If you want or need to save a lot of money quickly, get rid of an extra car. For folks with a car payment, selling can free up $500.00 or more per month. Of course it takes some fancy logistics and lifestyle adjustments to become accostomed to the single car (or no car) life, but $500.00 per month might be worth it to you.
For several years, our family made it with one main vehicle (plus a motorcycle, which did make things a little easier). The success of this relied heavily on me being a homemaker (i.e. staying at home, for the most part), as well as doing errands on the weekend when we were both going to town or the truck was available for me to use. Though we never did have a car payment, our transportation costs went up significantly when we purchased a second used car for me to drive. Below are the costs for a seven-year-old Grand Prix. $8.33 /month registration $110.00 /month insurance $0.05 per mile wear & tear (oil change & tires) $10.00 /month car wash $2.50 per gallon gas Total costs: Driving 25 miles per week: $144.33 per month Driving 50 miles per week: $179.00 per month Driving 75 miles per week: $213.00 per month These were the actual costs for the Grand Prix that we bought. They don't include the purchase cost of the car, which was $4000. Here's an interesting fact. If I use "my" car twice per week making a 25-mile round trip to town, each trip costs $22.37. That's a high price to pay for running out of flour or mailing a package! Meet the Smiths: One Car vs. Two The Smith family drives 2000 miles every month. Both cars get 23 miles per gallon. Father drives his car to work and Mother uses her car to do errands and other odd jobs. Below we demonstrate the difference between driving one car 2000 miles and using two cars to drive 2000 miles. One car: $2.50/gal. gas x 87 gallons = $220.00. Add $100.00 for wear and tear and $130.00 for fixed monthly costs, and you get a total of $450.00 Two cars: $110.00 for 43.5 gallons of gas, plus $50.00 for wear and tear, plus $130.00 fixed monthly costs equals a total of $290.00 per car. Multiply this by two cars for a total of $580.00. In addition to the extra $130.00 per month in fixed costs, there are other small costs associated with Mrs. Smith, a stay-at-home mom, having her own car. When she goes grocery shopping on Tuesday morning, she likes to stop at the Salvation Army to see if they have any good bargains. Every week she finds something to add to her stash of crafting supplies. And while she's out, she buys herself a cheeseburger at McDonalds, and also gets the kids a treat off the Dollar Menu, because it's almost lunchtime anyway. On Thursday afternoon she meets with the ladies' bible study at church. Again, she buys herself a treat at the Starbucks because it's her day out and she deserves it. On Saturday morning she remembers that she has a baby shower to go to and didn't get a gift! Whoops! And she's also out of flour, so she makes a trip to Walmart. Then she goes home, wraps the gift, and then off to the baby shower. Well, the day came when money got tight. Mr. Smith's hours got cut, Baby Smith had to go to the doctor and Junior Smith had to get a cavity filled. Mrs. Smith's car kept breaking down, and because of the money shortage they decided to sell it. The first week was pretty rough. Mother got groceries on Sunday after church. The kids were whining and hungry. It was a temptation to go to McDonalds but she put her foot down and said no. On Tuesday she missed getting out of the house and shopping at the Salvation Army. But she spent the afternoon sorting out her craft supplies, and actually finished a project that she had forgotten about. Thursday was a dilema. Mother wanted to go to Bible Study, but Father needed the car to go to work. After some thought, they worked out an arrangement. Mother drove Father to work, used the car for Bible Study and then picked Father up at work when he was done. Again on Friday she ran out of flour, but instead of making cookies for Junior's Sunday school class, she made jello squares. This went on for the entire month. At the end of the month, the Smiths reviewed their budget. They had saved $102.00 in vehicle costs, even with Mother dropping Father off at work once per week. In addition, they had an extra $4000.00 from selling Mother's car. Mother had cleaned out her entire craft room and finished several projects. They spent $20.00 less eating out, and Mother had not spend a dime at the Salvation Army. She kind of enjoyed less clutter, anyway. Another month went by and they did not find another car for Mother. As the weeks went on, Mother spent less and less time on Craigslist looking at cars. Her craft room had long since been cleaned and was now functional. She had found an old bike in the garage and started taking the kids out on bike rides now and then. They discovered that bicycles are an actual form of transportation and not just for fun! Sometimes Mother would take the kids to the library or get them a treat at the corner store like old times. Junior started picking up cans to recycle, and now had his own little fund to buy treats with. Sometimes on their rides, Mother found a useful medicinal plant and showed it to the kids. Then they would take it home to use for tea. A year has now gone by. Instead of Father going to a ball game on Saturday and Mother going shopping, they have found new hobbies/dates that they both enjoy, like visiting museums. When Father does go to a game, Mother goes too... and when Mother goes shopping, Father goes with her. Father likes it when his wife shares his interests, and Mother has discovered that Father really knows how to find a bargain. The kids like it when Mom and Dad get along, and they love being a part of all the fun! And what is this? An extra $1224.00 per year of wiggle room in the transportation budget! Not only that, but there seemed to be even more extra money. Selling the car had caused a trickle-down effect in many other areas. With Father working to bring in money and mother working at home more to save money, the Smiths found that they had more cash than they needed. Though fictional, this story illustrates some of the challenges and rewards of being a one-car family. It's not for everyone, but downsizing your vehicle fleet can be a great idea in many cases. Saving With Fuel Efficiency? A common misconception is that you can save money on gasoline (and therefore, save