Van suggestions...

[eric832]

I'm looking into buying a new van to start my VanDwelling life. I want a brand new one because I don't want to worry about having mechanical problems while I'm just starting out. I'm looking into the 2015 Ford Transit Connect XL. It seems very spacious and gas-efficient. And it looks like a work van, so it has that element of stealth. I'm confident I can get one with a very reasonable monthly payment, and I still plan on working full time to support myself for the foreseeable future. Any comments or suggestions...?

 

[Belinda2]

Do not buy a new car if you are making payments. Buy used. Save your money until you can afford to buy in cash.

 

[eric832]

Do not buy a new car if you are making payments. Buy used. Save your money until you can afford to buy in cash.

My concern is that if I buy used I could run into significant mechanical problems, it could get expensive, it would be a major inconvenience, and I would have to pay for the mechanical work all at once, which is taking a big hit all at once. If I buy new, the vehicle would be very reliable, it would have a warranty, and I would only have a reasonable monthly payment, which is feasible. Rebuttal?

 

[RobBob]

Obviously, the optimal situation would be to be able to buy a new vehicle by paying cash for it.       Not too many can afford this, though.  I can see both sides...new vehicle offers a predictable monthly payment, where a used vehicle is always somewhat of a gamble, unless one is a mechanic (or related to one).  The thing about a new vehicle with loan payments is that they seem to go on forever.  Which is not so much of a problem if you are very sure that your financial situation is stable.  The last car I had a loan on, I bought the week before my husband unexpectedly lost his job.  If your car is just your daily driver, and you can't make the payments anymore, you lose your car.  But if your van is your home and you can't make the payments, then what happens?

Others have suggested getting the newest vehicle you can afford to pay cash for.  I personally might stretch that to something that could be paid off in a reasonably short time, say, a year or so, while still being able to put money into an emergency fund.

Just some food for thought.  

RobBob

 

[Almost There]

I'm looking into buying a new van to start my VanDwelling life. I want a brand new one because I don't want to worry about having mechanical problems while I'm just starting out. I'm looking into the 2015 Ford Transit Connect XL. It seems very spacious and gas-efficient. And it looks like a work van, so it has that element of stealth. I'm confident I can get one with a very reasonable monthly payment, and I still plan on working full time to support myself for the foreseeable future. Any comments or suggestions...?

IMO, just because it's new does not mean that it won't have mechanical problems. One of us has had her new Sprinter tied up for over a month now with problems.

If you absolutely want brand new then at least make sure that it's completely paid off before the warranty runs out which most time payment plans don't do. In a lot of cases the payments are so gentle that the depreciated value of the vehicle is less than what you owe. In the case of loss from an accident people end up owing more than the insurance payout.

You also want to check out insurance rates BEFORE you buy. Make sure that what you're buying can be insured in your jurisdiction as a personal use vehicle and that the rates for that van aren't sky high.

 

[HarmonicaBruce]

Personally, I love being able to stand up in the van.  My first van was an 89 dodge, and not being able to stand up got old fast.

 

[ilovemyvan]

Our van is a Ford 2003, we paid $2,500. I read somewhere that when you buy an "older" used car you should expect to spend at least one time the price of the vehicle on repair. Over a period of a year, we paid twice that. We were anticipating it. The van is a second vehicle, seldom used other than for traveling. We now have a very dependable van. I don't think we would have gone that route if that was our only mode of transportation. We would have buy new.

Ford has a pretty good reputation IMHO. I love the company big time for the fact that they were pretty much the only ones not getting government subsidies during the great recession. That spoke volume to me. The van we have now is my second E-150. What can I say I like them.

Eric, one approach might be to buy new and make your monthly payments the same amount that your are paying for your rent at the moment. Not only it would be pay very fast but you would save a bunch of money in interest. After the van is all paid for it is still quite new with many years of free vandwelling left in it if maintained properly. That strategy required discipline however. It is very easy to find excuses every month and not stick to your strategy. If you are the kind of person that has the discipline to do it, go that route (I must confess I don't think I would have the discipline to do it that way). If you're not buy a newish one not a very old one. Ask the owner to show you all of the maintenance invoices. Look at the dates closely to make sure the van had been taking care of properly. Just my 2 cents.

Good luck

Nicole

 

[waldenbound]

Ford Transit Connects are very small, tiny, and come from who knows where foreign country. The regular Transits are much roomier, and they are made in Kansas City.

