay a big interest to a bank. My return is pretty much 100% when I pay for maintenance and repairs, but how much of the loans are just for the bank's service? IDGAF about banks getting richer. Only real debt I have is student loans and I'm actually getting that forgiven AND the 10 years I have to pay for that forgiveness by the loans themselves while I finish my doctorate. lol After my kids are grown the wife and I are likely becoming mini-nomads. I can work online and will likely take on a role as an online professor or move up with the state as I am now, IDK what she will do but she will find something just to occupy some time at least. She can likely find something where she translates as she is fluent in Spanish too. There are so many places where the cost of living is miniscule and I love travelling, so we will likely travel and stay for 3-6 months at a spot then come home for a few months to see family. IDK exactly yet but I know I'm not working my butt off until I'm in my 70s. Wife has been getting a TON of details for Portugal, Thailand, etc for a few years. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MacReady Posted March 29 Share Posted March 29 (edited) All debt and credit is dumb. Edited March 29 by MacReady Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MWil23 Posted March 29 Share Posted March 29 6 hours ago, naptownskinsfan said: Car debt is how we’re keeping America poorer. And it’s insane to me the amount of people who will finance a new car every 80-100k because they “want to avoid putting money into it.” 5 hours ago, Sugashane said: Exactly. Its the whole 'keeping up with the Jones' mindset. Do I like the newer models and features of the 2022-2024 vehicles? Sure. But do I care enough to pay even $1000 more for it? Nah. I want the best value per dollar. I'll spend more on good clothes, kitchenware, mattresses, etc due to the cost per use but I've got a Navigator over 10 years old and my wife's charger still runs REALLY well. No debt left for either. I get that a lot of people struggle to save and I'm in a good spot so I don't have to do any sort of loan, but if it was between having a junker $1000 car that looked like total *** or spending $600 per month for a nice vehicle then I'll take the crappy car, then save until I get a better one. Some of the debt we get brainwashed into accepting is astonishing to me. Debt type Average balance (2023, Q3) Total Balance (2023, Q4) Mortgage debt (Excluding HELOCs) $244,498 $12.25 trillion HELOCs $42,139 $360 billion Auto loan $23,792 $1.61 trillion Credit card debt $6,501 $1.13 trillion Student loan debt $38,787 $1.6 trillion Total debt $104,215 $17.50 trillion I know a lot of that is inflated from massive cities but just wow. I have several credit cards and have it set so each pays one bill and then is automatically paid off from my checking account on set dates. Helps boost the credit score and I haven't carried any of the cards in a long time so less impulse to buy whatever. They're in my office desk and I see them maybe once a month when I check over all the bills. I buy cars used and would rather have a 5-10 year old car and do some maintenance and repairs rather than pay a big interest to a bank. My return is pretty much 100% when I pay for maintenance and repairs, but how much of the loans are just for the bank's service? IDGAF about banks getting richer. Only real debt I have is student loans and I'm actually getting that forgiven AND the 10 years I have to pay for that forgiveness by the loans themselves while I finish my doctorate. lol After my kids are grown the wife and I are likely becoming mini-nomads. I can work online and will likely take on a role as an online professor or move up with the state as I am now, IDK what she will do but she will find something just to occupy some time at least. She can likely find something where she translates as she is fluent in Spanish too. There are so many places where the cost of living is miniscule and I love travelling, so we will likely travel and stay for 3-6 months at a spot then come home for a few months to see family. IDK exactly yet but I know I'm not working my butt off until I'm in my 70s. Wife has been getting a TON of details for Portugal, Thailand, etc for a few years. We buy cars new and then run them into the ground…as in, I “drove” mine to the scrap yard with a tow cable and got $375 cash for it. But now we are at the point where my “new” 2010 Ford Focus is ~135K and we need a bigger family vehicle, so I’m considering trading that one in for about $1,500 and biting the bullet on a new family vehicle, having the current one (Ford Escape) being my work vehicle , and that I intend on aggressively paying off this new one…but the thought of a car payment sucks. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MWil23 Posted March 29 Share Posted March 29 5 hours ago, Sugashane said: Wife has been getting a TON of details for Portugal, Thailand, etc for a few years. Check out Malaysia. You might be pleasantly surprised. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malfatron Posted March 29 Share Posted March 29 33 minutes ago, MacReady said: All debt and credit is dumb. Think of it like digital media 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forge Posted April 4 Share Posted April 4 Nah, I'm one of those people who likes to buy stuff lol. Especially big stuff. If I want to buy a new car, I'll buy a new car. If I want to upgrade my house (either through a new house via selling the existing one or renovation) I'll upgrade my house and I won't really think twice about it once I've made the decision to do so. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sugashane Posted April 5 Share Posted April 5 4 hours ago, Forge said: Nah, I'm one of those people who likes to buy stuff lol. Especially big stuff. If I want to buy a new car, I'll buy a new car. If I want to upgrade my house (either through a new house via selling the existing one or renovation) I'll upgrade my house and I won't really think twice about it once I've made the decision to do so. @Forge is starting to sound a lot like a certain owner... 😏 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forge Posted April 5 Share Posted April 5 2 minutes ago, Sugashane said: @Forge is starting to sound a lot like a certain owner... 😏 If only I could get that yacht, man....if only 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ramssuperbowl99 Posted April 5 Share Posted April 5 Speaking of all the purchasing questions and whether or not the quality is worth it, anyone have strong opinions on where the line for a quality vacuum versus meh? I want to get one and be done with it for a decade so I started looking at Sebo/Miele/etc, but the idea of spending upwards of a grand on a vacuum is also nuts to me on its face. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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