Trade in and move overseas
 

Hello all,

So I am in a bit of a pickle. Looking for a bit of advice on how to proceed. I am in the military and have orders to go over to the Netherlands. They ship a vehicle there or you for free. However, my current car (2006 mini coopser S convertible) has a bunch of little things that would all need to be fixed before they could ship it which would end up costing more than the vehicle is worth. (Repairs to the body, new key, new horn, some minor electrical work...totalling about 4k in repairs)

I owe 15k on the Mini. Trade in is 5k. Resell is 8k. I need a vehicle to get around in. Cue my decision to decide to get rid of the Mini and get into a BRZ.

I just sold my house, so I have about 15k extra. I was going to use that 15k to pay off a couple signature loans I had taken out to pay for home improvements, but now I don't know.

If I try and privately sell the Mini, I could get about 7k for it, leaving me to have to eat the remaining 8k on the car. I could do this, then go buy the BRZ. The downside to this is I have a month to get the vehicle sold and the new one purchased because I need to ship the vehicle to the Netherlands 3 months prior to my arrival.

If I try and trade it in...KBB says trade in is only worth 5k, so that leaves me with 10k I'd have to put on top the BRZ loan..most banks only go a certain percentage over purchase price, which would then in turn make one, upside down on the new BRZ finance and two, have to pay more for a downpayment.

The third option is to sell the car and eat the loan out of pocket, and try and purchase a new vehicle when I get to the Netherlands. However, the netherlands vehicle prices are almost double what I would pay in the states.

I know I will want a BRZ in the future. I had one for about 6 months before lovely Tucson drivers made that not be a thing anymore. Just looking for some opinions and thoughts on how to go about this.

Thank!

Oh, if I do buy a BRZ stateside, does anyone know if you can update the Nav system to European maps once I get over there? Or maybe even before they ship it?

I would say you need to get your financial house in order prior to doing that. Since you still owe a fortune on the Mini, why not use some of the $15k from your house to make the minimal repairs? Then you can continue to pay down the Mini instead of taking on more debt with the BRZ (car + negative equity).

Then use the remaining $11k to pay off (or down) the signature loans. That would only leave you on the hook for the $15k you owe on the Mini.

If you buy a BRZ Premium and find a leftover '14 model, you could get 0% financing if they're still running that special and if you qualify. Assuming trade, you'd roll $10k negative equity into the BRZ. Assuming discounted purchase price of $24k, you'd be in it at $34k+tax, tag and fees, so maybe $35-36k depending on how brutal your taxes are.

You'd still have the $15k from the sale of your house, and maybe Subaru Financial (through Chase) would go $27k on the BRZ. That's roughly 10% higher than MSRP for a base Premium, so you'd have to pay $8-9k from your $15k, which would give you only $6-7k to pay down signature loans... and you'd still owe $27k on the BRZ.

Having been over in Europe while in the military I say just save your money and go get something decent off the lemon lot when you arrive...

Or just not even have a car if you don't need it. Save that $$$ and just use the public transport. :)

How Long will you be deployed?

You have the money to pay off the Mini and live debt free while deployed? Do it.

Like was said above, pick up some quirky euro car that you can't get here, if I was going to the Netherlands and could ship a car back I would absolutely no doubt in my mind pick up an old Alfa or Lancia that's hard to get here, you'll be practically tripping over them and when it's all said and done be out less than the price of a Toyobaru even if you like it and want to take it home.

Edit: Plenty of Toyobaru's when you get home and they'll be even cheaper on the used market.

Edit 2: Some cars in the Netherlands are half the price of their American counterparts ;)

I'll be over in the Netherlands for a minimum of 3 years. If I stay single, possible to extend to 6, if married, extend to 8.

Did some digging, and the base and surrounding area itself has absolute terrible public transportation. 30 minutes travel away (by car) and the transportation is wonderful.

Picking up a car of the lemon lot might not be a bad idea...the only issue is the base I am going to has 100 US personnel. It's all NATO instead. Closest base with a large US presence is over 1 and a half hours (by car) away.

Financial wise, once I get overseas, I have 0 housing payment anymore since the military pays 100% for my home.

Currently, I have the following for debts:
-Mortgage (117k): 775 a month
-Home window loan (7k): 165 a month
-Home water system loan (6k): 125 a month
-Auto loan (15k): 288 a month

The house selling here in a few days (pending appraisal) gives after closing costs and realtor/title fees 130k

I have 6k in a savings account

Mini is only worth 8k for private sale or 5k for trade in per KBB. needs about 4k in repairs to be shipped over seas per the company policy.

