Robert J Durham

Remember that $30,000 car you bought (sorry, financed)? Well, after the five-year term you agreed to, you’ll end up actually paying $33,223 total. On top of that, cars go down in value. The dealer won’t tell you that your awesome new car will lose 60% of its value within the first five years. So by the time the new car smell wears off, you’ve paid $33,223 for a car that’s worth maybe $12,000. I know the idea of not having a car payment isn’t as easy or as flashy as the car commercials make financing out to be. But with some hard work, determination to stay out of debt, and some patience, your life could be dramatically better five years from now.