Can we afford a $105k Range Rover or LX570?

[Anonymous]

I went from a Range Rover to a Subaru ascent. The ascent is a much better car.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would only buy a Range Rover if I was sure nobody I knew would see me driving it. Great cars, but have become such a cliche status symbol that they are undrivable in my view.

Sounds like you care way too much what others think of you!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I went from a Range Rover to a Subaru ascent. The ascent is a much better car.

I drive a Subaru Forester and I know we can afford a Bentley SUV! But park it in a grocery store lot? Never!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would only buy a Range Rover if I was sure nobody I knew would see me driving it. Great cars, but have become such a cliche status symbol that they are undrivable in my view.

Sounds like you care way too much what others think of you!

90 percent of deluxury car purchases are for the status symbol of it. If you are in the ten percent analyzing the engine design good for you but that is not driving the market.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Range Rover = horribly unreliable vehicle. Budget a couple grand per year for repairs.

The LX570 literally looks like a vehicle from 2004.

Why would you want these behemoth gas guzzlers?

There's so many cooler cars you could get for less money: Tesla X or Y, Rivian R1S, VW ID.4, etc. All of these cars would scratch that itch at $30-50K cheaper. Or the Kia Telluride if you want to go with the ICE.

You can afford it.....but I question your judgment.

'

I have the LX and I wouldn't trade it for two teslas and a Telluride. Eye of the beholder. A Rivan? Really.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm 29 and DW is 30. I make 290k (possibly and likely more if my employer does well) and she makes 120k so HHI is ~410k. Both of our jobs are very stable. Planning to start trying for kids in the next 2-3 months.

The numbers:

~300k in home equity (850k home value, 500k left on mortgage)
400k in retirement
160k in brokerage/investments
60k saved for college
100k liquid savings as an emergency fund

We max out 401ks, liquid e-fund could sustain our spending for 12+ months, any excess every month is put into VTSAX, we wear cheap clothes from Target and Amazon, and vacation/weekend away consists of going to my in-law's place on the water in DE.

I feel like we're doing everything right financially and on a good trajectory for 1) paying full freight for our two planned children's college tuition and 2) early retirement at a SWR that's comfortable for us.

I really like cars and want to have an indulgence. DW is not a car person and doesn't really care for expensive/flashy stuff in general but thought the RR and LX were both really nice SUVs. She's on board in that if I really want it I should treat myself. It would also make a lot more sense in the near/mid-term than something like a 911.

What does everyone think? If no, then when would a "smart" (as smart as an emotional purchase like this can be) time be?

It really depends on what the rest of your spending habits will be like once you start to have kids. If you are one of those people who must have $1000 strollers and organic everything, plus expensive activities, tutoring, etc, kids will be very expensive for you to raise. If you are going to raise your kids with a more rational approach, then kids would not cost you that much.

That said, I'm going to leave your car choices up to you and only speak to the considerations of purchasing a $100k vehicle. In this regard, the purchase is beyond just utility and is something you are looking to enjoy and experience. As far as buying experiences in an expensive car goes, I generally subscribe to the 2-month gross income rule. The calculation is that I wouldn't own such cars past warranty, and it would probably be worth about 40-50% of its original value after 3 years. So paying about 3% of my gross income on an experience I really enjoy seems to be okay. But you have to really enjoy it. To be honest, very few cars even at $100k give you this sensation, so make sure the car you choose is something that will justify this level of expenditure to you.

Good advice here. I am surprised by this post.
Crazy question - what do you think the avg HHI of someone with a RR was? I assume it was +3M a year....
Are people with only $410k in HHI and less than $500k in retirement savings really driving around with 100k+ cars???????

PP here. I don't know the average HHI of an RR owner, though I really doubt that it is $3M a year. A quick search shows that new RR buyers in 2016 had an average household income of 450K:

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-01-06/land-rover-climbs-to-the-top-of-a-record-u-s-car-market

So my 2x monthly gross income rule seems to be reasonably close. Of course, you do have quite a bit of used RR owners, especially since RRs have iconic status among actors and musicians. So when you see an RR on the road, it's anyone's guess how much money the driver makes...

Looking at the OP's situation, he/she has about a $1M net worth, so spending 2x gross monthly income to buy a car is fairly reasonable IMO. This would allow up to about $68k, which doesn't get you the top RR model, but one of the lower-priced variants.

[Anonymous]

I think of RR owners as real estate agents, small business owners, and others who can write off the expense, plus of course the athletes and other status hungry people. They aren't reliable, at all, so not a good buy unless aesthetics and status are far more important than function. Why not get an audi e-tron? It's about the same price, has similar status/aesthetic appeal, is crazy fun to drive, and helps from an environmental perspective.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm 29 and DW is 30. I make 290k (possibly and likely more if my employer does well) and she makes 120k so HHI is ~410k. Both of our jobs are very stable. Planning to start trying for kids in the next 2-3 months.

