I had a roommate named Matt. His car broke down 2 years ago. Time to get a new one right? WRONG! Here’s what he did to get around town.
Trick your friends. I think I must have driven Matt in my car about 4389247982 miles. Here’s an example how you can trick someone:
Matt: Hey bud. Getting low on groceries?
Henry: Actually, yeah. I should get some. Say you want to come?
Take the bus. This was his absolute last resort when no one was around.
Walk. Matt was a big walker. Even more than Walker, Texas Ranger.
Live near stores and restaurants. Matt always lived near a grocery or convenience store in case he needed food or booze.
Order delivery food. When walking to get food wasn’t in order, Matt frequented pizza.
Move home. If you move home, you can use your mom’s car. Bonus: She probably doesn’t charge rent either.
Not a glamorous lifestyle. BUT the savings from the cost of insurance, fuel, maintenance, car payments, speeding tickets, tire rotations, and car washes is easily a couple grand per year.
JD at Get Rich Slowly has a post about calculating the cost of owning and operating a car.