Why do so few Americans save to purchase big-ticket items, such as automobiles? I saved five years to acquire a 2016 Subaru Outback through writing a check for this vehicle. Perhaps, American consumers do not believe in deferred gratification.

For a person buying their very first automobile, it may depend on how far they have to walk or ride a bike to their new job, or how good the local transportation is by bus. Some folks really need a car just to get to work OTOH, you don't need an expensive car for your first one. Try to save enough to pay at least a half down, then payments on the shortest time-span you can manage. As Sal said, payments can become a burden if they continue after the fun of newness has worn off. You can always save for an upgrade a few years later. Always make sure any payments on credit will fit easily into your budget. For cars, remember to consider the cost of insurance, maintenance and annual registration fees in addition to the basic cost of your vehicle.

how can i avoid debt early in life?

by not abusing your credit card and always pay it off

What is the difference between short and long term goals?

the time frame that you wanna go for like a short term goal would take maybe a few months to a year while a long term goal would take over a year to accomplish

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Course: Personal finance > Unit 2

Lesson 1: Advice for individuals

What advice do you have for new grads?

Name: What advice do you have for new grads?
Uploaded: 2017-05-31T06:30:04Z
Description: Learn to live thoughtfully! Resist the urge to splurge on fancy items that lose their appeal over time. Instead, save money for experiences, stress relief, and future freedom. This approach to personal finance can lead to a more fulfilling life.

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Learn to live thoughtfully! Resist the urge to splurge on fancy items that lose their appeal over time. Instead, save money for experiences, stress relief, and future freedom. This approach to personal finance can lead to a more fulfilling life.

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William Janis
Posted 7 years ago. Direct link to William Janis's post “Why do so few Americans s...”
Why do so few Americans save to purchase big-ticket items, such as automobiles? I saved five years to acquire a 2016 Subaru Outback through writing a check for this vehicle. Perhaps, American consumers do not believe in deferred gratification.
Button navigates to signup pageComment on William Janis's post “Why do so few Americans s...”
(9 votes)
Answer
- Harriet Buchanan
  Posted 7 years ago. Direct link to Harriet Buchanan's post “For a person buying their...”
  For a person buying their very first automobile, it may depend on how far they have to walk or ride a bike to their new job, or how good the local transportation is by bus. Some folks really need a car just to get to work
  
  OTOH, you don't need an expensive car for your first one. Try to save enough to pay at least a half down, then payments on the shortest time-span you can manage. As Sal said, payments can become a burden if they continue after the fun of newness has worn off. You can always save for an upgrade a few years later. Always make sure any payments on credit will fit easily into your budget. For cars, remember to consider the cost of insurance, maintenance and annual registration fees in addition to the basic cost of your vehicle.
  Comment on Harriet Buchanan's post “For a person buying their...”
  (22 votes)
suriel21949
Posted 7 months ago. Direct link to suriel21949's post “how can i avoid debt earl...”
how can i avoid debt early in life?
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(4 votes)
Answer
- 25dorluk
  Posted 6 months ago. Direct link to 25dorluk's post “by not abusing your credi...”
  by not abusing your credit card and always pay it off
  Comment on 25dorluk's post “by not abusing your credi...”
  (4 votes)
Eloise Griffith
Posted 9 months ago. Direct link to Eloise Griffith's post “What is the difference be...”
What is the difference between short and long term goals?
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(2 votes)
Answer
- Kali
  Posted 2 months ago. Direct link to Kali's post “the time frame that you w...”
  the time frame that you wanna go for like a short term goal would take maybe a few months to a year while a long term goal would take over a year to accomplish
  Button navigates to signup page
  (3 votes)
Noah
Posted 6 months ago. Direct link to Noah's post “Is it good to have a loan...”
Is it good to have a loan in your interest? For example, would you want to have a loan to build credit so the bank could build, so to speak "trust you"?
Button navigates to signup pageComment on Noah's post “Is it good to have a loan...”
(2 votes)
Answer
britaingabrielle
Posted a year ago. Direct link to britaingabrielle's post “wow my god”
wow my god
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(2 votes)
Answer
OmiStd8
Posted 4 months ago. Direct link to OmiStd8's post “1. Short Term Gain is not...”
1. Short Term Gain is not worth Long Term Pain. Think about the future.
2. Save whenever you can
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(1 vote)
Answer
Dillan W.
Posted 6 months ago. Direct link to Dillan W.'s post “Why does it feel like the...”
Why does it feel like there is more that he is saying but then the video abruptly ends?
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(1 vote)
Answer
Logan Maire
Posted 9 months ago. Direct link to Logan Maire's post “can money give you freedo...”
can money give you freedom?
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(1 vote)
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- Suimei
  Posted 8 months ago. Direct link to Suimei's post “Yes, money can give you f...”
  Yes, money can give you freedom. If you have enough money then working for money becomes optional and not mandatory. Granted you need to really have a lot of money for that to work.
  
  For example, if your monthly expenses is around $5,000 ($60,000 yearly) then you'd need around $600,000 total money invested in something like S&P500 where the average yearly return is 10% (you get $60,000 yearly for the $600,000 you invested) and that's for life (or until there's a recession or stock market crash where your $600,000 you invested may become $300,000)!
  
  Not the best example but you get the point. You'd most likely need even more money to account for things like inflation, stock market crashes, taxes, etc.
  Button navigates to signup page
  (1 vote)

Video transcript

- Be thoughtful about how you live. Whatever your income, it's very tempting, you've worked so hard for all of these years, to say, oh, now I have a income, I'm getting real money. Let me go buy a fancy car, or let me go get a really fancy apartment. Sure, treat yourself a little bit, but really think about those implications, because that fancy car, yeah, maybe those first few weeks, you're gonna get really excited about it when it's all squeaky clean and new and your friends are all wanting to get a drive with you, but after a few months, it's kind of gonna wear off, and you're gonna still be paying the loan on that fancy car. At that point, you might actually view it more as a burden than something that's actually giving you joy. You're just like, oh, why didn't I just buy a cheaper car, then I would have paid it off by now, and then I would have all this money that I could either use it for other things, have good experiences, go on vacations, I wouldn't be as stressed, or, I could be saving that money for my retirement or having a nest egg or having an option that if at some future point, retirement is one thing, and you should definitely be saving for that, but especially when you're, early in your career, you should be saving so that you have freedom to do what you want.