What is an affordable car payment? (2024)

What is an affordable car payment?

According to our research, you shouldn't spend more than 10% to 15% of your net monthly income on car payments. Your total vehicle costs, including loan payments and insurance, should total no more than 20%. You can use a car loan calculator to calculate a monthly payment within your budget.

What is a reasonable monthly payment for a car?

In general, it's recommended to spend no more than 10% to 15% of your monthly take-home income on your car payment, and no more than 20% on your total vehicle expenses, including insurance and registration. Read on to learn how you can determine how much car you can afford based on your financial situation.

Is $500 a month too much for a car?

How much should you spend on a car? Whether you're taking out an auto loan or a personal loan to pay for your car, it's a good idea to limit your car payments to between 10% and 15% of your take-home pay. If you take home $4,000 per month, you'd want your car payment to be no more than $400 to $600.

How do you calculate affordable monthly car payment?

It depends on how much income you have after your bills and expenses. But as a rule of thumb, your car payment should not exceed 15% of your post-tax monthly pay. For example, if after taxes, you make the U.S. median income of $37,773, you could shop for a car that costs up to $472 per month.

What car can I afford with 80k salary?

2019 Honda Civic. The Honda Civic was named best small car by MotorWeek, and with three styles — hatchback, sedan and coupe — it can fit anyone's aesthetic. The Civic is affordable to own with fair credit whether you make $80,000, $70,000 or $60,000.

Is $700 a month a lot for a car payment?

The pandemic and resulting supply-chain issues, inflation, rising interest rates all play a part. Depending on whom you ask, the average car buyer in the U.S. is paying $657 (Edmunds.com) or $712 (Moody's) a month for their new vehicles.

What car can I afford with 50k salary?

If you make a $50,000 gross salary, after taxes (depending on where you live) your monthly take-home pay is roughly $3,230. Based on the 10% rule, you could afford, at most, a $323 monthly car payment. If you take out a 60 month (5 year) auto loan at 8% interest, you can afford a $17,000 car.

What car can I afford with 70k salary?

How much car can I afford with a 70k salary? Based on the 20/4/20 rule, with an average interest rate, you can afford a $19,000-20,000 car on your $70k salary.

What is the 50 30 20 rule?

The 50-30-20 rule recommends putting 50% of your money toward needs, 30% toward wants, and 20% toward savings. The savings category also includes money you will need to realize your future goals. Let's take a closer look at each category.

What's a high car payment?

A high car payment is a subjective term and can vary depending on a person's individual financial situation and priorities. Generally, however, a car payment is considered high if it exceeds 10-15% of a person's gross monthly income.

What is the rule of thumb for car payments?

As a general rule of thumb, many experts suggest following the 20/4/10 rule, which holds that you should set aside 20% of a car's purchase price for a downpayment, take 4 years to repay your car loan, and ensure that your monthly transportation costs don't exceed 10% of your monthly income.

What is the 20 3 8 rule?

The 20/3/8 car buying rule says you should put 20% down, pay off your car loan in three years (36 months), and spend no more than 8% of your pretax income on car payments. As we go into depth to determine how realistic this rule is, you may consider whether it can actually help you budget for your next car.

What is the 20 4 10 rule?

First and foremost, the 20/4/10 rule is not a law. It's more like general guidelines and a way to plan for vehicle expenses. Basically, the rule goes that you provide a down payment of 20% of the balance, sign a loan for a four-year period, and pay no more than 10% of your monthly income on car expenses.

What salary can afford a 100k car?

In that case, you need to consider groceries, utilities, and other household expenses. To afford a $100,000 car, it's probable you need to make $300,000 a year conservatively after taxes. For this example, we use our car payment calculator and approach it using the price of the car of $100,000.

How much should I spend on a car if I make $100000?

Starting with the 1/10th guideline, created and pushed by Financial Samurai, this guideline states: buy a car in cash that costs less than 1/10th your gross annual pay. If you make $50,000 you should buy a car in cash worth $5000. If you make $100,000, the car you buy should be worth no more than $10,000.

What car can I comfortably afford with my salary?

Financial experts recommend that your monthly payment should be around 10% to 15% of your monthly take-home pay. Additionally, your total monthly car expenses should be no more than 20% of your monthly income, and this includes your car payment, insurance, maintenance and gas.

Why is monthly car payment so high?

Soaring interest rates have pushed monthly payments for financed new cars to an all-time high, according to Edmunds. The share of borrowers with payments over $1,000 jumped to 17.5%, the highest since at least 2019, and four times as many as before the pandemic.

How do people afford $1,000 car payments?

But according to Edmunds, there's another reason why $1,000 monthly payments are becoming more common: Some buyers are taking out loans with shorter-than-normal financing terms to score a better financing deal, which means higher monthly payments. Endurance offers extended protection for your vehicle.

What is the most expensive car payment per month?

At $25,000 per month, this supercar has the most expensive car lease ever.

Can I afford a 30k car?

According to our research, you shouldn't spend more than 10% to 15% of your net monthly income on car payments. Your total vehicle costs, including loan payments and insurance, should total no more than 20%. You can use a car loan calculator to calculate a monthly payment within your budget.

What car can I afford on a $60000 salary?

How much should I spend on a car if I make $60,000? If your gross salary is $60,000, your take-home monthly pay is probably around $3,750, assuming about 25% of your pay goes toward taxes and other expenses. Based on the 10-15% calculation, you should spend no more than $562.50 on a monthly car payment.

How much do I need to make to afford a 40k car?

For net monthly income, you're gonna need to make four thousand. six hundred and sixty seven dollars per month. So before taxes and other deductions, at a minimum. you'll need to make 70 thousand dollars per year. to afford a 40 thousand dollar car.

What is the 20 4 20 rule?

20% down — be able to pay 20% or more of the total purchase price up front. 4-year loan — be able to pay off the balance in 48 months or fewer. 10% of your income — your total monthly auto costs (including insurance, gas, maintenance, and car payments) should be 10% or less of your monthly income.

How big of a car payment can I afford?

Financial experts answer this question by using a simple rule of thumb: Car buyers should spend no more than 10% of their take-home pay on a car loan payment and no more than 20% for total car expenses, which also includes things like gas, insurance, repairs and maintenance.

How do you justify buying a new car?