Progress

[Carmella]

As people who are here regularly know my husband and I are car sharing with a dead car still being paid for sitting in the driveway.

It hasn't been easy and husband would always ask about getting a car to go to/from work. We don't have cash to buy a "cheap junker" so we would have to finance which is a hassle through the trustee/court system. Our jobs make it workable to share even though it's not that convenient.

For some reason he thought I said we could get a car next year. I never said that. Then last night he asked how long have we been/have left in BK. It is over end of April 2023. Then he said maybe we should hold off getting a car since we were going to wait a year anyway what's a few more months and then we don't have to deal with the trustee/courts.

It takes stress off of me if he's at peace waiting and then he even said maybe he could take my car which is a 2017 compact car and I could get a new (or new to me) car. I would like something bigger even though I do enjoy the compact car and the mileage. It would be nice to have both. Not sure what we will do when the time comes. My car has a lot of mileage on it and I really want him to have a back up camera since he has difficulty backing up and he's not getting any younger (nearing retirement). I think I rather get him a newer used car, it can be the same brand as mine, and I will keep mine a little longer and then eventually get a larger car.

I really don't think it's financially sound for us to get a new car at this time especially if I am put on hold again for my second job. It's nice he's on the same page so we don't have any disagreements/arguments.

[shipo]

Congratulations Carmella, having a plan and being at peace with it is 90% of the battle.

Funny thing about enforced car expense economy due to a Chapter 13, prior to 2008/2009 economic meltdown, I'd driven new cars almost exclusively, and then "life" happened, and then a few years later, Chapter 13 happened. The irony of my situation is, I didn't feel it was ethical to follow my attorney's pre-filing advice to buy a new car (a decision I now sort of regret), so I entered my bankruptcy with a (then) 14 year old car with over 150,000 miles on it. The car was mechanically sound and could probably have gone an easy 300,000 miles, had corrosion not gotten the better of it.

As I've mentioned before, during my fourth year of my bankruptcy, I was forced to buy a new(er) car for cash (depleting my meager savings and forcing the "beans and weenies" diet on my stomach for the next six weeks); at the time the car was 11-years old and had 114,000 miles on it; here's where the irony part comes in, my "new" car now has 175,000 miles and is in awesome condition both mechanically and cosmetically, and can easily last many more years with relatively minimal maintenance expenditures. In fact, I like the car so much, if I do end up buying something new in the next couple of years, it may well be a weekend car specifically for enjoyable "weekend" types of driving.

[Barbisi]

As people who are here regularly know my husband and I are car sharing with a dead car still being paid for sitting in the driveway.

It hasn't been easy and husband would always ask about getting a car to go to/from work. We don't have cash to buy a "cheap junker" so we would have to finance which is a hassle through the trustee/court system. Our jobs make it workable to share even though it's not that convenient.

For some reason he thought I said we could get a car next year. I never said that. Then last night he asked how long have we been/have left in BK. It is over end of April 2023. Then he said maybe we should hold off getting a car since we were going to wait a year anyway what's a few more months and then we don't have to deal with the trustee/courts.

It takes stress off of me if he's at peace waiting and then he even said maybe he could take my car which is a 2017 compact car and I could get a new (or new to me) car. I would like something bigger even though I do enjoy the compact car and the mileage. It would be nice to have both. Not sure what we will do when the time comes. My car has a lot of mileage on it and I really want him to have a back up camera since he has difficulty backing up and he's not getting any younger (nearing retirement). I think I rather get him a newer used car, it can be the same brand as mine, and I will keep mine a little longer and then eventually get a larger car.

I really don't think it's financially sound for us to get a new car at this time especially if I am put on hold again for my second job. It's nice he's on the same page so we don't have any disagreements/arguments.

Wow, Carmella what you guys are planning to do is exactly what we've have done for nearly 20 years - I take the older, paid off car and my husband buys a new car which he drives until it's paid off,etc. We certainly didn't end up bankrupt due to lavish expenditures on fancy autos, LOL!
I'm glad your husband sees the logic in waiting out the BK13 to get a second vehicle, thus bypassing trustee and court control and permission. That way, you don't have to settle for a crappy old clunker. It does suck that you have to keep making car payments on that non-working junker!
In our case, a newer used car would be a gamble in 2022 -we don't want anything that needs repairs , at least for a few years - our goal is a new car with an extended warranty from a truly reputable company (no more Nissans ,please!) which will be covered when we implement our out of state move.
The plan is to use a portion of the home sale proceeds to buy a decent, fairly attractive comfortable midsize sedan or SUV style car which will not cost an arm and leg (i.e. no luxury BMWs, Lexus', Mercedes,etc.)
shipo, I'm sure you'll get the perfect car when the time comes -you've managed everything splendidly so far and I'm sure you'll be rewarded with your dream weekend getaway car!

[shipo]

Thanks Barbisi, I'm thinking my best move before I do anything for myself automotive wise would be to get a newer car for my wife. Yeah, I'm driving a 2006 (which I love) and she's driving a 2016 (which she likes, but not as much as her previous *money pit* VW GTI), and like you, I'm thinking a mid-sized SUV. I've been doing some shopping and think the sweet spot for such a vehicle is the Mazda CX-5, or possibly the new(ish) Mazda CX-30.

[Zombie13]

Carmella, sounds like you and your husband are in agreement regarding the car. That's great news! Keep on keepin on!