1.5 hours isn't too bad a trip for the larger US base... Do you have another military member sponsoring your arrival? He/she may be able to give some tips on cars. You're also close to Belgium so there are some large Nato installations geographically close by (unless my memory serves me wrong as its been a few years now).

Plus you can search eBay or other online sites for your lemon of choice if needed. :) Or if you want a fun road trip you could always check out the larger US bases for their lemon lots and make a trip out of going to get a car.

just do it

Oh man, this had "Bad Ending" written all over it.

If you're hell bent on buying a BRZ here and shipping it over, keep in mind that KBB is a starting point, not an actual offer from a dealer. KBB may say $5K, but if you negotiate properly you may be able to get more. If the dealer really wants (or needs) to sell you a new car, they may be willing to give you more than you're expecting on the trade.

They may not. But my point is that you don't know until you actually start talking with a salesman, so I wouldn't just take KBB as gospel.

Bad ending? I don't see how you get off saying that. Been enlisted for 8 years and have excellent job security. All my housing costs will be completely paid for and I'll still bring home 50k a year after taxes...I'm fairly certain I can handle a car payment without issues.

Just looking for peoples ideas on stuff especially since I have never been in a European market. Trying to get a view on a bunch of different angles from folks to see if I am missing anything or not.

For starters, you said that you owe $15,000 on an 8 year old car that's worth maybe $9,500 on a good day in very good condition. Then you said that you owe an additional $13,000 on home improvements. You are super upsidedown on the Mini and you're talking about rolling over the debt onto a new car?

Someone already went over the math on this one, so I'm not going to re-hash it here. But yeah, this is exactly where I get off saying that this has "Bad Ending" written all over it. You wouldn't be the first military man fucking himself over financially because of a car thinking that your salary will cover everything.

Do what you want. I don't really care either way, but this isn't the first time I, nor other members of the military, have seen others go down this particular path. Hopefully, you don't end up with someone poking holes in a condom looking for a green card only to be divorced in a few years and paying child support on a kid that might not even be yours.

Get a Renault Megane RS. Thank me later.

I think you need to re read my posts before making your statements. I have never once said I would roll the debt onto the new car (I even explained that banks wouldnt do that)

I was asking for opinions in the best way to get out of it. Trade it in and PAY the difference, Sell it private and PAY the difference. Pay to get it fixed up and ship it over despite it not being worth the repair costs.

I got fucked in the first place. The mini depreciated faster than any vehicle I have ever seen from when I purchased it. Ive owned a lot of vehicles too. Ford focus, dodge neon, mercedes c230, toyota tundra, mercedes ml350, chevy malibu, mitsubishi eco x se, sunaru brz, and finally the mini. I had to get the mini because non insured asshat drivers in Tucson fucked my 2012 BRZ and i decided to trade in for a bit rather than eat the replacement costs. Terrible decision.

Never in my life have i been upside down, and am looking for the best way to fix it. No need to be a **** about it.

Ummm...yeah...about that comment on my reading comprehension:

Either way, your long list of cars and lack of sufficient insurance coverage kinda makes my point, regardless of whether or not I'm being a penis about it. You asked for opinions/options and you got some you didn't like.

Honestly, the depreciation of the Mini is a lot lower on the list of issues than you think. Actually, it's not an issue because in reality, YOU probably WAY overpaid for it. You can buy $15,000 Mini S' all day with no haggling that's half the age, half the mileage, and none of the problems your 8 year old one currently has. Paying more and getting even less? That's not the car's fault. Heck, I'm surprised that no one's chimed in about personal responsibility yet!

Get rid of what you can. Pay down what you can. Think about getting a BRZ AFTER you've cleared that shit up.

Point missed on your situation with the Mini OP. Obviously the best solution to to try and grab the extra $3k selling private party, we don't understand your resources so we can't judge how difficult your life will be over the next month if you manage to get a buyer this weekend. I also hope that your $8k estimate factors in the work that needs be done (i.e. after work done you could get $12k) otherwise your situation may be worse off than you think.

That's the simple part, you obviously have your heart set on another Toyobaru and you're slyly asking if there's a way to finangle getting yourself into one without taking too much of a hit on trading in the Mini. This stuff ain't rocket science, leverage the trade, hmm and haw over the car and talk about how your compromising and you might scrimp back an extra couple thousand.

I've heard carmax is a decent option.

