According to experts, a car payment is too high if the car payment is more than 30% of your total income. Remember, the car payment isn't your only car expense! Make sure to consider fuel and maintenance expenses. Make sure your car payment does not exceed 15%-20% of your total income.
Before you hit the dealership you should take a moment to decide what monthly car payment you can afford. To cut to the chase, it's smart to spend less than 10% of your monthly take-home pay on your car payment, so you can keep your total car costs below 15% to 20% of your income.
Experts say your total car expenses, including monthly payments, insurance, gas and maintenance, should be about 20 percent of your take-home monthly pay. For non-math wizards, like me – Let's say your monthly paycheck is $4,000. Then a safe estimate for car expenses is $800 per month.
The average new car payment in America has crept above the $500 per month mark for the fist time, settling in at $503, according to a recent study by Experian. And if that weren't bad enough, the average length of a car loan now stands at 68 months.
The result is that the car will be a lot more expensive in the end. In the example we've given, a car payment of $400 per month for five years (60 months) equates to $24,000. But the same $400 per month spread out over six years (72 months) is $28,800, while it's $33,600 over seven years (84 months).
If you make $75,000 per year, your total loan payments shouldn't exceed $2,250 per month. The 20/4/10 rule: Put down 20% on a car, finance the car for no more than 4 years, and keep your car payment less than or equal to 10% of your salary.
For instance, using our loan calculator, if you buy a $20,000 vehicle at 5% APR for 60 months the monthly payment would be $377.42 and you would pay $2,645.48 in interest.
To find out how much car you can afford with this 36% rule, simply multiply your family's income by 0.36. So if you earn $100,000, for example, you could afford to take out a car loan of up to $36,000 — assuming you don't have any other debt.
For $40,000 loans, monthly payments averagely range between $900 and $1,000, depending on the interest rate and loan term.
If you're in the market for a new car, you might be asking yourself — how much is the average car payment? Experian reports that, as of the second quarter of 2020, new vehicle owners paid an average of $568 a month on their vehicles, while used car owners paid $397.
Financial experts say your car-related expenses shouldn't exceed 20% of your monthly take-home pay. So, let's say you bring home about $2,500 each month. The total amount you should spend on your car — including loan payment, gas, insurance and maintenance — is right around $500.
Stretching your loan term to seven or even 10 years is probably too long for an auto loan because of the interest charges that stack up with a higher interest rate. To illustrate, say you take on a $10,000 car loan for seven years with a 13% interest rate (a common rate for bad credit borrowers).
It's typically recommended that you buy a car worth no more than 35% of your gross annual income— so if you make $60k per year, you can afford a new car that is worth $21,000 or less.
NerdWallet recommends spending no more than 10% of your take-home pay on your monthly auto loan payment. So if your after-tax pay each month is $3,000, you could afford a $300 car payment.
How much car can I afford if I make $50,000? While it depends on factors like your credit score, loan terms, down payment and any potential trade-in value, you may find that a vehicle in the $20,000 to $35,000 range will fit your budget.
Expert estimates range broadly. Greg McBride, a senior vice president, chief financial analyst at Bankrate.com, advises that a car payment should equal no more than 15 percent of your pretax monthly pay. That means that if you make $50,000 a year, your monthly car payment could be as much as $625.
The 50% rule
Some experts believe that spending 50% of your salary on a vehicle should be affordable. With a salary of $75k this would give you $35,000 to spend on a car which is enough for a brand new car.
Using the formula above, you can estimate your monthly payment for various loan terms to be: 12 months: $1269.25. 24 months: $643.99. 36 months: $435.49.
A $30,000 car, roughly $600 a month.
The frugal rule: 10% of your income
For many people, I think that will be between 10–15% of their income. So if you earn $25,000 a year, that's going to be a high-mileage used car for $2,500–$3,000. If you earn $80,000, that's a used car for around $10,000 or $12,000.
“It's the single worst financial decision millennials will ever make.” That's because the moment you drive it off the lot, the vehicle starts to depreciate: Your car's value typically decreases 20 to 30 percent by the end of the first year and, in five years, it can lose 60 percent or more of its initial value.
Experts recommend that you spend $5,000 to $10,000 on your first car. But honestly, it all comes down to what you can afford. Here are a few simple tips to help you calculate a figure that would work well for you: Don't spend more than 15% of your gross pay or 20% of your take-home pay.
On a $2,000 a month income, car loan payments plus all other expenses shouldn't go above $1,000. If this isn't possible, then look at your other expenses and see where you can trim to get as close as possible. Reevaluate the type of car you want to buy, and consider a less expensive car.