What kind of car do you drive?

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What kind of car do you drive?

Jeff Sims
Residential Real Estate Broker · Greensboro, NC · Member since 2015 · 14 posts · 68 votes

Just a fun post here. I have been a SFR investor for 15 years and now have $2M in rental RE while working a full time career. The cash flow was tight for years it seemed but the snowball of debt paydown is rolling big time now and I'll be able to "retire" in 2 years with enough cash flow to replace my salary.

That said, I can't imagine having a car payment and only buy used vehicles. I drove a 1999 Jeep Grand Cherokee (to haul all my rental supplies) for 7 years and the engine blew a year ago with 275k miles. I made a significant upgrade and replaced it with a 2000 Jeep Grand Cherokee with 110k miles and paid $3,600 cash.

I don't need the status symbol of a new vehicle nor the monthly payment and living well below my means is my motto. As Dave Ramsey says, "live like no one else today, so you can live like no one else tomorrow".

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Roy N.Pro Member
Rental Property Investor · Fredericton, New Brunswick · Member since 2013 · 7k+ posts · 4k+ votes
11y

My preferred ride:

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  • Amy Aziz
    Specialist · Los Angeles, CA · Member since 2019 · 587 posts · 269 votes
    6y

    I drive a 2013 Nissan Leaf!! Fully electric and not at all flashy.

    0Reply
  • Ismail Guzey
    Member since 2020 · 7 posts · 0 votes
    6y

    2012 Peugeot IMIEV electric. I also own a 2003 Mercedes 220 e, rarely driven. Live in Europe by the way.

    0Reply
  • James McCard
    Investor · New Hartford, CT · Member since 2016 · 282 posts · 104 votes
    6y
    Originally posted by @Jim K.:

    I dislike this thread and the overwhelming automotive cupidity it so very clearly reveals among many Bigger Pockets users. It's a box with wheels that gets you from Point A to Point B. If you believe your car says vastly important things about who are, well then the most important one is that you're a vain and silly sucker.

     I am not sure I agree with this. For some of us it isn't a box with wheels that gets you from Point A to Point B the car that gets you there is the point. I really enjoy fixing cars and I am a glutton for punishment. It also probably helps that I run a repair garage as my W2 job. Most of the cars I thought were cool in high school have hit the bottom of there depreciation curve and in a budget I can find a really bad example of one for next to nothing.  I do think that my cars say vastly important things about me. If I am a silly sucker, I'm going to be the silliest sucker there is. 

    BTW what does "who are," mean?

    2Reply
  • Jim K.
    Handyman · Pittsburgh, PA · Member since 2018 · 5k+ posts · 13k+ votes
    6y
    Originally posted by @James McCard:
    Originally posted by @Jim K.:

    I dislike this thread and the overwhelming automotive cupidity it so very clearly reveals among many Bigger Pockets users. It's a box with wheels that gets you from Point A to Point B. If you believe your car says vastly important things about who are, well then the most important one is that you're a vain and silly sucker.

     I am not sure I agree with this. For some of us it isn't a box with wheels that gets you from Point A to Point B the car that gets you there is the point. I really enjoy fixing cars and I am a glutton for punishment. It also probably helps that I run a repair garage as my W2 job. Most of the cars I thought were cool in high school have hit the bottom of there depreciation curve and in a budget I can find a really bad example of one for next to nothing.  I do think that my cars say vastly important things about me. If I am a silly sucker, I'm going to be the silliest sucker there is. 

    BTW what does "who are," mean?

    "Who you are," writing on my phone is challenging for me.

    In high school, I too thought that a pair of shoes manufactured in one Chinese sweatshop rather than another were cool. In grade school. I had a Trapper-Keeper with a hologram on it. In college I actually paid two hundred bucks for a leather backpack. In grad school I bought a hand-stitched presentation and note folder. Almost as good as the Trapper-Keeper.

