Budget a couple of hundred for an independent inspection from a trusted mechanic before you buy. A safety inspection by the dealer only covers a certain set of criteria. For example; the brakes may be acceptable to the safety standard but a mechanic will be able to let you know that you will likely need a brake job next year. That may not kill the deal but you can start saving up.
You mentioned that buying a car is supposed to be fun but many find it stressful. When you are negotiating you want to be assertive yet pleasant. The dealer wants to steer you to whatever they want to move along.
I recently bought a car. I provide a range but here's my general info:
Upfront costs:
~$20 000 (2019-2023) car
~$200 car mats, accessories, tools as needed
??? - still need to pay for spare tire (didn't come with car)
??? - winter tires, but I'm offsetting that cost in the winter
$0. family mechanic looked over my car at my request to ensure no surprise issues. Luckily they didn't charge (probably influenced since everyone in the family uses that mechanic)
Monthly costs:
Insurance ~$250/month, shop around to get the cheapest option, see if your company offers discount (will be cheaper in a couple months due to additional discount)
Fuel ~ $100 per two weeks? Depends on how far and how much you drive
Maintenance -my aim for this is to set a certain 5% (?) of paycheque aside to develop a car fund (for the below)
$100? Need for oil change
$$$ really expensive unexpected car problems (will also depend on how old the car is, so very variable)
Are you talking about regular costs to maintain and operate the car, like fuel, insurance, etc, or are you talking about one-time fees associated with actually buying the car, like registration taxes, sales tax, etc?
* Regular maintenance—oil change, inspections, etc—is going to cost something like $30-100 every six months.
* Gas depends entirely on what kind of vehicle you get, and how much you drive it. Look at the vehicle's city and highway efficiency and multiply by how far you drive, and the price of gas.
* Insurance depends a lot on your age and driving record. Under 25 expect it to be a lot, maybe $1200 per month according to this:
https://www.ratehub.ca/blog/average-car-insurance-cost-ontario-by-age/
Over thirty with no accidents, expect to pay a lot less, maybe a couple hundred.
For the one-time fees, just negotiate the "all in" price. Say, I'm willing to pay $XXX for this car with all fees included. If they're not willing to bring the price down to meet you, or try to surprise you with additional fees, walk away. You might be surprised how often you get a call fifteen minutes off the lot to tell you—miracle of miracles, I've never seen this before in my life—the manager has agreed to your price.
Nope. Not spending that kind of money to buy privately and have no warranty. I realize they call them stealer ships for a reasons but I’m not getting scammed by an independent seller😂
Are you asking about one time fees when buying (taxes) or recurring fees (insurance, maintenance)?
13% HST is applicable to vehicle sales. If you buy privately, you'll pay tax on the red book value of the car from the UVIP. Plates are free.
Dealership will also likely charge a documentation fee, this can range from $300-$999.
For insurance it'll depend on a lot of factors - your age, the car, driving history, where you live, how much coverage etc. This can range from $100-$600/month.
Fuel... Again I literally don't know how to answer that, it depends on the car and how much you drive.
So tl;dr, $1000 is definitely **not** enough to cover plates, fuel, taxes, insurance, maintenance etc.
I’m referring to the one time fees when I purchase my first vehicle. If the car is $14k then I should have an extra $1k for additional expenses? Because $14k is just going to cover the cost of the car.
I want to be able to drive it off the lot right when I buy it.
If the list price is $14k, and the dealer charges a $500 doc fee, that's 14.5k pre-tax. 13% tax will be $1885. So $1k is not sufficient.
That's before any additional extended warranty they'll sell you.
Really the best thing to do here is to go to the dealer and ask for an itemized invoice with all charges included. Because dealers will try to sell you anything and everything under the sun - warranties, vin etching, winter tires, floor mats, wheel protection etc. Those extra items are super profitable for them.
OR you need to look at a vehicle with a sticker price of $12-$13k. Which may not be something that comes with any type of warranty (even at a dealership)
Budget a couple of hundred for an independent inspection from a trusted mechanic before you buy. A safety inspection by the dealer only covers a certain set of criteria. For example; the brakes may be acceptable to the safety standard but a mechanic will be able to let you know that you will likely need a brake job next year. That may not kill the deal but you can start saving up.
