Create a Budget
Before you set your heart on a car you should get your finances together and have a general idea of how much you are spending every month in order to figure out what type of car you can afford. The best way to organize your finances is by creating a budget for yourself. Organize your monthly income and expenses so that by the time you get to Step 3 it will be easy to tell how much you can spare towards paying off a car.
Here’s a list of things that people often need to budget out:
- Income: Your salary
- 401(k)
- IRA
- Rent
- Utilities
- School loans
- Car payments
- Credit card payments
- Cable
- Medicine
- Cell phone
- Computer
- Internet
- Gym fees
- Groceries
- Eating out
- Alcohol
- Laundry
- Breaks/Vacations
- Beauty
- Clothes
- Transportation
- Performances/Entertainment
- Pet care
- Gifts for friends and family (birthday, holiday)
If you would like to be walked through the budgeting process, see “I Need To Create A Budget.”
| Calculate the Monthly Payments You Can Actually Afford |





