I have snipped a couple more apron strings tethering me to southern California.
About 6 months before I left, I had leased this new 2004 Honda Accord LX in August of 2004. I'm always proud of the deals I'm able to find. The key, I think, is doing your homework and then waiting for the deal to pop up and then seizing it. This little beauty was had for $2,000 down and $99/month for three years at 12,000 miles per year. Yep, you read that right and I typed it right...$99/month!
When I moved back to NY, I honestly didn't know what I was doing. My partnership had just ended, I had no place to live, I was in debt, I didn't have a job. I was a mess. With the Lucy theme from yesterday, I joined the "Friends of the Friendless." Although I will say my life has always been blessed with incredible friends!
So I packed up all my belongings and put them in storage. And there it all still sits at $90/month. But the car. What to do with the car? I had never leased one before and didn't really know what to do. Was I going to move back to CA after a short stint in NY? Can I turn it back in to the dealer? Can I sell it even though it isn't technically mine?
In the end, my bff said she'd watch it for a while. A while turned into nearly three years. The best part is that it worked out for both of us. She got a sensible car for motoring about town, and I benefited because she paid me the $99/month!
One reason I've only ever owned Hondas (Civic, Accord, Legend, Accord) is their high resale price. At the end of the lease, I paid off the $11,500 balance on a credit card and my bff agreed it was time to sell it and she'd take care of that. I got $13,000 for it...$1,500 over the pay off figure. I practically made money on the car. That is what the American car companies need to face when they try to win back market share.
For now I'm driving my Mom's Chevy Cavalier. I don't go very much so it's completely adequate. I've got my eye on the Chevy Volt expected in a couple of years. Perhaps Chevy resale prices will have recovered. Or I can swallow the added cost knowing I'm doing the best I can to improve the world.
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Sunday, April 06, 2008
She's Gone
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3 comments:
That was a sweet deal. I'm a Toyota girl for exactly the same reason, their resale value. Plus you can practically run them into the ground and get 200K miles out of them AND still sell it. Amazing.
No kidding, moodyblue! I drove my cheap little '78 Corolla (price new: $5300) for 14 years, sold it to partner's brother-in-law, who drove it HARD for 3 more years, and he then sold it to a college student. For all I know, it's still rolling around somewhere. Cars don't rust here in the Wild West, so if you keep 'em in good repair they last a looooong time, at least I can vouch for Toyotas and Subarus (my Sube is 16 and still in great shape). Actually, I have serious Mini Cooper lust now, so I sort of WISH it would croak...
--Alex
Alex! We owned the same car!! When I was in high school I drove my Mom's 1978 brown (No power steering - no power anything..AM only radio) Toyota Corolla. It was in our family for 15yrs. Then when I was 21 I sold it to an friend of a friend's sister. Me too, for all I know, it could be still rolling around. It was in terrific shape. No rust, no dents...It had over 200K when I sold it. As long as you keep up with oil changes & regular tune-ups..those babies can go!
-- Jodi :)
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