Buying a car

[jtrac]

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I will be starting med school in August and need to buy a car (because NYMC is in the burbs). Now obviously this isn't the smartest thing to do with alm ost no money in my bank account and zero earning potential over the next four years BUT,

has anyone else done this in my position? Does anyone know of financial institutions that offer preferable rates to students (without it being a student loan which can't apply to a car)? Is there any way to get a personal loan and defer payments for 4 years? or is it only student loans that offer such a long term deferment?

 

[doc05]

there's no reason why you can't use your student loan for a car. Check with your financial aid office for your budget. There's almost certainly an entry called "transportation."

 

[Deleted member 72527]

I will be starting med school in August and need to buy a car (because NYMC is in the burbs). Now obviously this isn't the smartest thing to do with alm ost no money in my bank account and zero earning potential over the next four years BUT,

has anyone else done this in my position? Does anyone know of financial institutions that offer preferable rates to students (without it being a student loan which can't apply to a car)? Is there any way to get a personal loan and defer payments for 4 years? or is it only student loans that offer such a long term deferment?

Hey jtrac 🙂
A fellow NYMCer 🙂. I'll be starting in August, too. The allowance for transportation is 1,398 (for 10 months) if living on campus and 1798 if living off campus. The one thing you should factor in is insurance premiums. I pay about $70 a month for insurance on a 2001 Volvo right now in NC. In NY I was told my premiums would be more like $120 a month (I have been in a couple accidents, but none of them made my insurance go up). So, car insurance alone in NY could run you 1200 for the year. My insurance company tends to have premiums on the higher end (but they are a breeze to deal with). If you are going to buy something, make sure you know how much the premiums are going to be and how much gas it's going to use before you buy it so you can factor that stuff into your budget. We also have that lovely "Miscellaneous" category. I expect that the school will eat some of that up (scribe service, various expenses, car repairs, plane tickets home, cell phone, clothing whatever your expenses are) so you may have a bit of a cushion. My advice - find the cheapest reliable car you can. Try certified pre-owned - the warranties go for a while so you won't have to worry about repairs. If you finance it for five years your monthly payments will be low. Make sure you look for a low-interest car loan (bankrate.com is GREAT or try a credit union if you belong to one). Some dealers also have good incentives for certified pre-owned (msn.com, the automotive section had reviews on them). Hope this help!!

Ashley

 

[topworm]

I will be starting med school in August and need to buy a car (because NYMC is in the burbs). Now obviously this isn't the smartest thing to do with alm ost no money in my bank account and zero earning potential over the next four years BUT,

has anyone else done this in my position? Does anyone know of financial institutions that offer preferable rates to students (without it being a student loan which can't apply to a car)? Is there any way to get a personal loan and defer payments for 4 years? or is it only student loans that offer such a long term deferment?

I've had a lot of experience buying cars this past year... PM me if you have questions, there is a lot you need to know to not get screwed over!

 

[zion]

I've had a lot of experience buying cars this past year... PM me if you have questions, there is a lot you need to know to not get screwed over!

what is the best place to look for a used car, what to examine when looking at a car, how to get the best price, what year should be the absolute minimum, whats a good deal on a car thanks like a 2000 camry, 70k miles, etc.

Thnx alot.

 

[AStudent]

there's no reason why you can't use your student loan for a car.

Way to read that master promissory note 👍

It's not like you made some *****ic comment anonymously on an internet message board that could have resulted in the poster facing jail time if he/she got caught......oh wait. Crawl back into your hole troll.


http://www.ccis.edu/offices/financialaid/lenders.asp

You must use money received from student loans for education-related expenses only. You can't use loan funds to buy a car.

 

[jtrac]

right, well i knew that i couldn't use student loans. Even a private student loan would have to run through the med school's fin aid office and you aren't allowed to take out more aid than the estimated student budget (at any school so i think its an AAMC thing).

Thanks for the help though. I haven't really broken down what I would use the funds in the "miscellaneous" category for. I was thinking i may have to put it towards food because the 360$ per month doesn't sound like much in westchester county, ny (i eat a lot).

Oh well, I appreciate the advice. Lets just cross our fingers and hope that a 3000 can buy a car to last 4 years.

 

[samenewme]

right, well i knew that i couldn't use student loans. Even a private student loan would have to run through the med school's fin aid office and you aren't allowed to take out more aid than the estimated student budget (at any school so i think its an AAMC thing).

Thanks for the help though. I haven't really broken down what I would use the funds in the "miscellaneous" category for. I was thinking i may have to put it towards food because the 360$ per month doesn't sound like much in westchester county, ny (i eat a lot).

Oh well, I appreciate the advice. Lets just cross our fingers and hope that a 3000 can buy a car to last 4 years.

$360/month for food for one person? Look for an Aldi to get your groceries and learn to cook. You can spend the extra money on car insurance.