    All these things were SO important to me. All these things defined my style, said a lot about who I was. Back then I was broke for miles, of course. I had to be, to care about sucb silly things.

      0Reply
    1. Tom GimerBusiness Member
      DMV · Member since 2017 · 3k+ posts · 3k+ votes
      6y

      @Jim K. I was going to update with a photo of my newest Ducati and then I saw your post. Try to enjoy life a bit bro! You can’t take it with you.

      Gimer Law516 Reviews
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      3Reply
    2. Scott Mac
      Austin, TX · Member since 2019 · 5k+ posts · 5k+ votes
      6y
      Originally posted by @Jim K.:

        The Trapper Keeper: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J5czEGnl2Wo

        And:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=axFYm48ZW2w 

        0Reply
      1. Jim K.
        Handyman · Pittsburgh, PA · Member since 2018 · 5k+ posts · 13k+ votes
        6y
        Originally posted by @Scott Mac:
        Originally posted by @Jim K.:

          The Trapper Keeper: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J5czEGnl2Wo

          And:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=axFYm48ZW2w 

          You make this way too easy.

          https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=06BFsQ_28Co

          1Reply
        1. Justin Reid
          IL · Member since 2018 · 22 posts · 4 votes
          5y
          0Reply
        2. Justin Reid
          IL · Member since 2018 · 22 posts · 4 votes
          5y
          Originally posted by @Shawn M.:

          Currently I only have three vehicles, but I have had over 20 cars in my liftetime.  Real estate investing end goal will be a car collection.  I used to flip cars back in high school to make money for college.  

          My garage today, subject to change in a few months:
          - 2007 Toyota FJ Cruiser (winterbeater)

          - 1992 Toyota Pickup 2WD (the work truck)

          -1998 Toyota Supra Twin Turbo 6-speed (now a single turbo, and for funsies)

          Funny thing is the FJ and Supra are actually APPRECIATING assets in today automotive market. 

          1Reply
        3. Annie Johnson
          Realtor · Seward, AK · Member since 2017 · 136 posts · 79 votes
          5y

          We did the whole buy used thing and ended up spending 1-2k a year for repairs. We went through 3 different vehicles in 10 years. We ended up buying a newer- 2018 Pacifica and my husband's 2015 Tundra both with cash. We plan on driving those cars to the ground before buying cash again. That 50-60k could have been used to purchase more rentals but having a reliable vehicle for us is so important. They are both not very fancy or flashy, and I definitely don't feel like a baller in my minivan, but I'm happy we did it. 

          1Reply
        4. Cindy Bacigalupo
          Flipper/Rehabber · Aliso Viejo, CA · Member since 2020 · 29 posts · 32 votes
          5y

          @Jordan DeLozier

          Not if you are structured properly. In California for my s Corp, the deductions for new vehicles are amazing. I love my used Audi q3 with no payment but those deductions are tempting!

          0Reply
        5. Caleb Robertson
          Real Estate Agent · Austin, TX · Member since 2020 · 366 posts · 54 votes
          5y

          Ford Fusion! Perfect business car. Great style but not flashy.

          0Reply
        6. Nadia O.
          Member since 2020 · 82 posts · 100 votes
          5y

          Love all comments! I owned 2013 Toyota RAV4. I used to owe infinity G35 when it first came out. But I couldn’t justify the maintenance prices. Got rid off it & still driving my old Toyota. It’s all paid off & still a great car for many years to come. I rather spend next down payment on stocks or even save for another investment property. Don’t car about flashy cars at all. 

          0Reply
        7. Rob Gillespie
          Specialist · Cleveland, OH · Member since 2011 · 1k+ posts · 852 votes
          5y

          The boring Ford truck is my daily driver. 

          I Took it as a partial downpayment on a Rent To Own House. I LOVE driving that around every day, BUT I do find myself doing tasks that are not what I need to spend my time on. 