The more interesting question is why bother going back to a Toyobaru when you have the opportunity to explore a cache of available cars many of us here are jealous of? There will still be plenty of Toyobaru's rolling around when you return.

http://www.anamera.com/en/find/for-sale/index.html
http://www.marktplaats.nl/

I hope you mean like a <2010 (not the one on Top Gear a season or three ago) considering a brand new one after all the licensing fees and taxes will be up around $40k in the Netherlands...

25k Euro + 21% VAT in Netherlands = 30,250 Euro = $38,251 USD plus registration, fees, add-ons etc. A bit out of OP's budget based on his yearly take home... Please correct me if I'm mistaken.

I very much dislike your constant attacks without any productive suggestions.

Ive had full coverage on all my vehicles. The other driver did not have any (hit and run) so instead of making a claim on my own dime, causing increased insurance and deductable costs, I traded in.

All the previous vehicles have been over a 14 year time span. Half were financed. Half paid straight out.

The core question remains, which some above have given answers to: Im moving to europe where cars are twice the price of US counterparts. Where I am living does not have the public transportation most of europe is known for. I have 22k in funds. A vehicle worth 5-8k. Signature loans for 15k and an auto loan for 15k. What is the best way to get out of the vehicle loan, get new vehicle to replace, while still taking into consideration the sig loans.

Budget wise I have roughly 4,000 a month after taxes. I do bot have to pay for housing or utilities either.

Edit: My main thoughts for the twins was simple because I habe driven them before, this is a forum dedicated to them, and they fit the european roads pretty well. Id be open to others jusr not sure what.

Lol, it was more spoken out of passion, rather than sense. I just love Renault. I didn't even factor in the cost and/or taxes in when I made the suggestion.

If I were you this is what I would do. Go there, buy a half decent car and use that for 3 years, then buy a twin when you get back to the states. Who knows what will happen to the car in 3 years. All the bugs will be fixed for good and there will be new options and extras you can't get at the moment.

If you end up staying longer than 3 years, buy a twin there. yes it will be more expensive but if you buy a cheap car when you first get there you should have money left over and money saved up.

Figuring I do things smartly, even with a 400-500 a month combined car+insurance payment, I should be able to put away/save about 10k a year over there based on how much I'll be making and my bills. Sucking it for three years on a crap car would stink, but it would be quite a bit saved for a downpayment ona new vehicle since then I'd have probably 15k in savings a yea. Hmm.

Vet here...wish I would have listened to the advice I am about to give you.

You sound like you are putting the carriage before the horse.

Signature loan and current car and selling the house.

I will go ahead and ruin it for you.

You won't get as much money as you think you will selling your house. *Something* will come up. Something always comes up when selling a house.

Since you are desperate (I gotta buy now!) you will get raped at the stealership.

Your Mini needs repairs...the dealership will leverage that against you. You clearly do not like the car. Probably because you got a shit deal on it. I have been there.

Get that loan paid off. Signature loan...what % interest you at? Probably stupidly high if they are anything like they were when I had buddies using them.

But yeah...you sound like so many other "dreamers" on here who really do not have means or you are going to put yourself in a really bad situation by buying this car.

I lost count of the "I am 19 and I am saving for college, but I want a new car...and the one I have...my parents bought...but I don't want it anymore...and they won't buy me a new one. I can totally afford a new car and college!"
1 year later...they are looking to unload it and you find out...they never made it to college and they had a 7 year loan on car...and their life is more difficult because they haven't paid their dues yet.

You have been in the military for 8 years. I am going to guess you are Air Force? Nothing wrong with that...but its just a guess.

Maybe you are an NCO or an Officer?

You are going to do WTF you want to do.

I have owned a ton of fast cars/bikes in my life.

I have made over $100k a year the past 7 years of my life. I was making 70k+ a year the years before that.

Really wish I would have been smarter with my money and resources. I don't have a whole lot to show for all the money I made. Just a bunch of pictures of fast cars.

I know this whole post may make you mad...and that is not the intention, but in my opinion, you are not financially ready to buy a new car right now.

I get why you feel like you should get one now, with the whole shipping thing. It would just make more sense to hold off and save.

Hell you may get over there and develop a new hobby? Like what if an SUV would be more fun?

THe home improvement signature loans were actually fairly decent rates. 5% on them.

