Saving For a Car Here Is How You Can Buy Your First Car

A shiny new set of wheels, that could be the envy of your neighbours, is certainly on everyone′s list. In today′s ′wheeled vehicle′ era, buying a car is a challenge in itself, thanks to the market being overloaded with a variety of cars at different range of prices, but arranging for funds to buy it is an even greater task. It has almost become a fad to switch cars within a few years, yet your first car will always remain special. It only pans out that you give a lot of thought before you make that final call to the dealer for a new car.
Should You Save For a Car?
Although the economic value of your car depreciates, but we cannot account for in rupee terms the amount of satisfaction derived from travel in your own car; no price tag is attached to the joy & pride of owning one.
Use your savings to buy a car with cash, only if you can afford it, to avoid the burden of a loan. Or else you could consider taking a car loan. It helps leverage one′s budget and one can reach for a higher model of a car vis-?-vis what one would have otherwise bought.

• Set a Goal Set a timeframe and earmark funds for buying a car. Whether your heart is already set on a car or not, you must do a thorough market research to look for the car that would suit your needs and pocket best. You must compare car prices over the net, take advantage of steep competition in the automobile industry by pitting car dealers against each other, consider your car choice from every angle like maintenance, beware of aggressive sales pitch and know the post sales running costs that you will have to shell from your pocket ? tax, fuel, insurance and monthly EMI (if you take a loan). Don′t hurry to buy a car. Invest your time in looking at cars on road, meet different dealers and understand the key features of the car & read reviews of car users online.
• Work on your Budget Saving is the surplus income left with you after your expenses and investments. It is crucial to stay realistic where money matters. Being over optimistic could result in the fallout of your plan. Figure the monthly household running costs and give them priority in your budget. You must set some funds aside for situations where there is a sudden drop in your income ? such as due to a lost job. Plan a budget that will help you save more.
• Start saving The prevalent mantra is to cut down on expenses to save more. But there are certainly more ways than one to boost your savings.
• Get yourself a savings account, if you don′t already have one.
• Keep it separate from your salary account and preferably use it only for saving funds.
• Ask for an account which is linked to FD like sweep accounts. In these type of accounts, funds in multiple of 5, 000 or 10, 000 are auto debited to make a linked fixed deposit which can be easily drawn even through an ATM. This way you earn higher interest and hands on cash is also available.
• Don′t put all your eggs in one basket. Considering your horizon, you could invest in other saving vehicles such as provident fund, post office saving schemes, government bonds, short term mutual funds etc.
• By staying on top of your bills you not only help increase your CIBIL score but also save quite a lot of money. On time bill payments mean no late fees or penalties.
• Invest in insurance policies such as medical insurance, home insurance, etc. to help you tide over certain common large expenses and save money for you.
• Use any windfall gains such as a performance bonus or money received as gift from elders to add to your pool of savings
• Set a target amount you feel comfortable saving each month and you can supplement it with income from taking additional work like part time or freelancing assignments.
• Cutting on Expenses Always look for deals and offers, use vouchers, shop for necessities only, take short vacation to nearby locations or avoid them temporarily, sell off your old under-utilized stuff. Try to cut on expenses such as rent that take the lion′s share of your budget. For example, you could shift out of a larger apartment or share your flat with a roommate. Curb your temptations to spend excessively on movies and dine-outs etc.