 

[sillysal54]

I love my dodge caravan with the stow and go. I can see the advantage of the higher roof in the transit, but I like the finished interior....maybe a girl thing though. If you can afford new, are sure you will have enough money to make the payments then go for it! I like your ambitious, well thought out plan.

 

[mconlonx]

 Not only it would be pay very fast but you would save a bunch of  money in interest.

Just make sure at time you are signing loan papers that there is no penalty for early payoff...

Eric832 -- middle ground might be to buy used from a dealership if they offer some kind of standard warranty. I was eyeballing a '11 Transit Connect recently at a local dealership. Not the same style as the one in which you are interested, but same function -- smaller van, better on gas. I've heard mixed reviews about them, but there's another thread around here somewhere where people posted a couple of compact build-outs in them. Still too expensive for me at the moment -- I have taken a solemn vow to avoid loans/debt -- but I will be looking at compact vans when the time comes in the Fall to get another van and I have cash saved up.

 

[Ella1]

Just make sure at time you are signing loan papers that there is no penalty for early payoff...

One *no penalty loan* I took out required more money at the startup than if I had agreed to not paying it off early. Don't kid yourself-the banks/lenders will get ALL the money they can.
I don't know if it holds true with other loans, but when paying extra on home loans, make sure that extra payment check is marked clearly that it's for the PRINCIPAL ONLY, otherwise it will be used as a partial principal and interest payment.

 

[Ella1]

One *no penalty loan* I took out required more money at the startup than if I had agreed to not paying it off early. Don't kid yourself-the banks/lenders will get ALL the money they can.
I don't know if it holds true with other loans, but when paying extra on home loans, make sure that extra payment check is marked clearly that it's for the PRINCIPAL ONLY, otherwise it will be  used as a partial principal and interest payment.

and welcome!

 

[eDJ_]

Some businesses purchase vehicles as soon as they start to ship the new year models. So they purchase a 2016 in
October (or earlier) of 2015 thus allowing them to fleet the vehicle 15 or more months and still be able to sell it
in the same model year. They will have also been able to depreciate part of it's value. I believe that if you purchase a vehicle that is less than 3 years of age that you can continue to depreciate it's value, provided you are in some kind of business where you have sales and keep books/pay taxes on earnings. Or you can write off all the gasoline it uses. Since you are working full time already can you imagine taking on some kind of self employed small biz where you could have a used car that you drive back and forth to work and use the Van to run errands or whatever a few days a week in your small biz. Thus you could purchase it almost new and purchase extended warranty from Ford so long as it has 50K or less mileage on it. Here you could live in something you are depreciating on your taxes. If you purchase new you will get a lower interest rate.

Lets say you run a private courier service where you run small parcels of Documents from one side of town to another site a couple times a week. Not using much gas but being in biz enough to justify the tax advantage to depreciate a portion of the Vans value each year. Remember, no one knows you're going to be living in it. LOL

Your accountant may be able to show you some other write off's too. Just drive the older economy car to work each day, and live out of the Van. You could have small magnetic signs to fix to the doors just for when you deliver. That would have you looking ligit.

But this is just an idea to kick around. The key here would be STEALTH. You wouldn't want anyone knowing you live in it as your primary residence. You'd have a Cell, a PO Box, and have an address you can claim as
your domicile. (Parents Basement ?)

 

[Binxie]

I'm looking into the 2015 Ford Transit Connect XL.

I just bought a Ram Promaster City, which is a competitor and pretty much the same size as the Transit Connect, though not as long as the XL. I've been working on my conversion plans for months and just started doing the physical conversion. I hope to be done with the conversion and on the road at the end of the month. Both models seem a bit too small to use as a mini-house on wheels, IMHO.

I decided to "live out" of my van rather than "live in" it. In other words, it's going to be basically a bed and storage. My little sleeping space is the size of a one-man tent or one of those Japanese capsule hotels.

A buddy tried to talk me into a bigger van. He was like, "Are you going to get burned out if you're stuck lying in your little bed for a week because of bad weather? Will that end up costing you more if you throw up your hands and rent a motel room?" Valid question! ... I think I'll be fine with it, balanced with hanging out in coffee shops or whatever to get out of the coffin. But not everyone would feel the same. It's a pretty tight space.

 

[ZoNiE]

Ford Transit Connects are very small, tiny, and come from who knows where foreign country. The regular Transits are much roomier, and they are made in Kansas City.

Turkey...
Yeah, Turkey!

 

[GotSmart]

Turkey...
Yeah, Turkey!

Now I am Hungary!  

I am following this, as I need to expand, and get a newer and more professional looking van.  

I think I will start walking around the different lots today... :s