Going crazy at work - new car related

[disneysteve]

I have a 20 year old employee who is clueless about money. There have been various examples to document this, but yesterday really nailed it. She told us that she was going to get a new car this weekend. What is wrong with her car, someone else asked. Nothing. But my father wants me to start leasing my cars from now on.

AAHHH!! Here is a girl with a 3-year-old car. I believe she has a 6-year loan, so she is halfway there. She intends to trade it in and lease a brand new Toyota Solara convertible. By her own admission, "I'm getting tired of this car. And all my friends are getting new cars." Bad enough she is ditching a car with only 23,000 miles on it. But then she is compounding the damage by replacing it with a lease on an expensive sports car (over $25,000).

Her reasoning, if you want to call it reason, is that since she is single and lives at home with no other real expenses, she has no other big financial needs so she doesn't mind spending all her money on her car. She seems to have forgotten conversations we've had within the past few months about how she can't afford to travel with her friends, has nothing in savings and can't ever manage to put any money away.

Maybe there is just some personal finance gene that folks like this are missing from their DNA. Perhaps I should go into research. I'd make a bundle.

[Aleta]

But, she told you that her father wants her to start leasing cars. He probably has his own business and considers leasing to be the way to go. That's what they do is trade them in in 2-3 years. See why our nation has so many in debt. Sounds like to me that she is trying to justify what she wants by blaming someone else.

All I can say is that that car with its low mileage will be a good buy for someone looking for a used car. Now, with the type of car that she wants to buy, her insurance will go up as well. Nothing you can do to help someone like that as long as their parents are acting like hind catchers. Not to mention that she is probably upside down with her loan if she sells now.

[kv968]

Steve, all I can say is take a deep breath and let it go. I've tried to explain such financial things to some of my co-workers and it's like banging your head against the wall sometimes. If you don't say what they want to hear or justify their decisions, they write you off as not knowing what you're talking about or just ignore the facts you present no matter how logical they may be.

[disneysteve]

Not to mention that she is probably upside down with her loan if she sells now.

I mentioned that and she said she doesn't think she owes more than the car is worth, but I doubt that, especially since she bought it on a 6-year loan.

[project15]

I mentioned that and she said she doesn't think she owes more than the car is worth, but I doubt that, especially since she bought it on a 6-year loan.

And she won't get near as much trading it in as if she were to sell it privately.

[Ima saver]

leasing a car, at any age, is not a good idea. Clark Howard calls leasing, "fleecing"

[Hedy]

Please let us know if you ever research this gene.
Egads.

[lieweheksie]

we only learn by experience...she just hasn't "got it" yet- just be there when she asks for help again, and again and hopefully before she's 30 she'll have figured it out
she's young so of course she'll listen to Dad-if they seem to be doing ok waht reason would she have to doubt his advicehttp://www.savingadvice.com/forums/images/smilies/rolleyes.gif

[Tree0164]

Money lessons are often earned at home. I betcha her father is in debt up to his eyeballs as well.

Leasing is not good. Keep the car and drive it into the ground.

[scfr]

disneysteve - Probably not a darn thing you can do about her decision, especially since her dad supports it. All you can do is keep being a good example to her, and maybe something will sink it down the road.

A friend of DH who is about 10 years older just traded in a car w/ under 100K miles on it for a brand-new $34K vehicle that gets awful gas mileage. He has also expressed jealousy over the fact that DH & I had a paid off mortgage.

Hmm ... Let's see ... last time we got a 'new' car it was to trade in our 170K mileage car for another used one that cost $3K and gets pretty decent gas mileage ... Astonishing that we had money to pay down our mortgage early, isn't it?

My point is, some people not only just don't get it, I don't think they really want to.

[vince]

It amazes me how dumb people are with money. I know a guy that plays the lottery everyday $50 worth but he has no money for lunch and tells the boss he needs a raise. Sounds like the same mentality here also

[disneysteve]

just be there when she asks for help again, and again and hopefully before she's 30 she'll have figured it out

All you can do is keep being a good example to her, and maybe something will sink it down the road.

Both good advice.

[anonymous_saver]

I have a 20 year old employee who is clueless about money. There have been various examples to document this, but yesterday really nailed it. She told us that she was going to get a new car this weekend. What is wrong with her car, someone else asked. Nothing. But my father wants me to start leasing my cars from now on.

AAHHH!! Here is a girl with a 3-year-old car. I believe she has a 6-year loan, so she is halfway there. She intends to trade it in and lease a brand new Toyota Solara convertible. By her own admission, "I'm getting tired of this car. And all my friends are getting new cars." Bad enough she is ditching a car with only 23,000 miles on it. But then she is compounding the damage by replacing it with a lease on an expensive sports car (over $25,000).

Her reasoning, if you want to call it reason, is that since she is single and lives at home with no other real expenses, she has no other big financial needs so she doesn't mind spending all her money on her car. She seems to have forgotten conversations we've had within the past few months about how she can't afford to travel with her friends, has nothing in savings and can't ever manage to put any money away.

Maybe there is just some personal finance gene that folks like this are missing from their DNA. Perhaps I should go into research. I'd make a bundle.

Some people just don't get it do they? It's not like I think that everyone should do the same exact thing as me, but man, I just wish something would stick with them!

My suggestion is this. Buy your co-worker as a present the Suze Orman book on the Young Fabuluous and Broke. I don't know if you like Suze, but it does have the extreme basics in the book, which your co-worker sounds like she really needs. Get it from a used bookstore and give it to her, say something like "Oh I was just paging around at this used book store and saw this book, and I thought you might like it. It was only a few bucks". Hopefully, she would just think it was kind of you to think of her. Also, even if she doesn't read the book for 5 more years, she might eventually and it might stick with her. I think it's worth a shot.

Sometimes I feel like buying mass quantities of financial books and just handing it out to all my friends and co-workers.

[disneysteve]

My suggestion is this. Buy your co-worker as a present the Suze Orman book on the Young Fabuluous and Broke.

Great idea. Maybe not out of the blue, but for the holidays this year.

[disneysteve]

It's not like I think that everyone should do the same exact thing as me

And why not?