money overall) if your second car is super fuel efficient. Our primary vehicle was a big gas-guzzling diesel truck. At 16 miles per gallon it cost $5.00 in gas for a 25-mile round trip to town. If I kept my personal trips to a minimum, we got by with just $20.00-$30.00 worth of personal (non-business) miles per month. This was still cheaper than using another car for $145.00 per month. If Hubs had not been hauling big loads for work, we would've driven a much smaller, fuel-efficient car. During the summer, we used a motorcycle for personal use and "pleasure riding". This was a better deal than a car not because of fuel efficiency (it got around 35 mpg with both of us on it) but because of insurance, which cost $22.00 per month as opposed to $110.00 per month. The Illusion of "Freedom" Many homemakers view "their" car as a symbol of freedom, or their way to escape the boredom of stay-at-home motherhood. Part of being a homemaker, and especially a stay-at-home mom, is relinquishing feminist priviledges. You don't get your own job, your own house, your own, schedule, your own money. You are trading all of that in for the rewarding job of being a parent. The basis of feminist thinking is that children are a drain on society, and on mothers in particular, and mothers shouldn't be tied to taking care of their children. That is truly what it all boils down to. When moms think they have "freedom" because they have their own car, I find it laughable. We turn over our freedom the minute we say "I do", and what freedoms we still have are stripped away as children come. Of course as children and relationships mature we get some of our freedoms back. But I remember being three or four weeks into motherhood and feeling like my life was entirely over. My body was flabby, still sore and bleeding from childbirth. I couldn't run or jump. I wasn't getting more than a few hours of sleep per night. I was doing good to make a meal and put in a load of laundry every day, at the beck and call of my helpless, unthankful infant. The highlight of my life was watching Poldark. I felt like I was just as helpless and pathetic as my baby. It took a year or two to feel like a shadow of the person I used to be. Having a second car will not magically turn you into a childless, single person; the only women who are (in the feminist sense of the word) actually free. How to Get By With One Car Here is how Hubby and I got by with one main vehicle. Wife doesn't work outside the home: If you work part time or don't make a lot of money at your job, half of the earnings are probably being sucked back into your car and/or childcare. Look into working from home in some capacity. Errands done together: Banking and post office stuff can be done online. We buy our groceries and other supplies on Sunday when we drive into town for church. Going to club meetings/parties/events: When I was single, I had all sorts of hobby-ish things I would drive to. Band practices, church activities, garden club. When I got married, I quit most of those things unless they could include my family. There is not enough time in the week to split between my regular duties as a mother/homemaker and outside-the-home activities. Now, my hobbies are often things I can do conveniently at home, or out and about with my husband. I know it's culturally unpopular to adapt your life to your family's, but aside from building a better marriage it is actually quite efficient financially. For the rare event that we both needed the vehicle at the same time, we employed the "carpool with other guests" trick, or the "drop off and pick up" technique used by the fictional Smiths. Don't drive separately: Many spouses drive to church separately every week. Sometimes one person has to be there an hour earlier (or stay an hour later), and the other person doesn't want to wait. It's sometimes convenient to drive separately, but I'd rather entertain myself for an hour than keep a second car just for this purpose. Driving kids around: It's pretty easy to have an at-home life with kids under age five, especially as an at-home mom. I would always recommend having someone you can call for a car in the case of an emergency. Looking back on my growing-up years in a large family (and thus, several emergency room visits), I don't remember my mother EVER driving to the emergency room alone. She was always holding the injured/sick child while someone else drove. Thankfully my dad was often home when those things happened (it seemed to always be on a Sunday...), and when he wasn't my grandparents lived a mile down the road; a phone call away. Whether you have a second car or not, always be prepared for emergencies and try to limit those risks as much as possible. For example, learn first aid and CPR. Keep fire extinguishers in your house. Keep a close eye on your kids, especially if they are very young. Don't let a non-verbal toddler wander outside alone. Don't leave your baby alone in the bathtub. I know these sound like common-sense things, but you'd be surprised at how lax many parents are in regards to safety. A second car will not necessarily save your child in a life-threatening situation. It will be your watchful eye and first-response skills that will make or break it. Unless you live in the deep wilderness of Montana or some other remote place, you'll likely be able to rely on neighbors for help in a true emergency. Now, for non-emergency transportation needs: you'll have to be creative and flexible when it comes to getting around with kids. Don't forget about bikes, walking, public transportation or other alternative modes of getting around with children. Nowadays they make all sorts of seats, carts, and tag-along implements for bicycles. A stroller makes walking with toddlers or babies easy, and also allows for a little cargo space. Again, keep safety in mind—I always travel with some pepper spray and stay in safe areas when biking or walking. In our rural area we don't have taxies or a subway system, but we do have a "blue bus" that will pick you up or drop you off somewhere for a very small amount of money. Have you ever gone without a second car (or any car at all!)? Was it easy or hard?
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About PrudenceI am a Christian homemaker who lives in the Midwest. I enjoy sewing, gardening, reading and thrifting. Archives
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