The numbers:

~300k in home equity (850k home value, 500k left on mortgage)
400k in retirement
160k in brokerage/investments
60k saved for college
100k liquid savings as an emergency fund

We max out 401ks, liquid e-fund could sustain our spending for 12+ months, any excess every month is put into VTSAX, we wear cheap clothes from Target and Amazon, and vacation/weekend away consists of going to my in-law's place on the water in DE.

I feel like we're doing everything right financially and on a good trajectory for 1) paying full freight for our two planned children's college tuition and 2) early retirement at a SWR that's comfortable for us.

I really like cars and want to have an indulgence. DW is not a car person and doesn't really care for expensive/flashy stuff in general but thought the RR and LX were both really nice SUVs. She's on board in that if I really want it I should treat myself. It would also make a lot more sense in the near/mid-term than something like a 911.

What does everyone think? If no, then when would a "smart" (as smart as an emotional purchase like this can be) time be?

It really depends on what the rest of your spending habits will be like once you start to have kids. If you are one of those people who must have $1000 strollers and organic everything, plus expensive activities, tutoring, etc, kids will be very expensive for you to raise. If you are going to raise your kids with a more rational approach, then kids would not cost you that much.

That said, I'm going to leave your car choices up to you and only speak to the considerations of purchasing a $100k vehicle. In this regard, the purchase is beyond just utility and is something you are looking to enjoy and experience. As far as buying experiences in an expensive car goes, I generally subscribe to the 2-month gross income rule. The calculation is that I wouldn't own such cars past warranty, and it would probably be worth about 40-50% of its original value after 3 years. So paying about 3% of my gross income on an experience I really enjoy seems to be okay. But you have to really enjoy it. To be honest, very few cars even at $100k give you this sensation, so make sure the car you choose is something that will justify this level of expenditure to you.

Good advice here. I am surprised by this post.
Crazy question - what do you think the avg HHI of someone with a RR was? I assume it was +3M a year....
Are people with only $410k in HHI and less than $500k in retirement savings really driving around with 100k+ cars???????

PP here. I don't know the average HHI of an RR owner, though I really doubt that it is $3M a year. A quick search shows that new RR buyers in 2016 had an average household income of 450K:

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-01-06/land-rover-climbs-to-the-top-of-a-record-u-s-car-market

So my 2x monthly gross income rule seems to be reasonably close. Of course, you do have quite a bit of used RR owners, especially since RRs have iconic status among actors and musicians. So when you see an RR on the road, it's anyone's guess how much money the driver makes...

Looking at the OP's situation, he/she has about a $1M net worth, so spending 2x gross monthly income to buy a car is fairly reasonable IMO. This would allow up to about $68k, which doesn't get you the top RR model, but one of the lower-priced variants.

Yes, but the OP was looking at the $105k RR, not the used $68k model.....so maybe your math doesn't work for what he was asking.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Pp here. Let’s just say you have two kids. If you dont stay home, you have to pay daycare. And then preschool. Have to. And my two kids are in private school. If you think that is even remotely possible, consider that we pay about 80k every year. Cash. For school. So then we have mortgage and college savings and things like that. Kids are expensive.

Where did OP say they were going to waste money on private school?

Waste money? Money well spent. bonus points that my kids had a 5 day a week uninterrupted 2020-2021 school year. The public schools are an embarrassment.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Do you have any idea what a kid is going to do to your $100k car?

They're going to puke in it.
They're going to leave cheerios all over it.
They're going to step on the seats and maybe the ceiling.
Their car seat will leave indentations in the leather.

If you were super rich and there was no material difference between a $20k car and a $100k car, then sure - get one. But for you it sounds like it's a /thing/. Don't. Because your future life won't treat it with the respect you want. OR you'll be one of those parents who prioritizes their objects over their kids.

Drive a shit car. Save for something awesome when they're all old enough to not ruin it.

Good advice. My car is gross. So. Much. Cereal.

[Anonymous]

Can you afford... yes. Should you purchase... yes
Can I afford... yes. Should/would I purchase... no

I hope you spend your hard earned dollars on superfluous purchases. It'll help me mentally in my climb to the top knowing you're stupid and I'm disciplined.

Go crazy and spend that money on class symbols.

[Anonymous]

OP, how reliable is your income? I also believe you can afford it, but I don’t know many 29 year olds with $300k income that is truly stable. You tend to find those salaries in MBB, finance and law. And those jobs are a real churn and burn.

So I would answer that question first.

[Anonymous]

You could, but you might look kind of silly in a RR if your house is valued at $850,000. There's a disconnect there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You could, but you might look kind of silly in a RR if your house is valued at $850,000. There's a disconnect there.

Exactly!!! Bingo.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, how reliable is your income? I also believe you can afford it, but I don’t know many 29 year olds with $300k income that is truly stable. You tend to find those salaries in MBB, finance and law. And those jobs are a real churn and burn.

So I would answer that question first.

OP here. I'm not in any of those fields but it is reliable income.