And to read the fine print of every financial transaction.
When my older son bought his first car, and he was paying cash for it (about $5,00 with a check) he took the time to read the entire contract, which took at least thirty minutes, since he's not a very fast reader. Fortunately, the salesman was quite comfortable with this, even though the car lot wasn't going to make any additional money on the financing.
If the first car your kid buys needs to be financed -- I do understand the realities of life -- push VERY hard that he (or she as the case may be) finance over as short a time frame as is possible. NEVER buy a car under conditions that mean you owe more than it is worth. NEVER. And when you come to the end of the financing period, keep on putting aside that payment into a savings account, so that after a time, even if it's only three or four months, you've saved up the money for a down payment for your next car.
Better yet, pay cash in the first place. A few months after my older son bought his first car, the younger son, now a sophomore in high school, came to me and asked what kind of car payment his brother had. I said, none. Brother paid cash for his car. The younger son was amazed at that concept, and it was obvious that among his classmates a common conversation revolved around the cost of buying a car. A year later, when the younger son was buying his first car, I made it clear that what he could afford was the money he'd saved up over the years. (I'd made them save half of their allowances, as well as half of the money their grandparents had given to them for birthdays and Christmas. It's amazing how that can add up.) It was enough to buy a reasonable first car, and the replacements he's made since then (two so far) have always been paid for in cash.
Many years ago, long before either son was in the car buying mode, when my husband's car had died, and it was going to need replacing, I was rather surprised that he rented a car for a few weeks while he was in the car hunt process. He pointed out that most people are actually purchasing a loan payment, rather than the car itself. I got it. So a few months ago when the car my younger son was driving died, and needed replacing, I told him to rent a car while he was on the car hunt. He did so. He even parked the rental car a block or two from the car lots he was visiting so that they wouldn't know he was in pretty dire need of a new car. It worked out. He got a car that fit his needs, without the pressure most people experience under those circumstances.
I actually love buying cars, and if you want more information, PM me.
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