I suppose there could be something else that comes up with selling the house, but the offer has been made, they buyers accepted the inspection as is and didn't ask me to make any fixes, and the appraisal just happened two days ago and the general feel from the appraiser at that time was that it would appraise for more or at the sell price. (will find out for sure in 2 days or so)

I'm not necessarilly in the "Have to do it NOW" boat, especially considering currently i am stuck in Southwest Asia for another couple weeks, but I understand what you are saying. I just figured would need to decide if I was buying a car before the middle of December since it takes a few months to ship a car over.

You are correct, I am Air Force. An NCO.

So from what it sounds like, I should sell the mini to a private party, pay off the rest of the auto loan with the funding from the house selling, and then pay off as soon as possible the two signature loans. Don't bother shipping a car to Europe, and instead just buy a cheap "beater" car there?

Also, I should note that the repairs to the car to every day drivers would not look like a big deal. I'm not hiding anything either, but most people would just sort of shrug at them. It needs a new horn. It needs a second key. It needs body on the front end (replace the front left fender and bumper) New windshield because of cracks. All these items I can live without fixing myself, but the shipping company says it won't ship it unless I fix them first (since they have been getting sued lately for vehicle issues they are rather uptight right now)

A new BRZ/GT86 in the Netherlands will cost you $50.000.

I did a quick search on the dutch selling prices of the 2006 Mini cooper S, depending on the milage / options it will go from 8.000 to 15.000 euro's (10k - 19k in $).

http://www.autotrader.nl/auto/mini-c...-2006-tot-2006

http://occasions.autoscout24.nl/?aty...addB||firstreg

Maybe it's an option to ship the Mini to the Netherlands en drive it for three more years and sell it for 5.000 to 7.000 euro's before moving back.

What are the "rules" when you buy a car in the Netherlands and want to ship it back, do you have to pay all the taxes? The car without taxes will cost €25.255 (taxes BTW; €5.303, BPM; €8.437)

As far as I am aware, it is quite the involved process. I would need to buy it at full price including taxes from the country, and then if it didn't meet US specs, have the factory do the work to make it mees US Specs.

There are a couple places where the U.S bases have U.S car dealers, where you pay U.S prices and only US taxes

As far as I know the only "required" differences between de US-spec and the EU-spec are the different tail lights and side-blinkers.

Im not sure. The Alpha 4C had a ton of things it needed before they could sell it stateside.

I'm not sure why it has to be a beater. There are more than just "nice cars" and "beaters" in the world. You could pick up reasonably nice transportation and sell it when you were ready to leave.

As for nice cars, someone mentioned the Megane. It wouldn't be practical to import that back to the States, but you could enjoy that while you were there and sell it when you left, and you would be able to say that you got to drive something 99% of the US market has never even seen.

Someone mentioned getting an older car. Once a car is 25 years old, it no longer has the stupid EPA and DOT restrictions that make import so difficult. There are a lot of really neat cars that were sold in Europe and not in the US. If you're handy with a wrench (since older cars do require work), you could pick up something rather special that you could bring back with you.

Or you could just do a purchase or lease on something practical. Or you could start with something practical and keep an eye out for something special while you're there, since a lot can change over a period of years.

If you shipped over a US spec BRZ, would you be able to sell it over there if you decided you wanted or needed to get rid of it? Is that offer to ship the car only when you first move, or could you buy a US spec car on a visit home to the States later and have it shipped over if you can't find a local solution that works for you?

To me, shipping a car over and back just seems like a lot of hassle that might limit your choices later. If it were me, I think I'd just sell the Mini, pay off my debts and keep my options open.

Yeah, you have a point. I could get a good daily driver. I don't want to say absolutely no, especially since I am familiar with my way around a toolbox, but getting a 25+ year old car doesn't seem like something I will be very keen on. Who knows though.

I have no doubt I would be able to sell a U.S spec vehicle over there.

Vehicle shipping is limited (for the free ones at lease) to when you first move over and when you first move back.

I'll simply offer some advice around options in the Netherlands and the EU in general, disregarding what has already been stated to you regarding finances. I was stationed in Germany from 1998 - 2000 and bought a new truck and a Harley through military sales. I'd encourage you to check out http://www.encs.com/ as that's the current link you can get to see what US spec vehicles are available for purchase at various locations throughout the EU to military members. I only suggest looking there because they are bound by contract to sell at discounted prices and all the vehicles are US spec so if you do end up in the three years and back stateside, you're not holding onto a car that you can't sell on the local economy easily.

I've seen the car sales. It isn't a bad idea, just not particularly fond of any of the makes offered. I'm a bit picky when it comes to my vehicles haha.