          I have a few "fun" cars, but I am really a Mercedes guy.  One of may irresponsible cars is a Tuned AMG. I do like some of the more exotics, but Mercedes has  car building down to a science. 

          No matter what I buy, houses or cars, I have to do the math to get it at the right number! 

          0Reply
        8. Lee Fuhr
          Rental Property Investor · Fort Wayne, IN · Member since 2020 · 13 posts · 10 votes
          5y

          This!  All day long.  The millionaire next door will never actually "look" rich, and that's what allows them to "be" rich.  Status symbols just detract from the goal of getting to that place where you have enough money that you can care less about how much stuff costs.  I can't wait to get there too!

          0Reply
        9. Jacob Bohrer
          Rental Property Investor · Canton, OH · Member since 2020 · 58 posts · 22 votes
          5y

          @Jeff Sims As soon as I get interested in real estate investing I got rid of my off the showroom floor new car and got a 2003 Hyundai with 87k miles on it for $1,700 cash. Drives great, it’s been a year and I love the savings!

          0Reply
        10. Mike A.
          Port Chester, NY · Member since 2016 · 210 posts · 157 votes
          5y

          You guys still use vehicles? Bahhh.. I take my lear jet each visit each property. It's the only way to use transportation. Due to the pandemic though, we no longer use 100 dollar bills for toilet paper. It's now just 50 dollar bills. Need to cut back..

          - This is a joke BTW. I have a 2010 Ford Explorer. Works wonderful.

          1Reply
        11. Tom HarkinsPro Member
          Rental Property Investor · DC Area · Member since 2019 · 101 posts · 54 votes
          5y

          @Jeff Sims 2007 Honda Civic. As a landlord I’d never want to drive to a rental property in a flashy car.

          0Reply
        12. Stephen Masek
          Investor · Mission Viejo, CA · Member since 2012 · 627 posts · 204 votes
          5y

          Wow, this is still going!  I now drive a 2021 AMG GLE63S - a 603 HP, 0-60 3.4 seconds, reported 174MPH top speed east, but it gets 1 MPG better than the 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee V8 it replaced, is great road trip vehicle, and I use it for work, meaning I carry tools, ladders, and test equipment.   I paid cash (bank check), no loans for me.  My wife's car is a 2017 BMW 340iGT we found with just 5,000 miles on it, a smooth, powerful, just outright excellent vehicle.  Both are problem free.  

          0Reply
        13. Calvin Matthews
          New to Real Estate · Member since 2020 · 50 posts · 16 votes
          5y

          Hello. My wife and I bought a Tesla Model 3 2020 new. Here's why we went with this car:

          -I have asthma and my son has a respiratory issue, so driving electric means at least from our car we don't breathe dirty emissions. Also when the car is on "idle" in a parking lot, drive through, or other place we're also not breathing dirty emissions.

          -We have to travel with medical equipment and doing that+shopping or doing other daily activities is hard with a tiny electric car like a Leaf or Bolt. It would be a struggle or even impossible to fit everything.

          -Mobile service can fix a majority of problems (if you're not aware, Tesla has a mobile service that will go to the vehicle to do repairs on most jobs). Since again we have to travel with medical equipment, it's a hassle to bring a lot of stuff around and it's much easier to just have a rep come to my car.

          -Model 3 is one of the safest cars ever tested.

          -Sentry mode (cameras surrounding the car that record while the car is in motion or parked). If someone were to break in to the car or damage it while driving or even if there was an altercation that just so happened nearby, I could get that recorded and use that as evidence to fight my case.

          -My previous car was a Pontiac Grand Prix which had so many problems, some of which mechanics couldn't diagnose. ICE cars have so many parts so it's so confusing to fix. I didn't want to deal with that ever again.

          I also agree in that I don't need the status symbol, but when it came to safety and health of my family it was hard not to go with this. Overall my wife and I are glad that we got it.

          0Reply
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