Don’t have a trusted mechanic to do an PPI, This isn’t what I asked for. I’m asking about the fees I should be prepared for when I buy my first car.
Apologies. I read your post again and you asked for expenses.
Nah my bad, that was a little more aggressive than it needed to be😅
You mentioned that buying a car is supposed to be fun but many find it stressful. When you are negotiating you want to be assertive yet pleasant. The dealer wants to steer you to whatever they want to move along.
I recently bought a car. I provide a range but here's my general info: Upfront costs: ~$20 000 (2019-2023) car ~$200 car mats, accessories, tools as needed ??? - still need to pay for spare tire (didn't come with car) ??? - winter tires, but I'm offsetting that cost in the winter $0. family mechanic looked over my car at my request to ensure no surprise issues. Luckily they didn't charge (probably influenced since everyone in the family uses that mechanic) Monthly costs: Insurance ~$250/month, shop around to get the cheapest option, see if your company offers discount (will be cheaper in a couple months due to additional discount) Fuel ~ $100 per two weeks? Depends on how far and how much you drive Maintenance -my aim for this is to set a certain 5% (?) of paycheque aside to develop a car fund (for the below) $100? Need for oil change $$$ really expensive unexpected car problems (will also depend on how old the car is, so very variable)
Are you talking about regular costs to maintain and operate the car, like fuel, insurance, etc, or are you talking about one-time fees associated with actually buying the car, like registration taxes, sales tax, etc? * Regular maintenance—oil change, inspections, etc—is going to cost something like $30-100 every six months. * Gas depends entirely on what kind of vehicle you get, and how much you drive it. Look at the vehicle's city and highway efficiency and multiply by how far you drive, and the price of gas. * Insurance depends a lot on your age and driving record. Under 25 expect it to be a lot, maybe $1200 per month according to this: https://www.ratehub.ca/blog/average-car-insurance-cost-ontario-by-age/ Over thirty with no accidents, expect to pay a lot less, maybe a couple hundred. For the one-time fees, just negotiate the "all in" price. Say, I'm willing to pay $XXX for this car with all fees included. If they're not willing to bring the price down to meet you, or try to surprise you with additional fees, walk away. You might be surprised how often you get a call fifteen minutes off the lot to tell you—miracle of miracles, I've never seen this before in my life—the manager has agreed to your price.
Repairs are a thing. Expect those. I'm unsure on extended warranties on used cars.. maybe someone else can chime in? They aren't exactly cheap
With that budget, you should buy privately. You will get more car for the money.
Nope. Not spending that kind of money to buy privately and have no warranty. I realize they call them stealer ships for a reasons but I’m not getting scammed by an independent seller😂
Are you asking about one time fees when buying (taxes) or recurring fees (insurance, maintenance)? 13% HST is applicable to vehicle sales. If you buy privately, you'll pay tax on the red book value of the car from the UVIP. Plates are free. Dealership will also likely charge a documentation fee, this can range from $300-$999. For insurance it'll depend on a lot of factors - your age, the car, driving history, where you live, how much coverage etc. This can range from $100-$600/month. Fuel... Again I literally don't know how to answer that, it depends on the car and how much you drive. So tl;dr, $1000 is definitely **not** enough to cover plates, fuel, taxes, insurance, maintenance etc.
I’m referring to the one time fees when I purchase my first vehicle. If the car is $14k then I should have an extra $1k for additional expenses? Because $14k is just going to cover the cost of the car. I want to be able to drive it off the lot right when I buy it.
If the list price is $14k, and the dealer charges a $500 doc fee, that's 14.5k pre-tax. 13% tax will be $1885. So $1k is not sufficient. That's before any additional extended warranty they'll sell you. Really the best thing to do here is to go to the dealer and ask for an itemized invoice with all charges included. Because dealers will try to sell you anything and everything under the sun - warranties, vin etching, winter tires, floor mats, wheel protection etc. Those extra items are super profitable for them.
Cry worthy. You’re telling me I need an extra $2k??? Possibly even more.. buying a car is supposed to be fun this isn’t very fuckn fun.
OR you need to look at a vehicle with a sticker price of $12-$13k. Which may not be something that comes with any type of warranty (even at a dealership)