fbpx
:::: MENU ::::

Reasons to not sell our truck…

by

Oops! Some readers have recently posed the question…

Why don’t you sell the truck?

I neglected to explain the reason we’re carrying the truck payment. It’s funny that no one noticed the debt on the truck earlier. It wasn’t until we paid down enough on the rest of our debt to make the truck HALF our total debt that someone asked about it.

My husband had a Chevy that gave out on us a few years ago and he’s one of those few people who actually need a full size truck for work. He tows trailers, fills it with concrete, moves landscaping, etc. A reliable full sized truck isn’t an option… it’s a requirement. We financed a Toyota truck for 26K two years ago and at the time, it was a great deal – or at least that’s what everyone likes to think after leaving a used car dealer.

Fast forward a few years, a few gas hikes, and a few construction related dents later and suddenly…

The truck is more than just a little upside-down – it’s hanging from its toe nails.

We’d MAYBE be able to sell it to someone for 8K… if we made them test drive it in the dark and promise them it got 58 miles to the gallon completely powered by canola oil. But since we’re honest folks, that’s not an option. Plus, we’d have to buy another full sized truck reliable enough to take the 25 – 30 thousand miles a year he drives for work.

Take the nearly 5 thousand we’d have to pay for our upside-down loan and add it to the cost of another truck and it just doesn’t make sense. I’d rather bite the bullet, pay if off by mid-year next year, and have a truck I know works for us.


14 Comments

  • Reply dogatemyfinances |

    What? I thought he worked for the government. He hauls government concrete?

    There’s a lot on this blog that doesn’t add up, like your basic math. The reason no one “asks” about it is because we don’t know it.

    Maybe your problem is 30K miles (!!!) in a huge vehicle. That’s awful.

  • Reply Rini |

    If you’re able to pay it off in the next year, Dave Ramsey would say you can keep it.

    Tell the rest of the complainers to shove it. ;P

  • Reply Rae |

    I started to reply and see that Rini gave the same answer I was going to give. “Dave Ramsey says…”. We did the same thing with our truck. It wasn’t so much a requirement as yours is, but it was a want we just weren’t ready to sell. We accelerated payments and got it paid off quickly.

    I am curious if you have a goal for your Debt Free date? Would love to hear what it is if you have one!

  • Reply Jiggypete |

    I agree…I was just posing the question. If you have a plan to kill the car debt ASAP, then go with that. I contemplated that with both of our cars, but we were able to wipe out the debt in less than a year. If you can do the same go for it, and always buy used. I have theory that I can buy almost anything that I would want for less than $10K.

  • Reply Margot |

    I hope that you at least see that it’s ridiculous to have bought such an expensive truck in the first place given its purpose. Hopefully your husband will only buy used trucks in the future. For half the price (or less), you can get a truck that is perfectly capable of doing the work and going the miles but that someone else has already taken most of the depreciation on. Any car your husband drives for work is guaranteed to depreciate especially quickly given the dents, miles, etc. No need to take the depreciation on a new car. That’s a waste.

  • Reply moonstars11 |

    To the very first poster dogatemyfinances, maybe before you attack Beks you really need to go back and read some of her blogs. Her husband has APPLIED for a government position. He is NOT in government, he is in CONSTRUCTION. I found all of that info out in less then 5 minutes. Beks is the one who works for a government agency. It’s called reading…..

    To Beks,
    I say if you can have it paid off in the next year then I would bite the bullet too! Being that much upside down in debt is not a good idea to tack it onto another loan. Then you are no longer just trying to pay off one vehicle, you are paying off TWO! I know I have been there and learned from that! It sucks. Good for you for being smart about it! Have a great day!

  • Reply Niki |

    My, my, some people can be so judgmental(Margot and dogatemyfinances) You both should write a memoir on how to live life perfectly!

    Beks, I agree with you that keeping it a paying it off quickly is the best choice. My husband and I are in the process of buying a truck. Thanks to your post I am resolved to buying a used one. Thanks!

  • Reply family man |

    Of course most folks never wnat to end up upside down on any loan, but with the market, and the eceonmy being what it is, you take what you can get. Rather than dwell on it it sounds like you plan to get it paid off by next year it the best option.

  • Reply The Gooroo @ Finance Advisory Stop |

    Alright, that answers my question as to why you just wouldn’t sell the car. I knew there had to be a reason, but I just wasn’t sure what that reason was.

  • Reply L |

    I never comment, but Margot’s comment (“I hope that you at least see that it’s ridiculous to have bought such an expensive truck in the first place given its purpose.”) got me thinking. Most of us are in debt because of bad, or atleast not great decisions. I definitely would have chosen different things years ago before I realized I was heading down a very expensive path!

    I think it’s cool you’re being honest about it and I say ignore those people. Evidently they are very smart with their money, and not very encouraging, so why are they reading a blog about getting rid of debt?

    Most of us are here to be encouraged because we’re facing the same hard choices and feeling the same frustation at times. I say keep growing and learning and do what’s best for y’all:)

  • Reply Beks |

    dogatemyfinances – If you could be specific as to what ‘doesn’t add up’ I’d appreciate it. I’ve been honest about it from the beginning – including my husbands job in construction and his recent application for a government position. My husband rarely works the same jobsite and has to always carry a heavy load of tools – hence the 30K miles in a large truck.

    Rini – I heard him say that as well! I’m a huge Dave Ramsey fan!

    Rae – Our official date is April 2011 but we’re running a bit ahead of schedule and would like to be debt free by the end of 2010 – 2 years after we started this journey.

    JiggyPete – We always buy used but the engine and size requirements with special tool boxes run around 20K used.

    Margot – As I said in the post, the truck WAS used when we bought it. As I said to JiggyPete, my husband requires a specialty engine size, tow packages, and tool boxes.

    Moonstars11 – Ha! Thanks for backing me up! And thanks for the encouragement!!

    Margaret – Thanks!

    Nikki – Ha ha! I’d love to read it, just so I could see how to live my life perfectly! ; )

    Family Man – Thanks, that’s what we’re looking to do. It’s our best option in my eyes.

    Gooroo – Thanks for asking! It’s nice to get it on the table. I should have talked about it earlier.

    L – You are so kind and encouraging! Thank you!

  • Reply emmi |

    I think your analysis of your truck situation, at this point, is right on. Given that an unreliable truck will cost more, pretty quickly, paying enough to buy that reliability is worth it. Call it rent if it feels better because of the upside down aspect… but eventually, you’ll be out from under it.

  • Reply Jen |

    I agree that what you are doing is your best option. The only way that selling a car would make sense is if you sold the car that’s paid off, but if you absolutely need both vehicles, then you have no other choice at this time.

So, what do you think ?