# Fancy car vs big house



## friedricetheman

I was just having a discussion with my pals over some beer and this topic came up.

Why do some people drive around in a fancy car but chose to live in the slums?

What is going on through their mind when they have no qualms about popping serious money on a nice car which could have been used instead as a downpayment on a nice home in a upscale area?

Also, why do people living in older affluent neighborhoods drive around in Camry's and Honda's when they clearly have the money.

Is this phenomena common worldwide or is it an Asian thing? I am living in South East Asia by the way.


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## SVTFreak

Different people, different priorities. 

I live in the south USA. I know of two places I laugh everytime I pass. One is a little falling down, ramshackle house, eaves rotting, trash and old junk all over the yard, grass uncut and a brand new corvette in the lean to. The other is a cheapest smallest mobile home you can get with another new vette. There are examples everywhere. 

Personally, even if you can't afford both and choose to live in a cheaper house, at least take care of it like you do the car. 

I live in a nice place, not extravagant. I choose to not live in a half million dollar house, and spend my extra money on my shop and cars. And watches and knives. 

When you aren't rich, but like nice things, you have to make choices.


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## eightbore

The first scenario is someone realizing they will never be able to afford a nice big home so they buy whatever degree of luxury they can afford in the automotive sphere. The second scenario is someone who likely got wealthy enough to buy a nice big house by realizing that "investing" large sums of money in depreciating assets like cars is ridiculous. I know a guy who is worth probably in the high 8 or low 9 figures and I have never known him to buy a new car of any sort. Sure, he will buy a Mercedes, but only two or three years old after someone else has taken a big depreciation hit. He then drives it into the ground as far as I can tell. I remember his kids drove old Toyotas when they were in school. while their friends had new Porsches. He also bought his home at probably a 50% discount from a bankruptcy auction about 25 years ago. Financially, he is my spirit guide.


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## Davemcc

I am that guy (to a degree). I don't live in a trailer park but I live in a modest house on the "wrong side of town". When my wife and I were deciding how we wanted to live, one of the first things we decided was that we didn't want a large house to maintain and keep clean, nor do we want to impress anyone by how fancy we could live. Another thing we agreed on right from the outset was that we both loved cars and driving so our car budget was always planned to be disproportionate to our mortgage in traditional terms. I've had a lot of cars that might seem incongruous with the neighborhood, like a Lincoln Mark VIII, SVT Cobra, Camaro SS, Corvette, Boss 302 but this is what works for us. It maximizes our pleasure for our budget. My personal mantra is that "if I had all the money I've ever spent on cars, I'd spend it all on cars".b-)

Another side benefit to this arrangement is that I LOVE MY NEIGHBORS. Most are long term residents that all know each other and get along extremely well. It's not unusual to see neighbors from three or four different homes chatting on their front lawns or porches (and some wine or beer might be involved there as well). The lady across the street is living in the house her parents built in 1955. I bought my house from the daughter of the original owner. My neighbor next door told me that he knew we would get along right from day one when I moved in with seven cars, including a '64 Continental, '67 Chevelle and '79 Lincoln Mark V. My neighbors on the other side put their house up for sale when they were expecting their second child and a few days later, the for sale sign came down. I asked him if he had sold their house. He said that once they started shopping for a new home, they realized that they could buy a nicer house but they could never replace the sense of community that we have in our little area. They removed the listing and rebuilt the inside of their house. That child they were expecting is now going to high school. 

I've lived in the "right" part of town and I wouldn't want to go back there. My wife and I are discussing some major changes to our house because the house itself is old and small but the thought of moving away from here is not even part of the discussion.


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## diceman

I know that in Thailand people love fancy cars, they'll suffer in a tiny flat but drive a nice BMW or Corvette. Not sure if SE-Asia is more particular about that but I often travel to Myanmar on business and from what I've seen, cars are kind of a way for people to show off. When 90% of the cars are old Japanese imports that have outlived their usefulness in their home country, you can really turn some heads driving a nice sports car. I suppose that you'll have very few chances to impress people with your house, so a car is a better way to appear well-off. Well, I'd assume that there are those kinds of people in every country, I know the Chinese are fans of buying upscale cars as well. Perhaps it's just a way for people in developing countries to say that they've "made" it.

There are also those that just love cars and they're happy just having a basic place to live and sleep. I had a mate whose dream was to buy a Lotus, he worked several jobs and lived in a small flat in a cheaper part of town, just saving up like crazy for years.

I suppose it's all about priorities and what you love out of life.


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## beeman101

For me it has to be a fancy ass house as i love my home & in a nice area.....Cars come and cars go...i feel your home is where your heart is....


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## Baham

Cars depreciate. House appreciate.


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## AlphaM911

I live in Manhattan. Around here and the other boroughs there are certain groups that drive nice cars and live in the projects- no impressive at all. There's a term for that that I cannot say in these forums. I only find it irritating when they're not humble about it or try to show off. It's not impressive at all and personally I find it pathetic especially when they think they're big shi... 

I drive a very nice car and live in a nice apartment as well. I think it's only "impressive" if you have the full package. I work with someone who wears designer shoes and belt with the pattern so that you know it's designer (Gucci, Burberry, etc), yet wears a fossil watch... I've met people that would drive a Mercedes AMG (for example) and wear an Invicta...
For me, it just doesn't work.


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## Nokie

To each his own........


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## zengineer

Its like any "Rolex or Omega" thread..... the obvious answer is that you should get both.

I do admit to being a little puzzled by big boats parked next to houses barely bigger.... especially when it never seems to leave the trailer, but to each his own. Its actually a somewhat storage question to raise on a site where people have admitted to owning watches worth more than their car.

On a side note, I can relate to the point several have raised about the value of a stable older neighborhood and have been fortunate to have lived in one while my son was growing up. Since then I've also found that the one thing better, and I mean a lot better than having really good neighbors is having no neighbors. I built a house on six acres 10 years ago and love it.


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## singleben13

Car are just used for sometime but house last forever.


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## Rallyfan13

friedricetheman said:


> Also, why do people living in older affluent neighborhoods drive around in Camry's and Honda's when they clearly have the money.


Every car made in the UK, Italy or Germany during this century has been garbage compared to what Honda and Toyota produce. The smart money is on reliable cars.

If you own a Merc, Jag, RR, Bentley, Lambo, some other VAG product, BMW, Ferrari, some other FIAT product, etc. let's hope you know more about watches than cars.

The correct answer is small house, no car if at all possible. The smaller the house the less there is to clean, heat, cool, and maintain; not having a car means no depreciation, no wear and tear, no repairs, no insurance.


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## AlphaM911

Rallyfan13 said:


> *Every car made in the UK, Italy or Germany during this century has been garbage compared to what Honda and Toyota produce. The smart money is on reliable cars. *
> 
> If you own a Merc, Jag, RR, Bentley, Lambo, some other VAG product, BMW, Ferrari, some other FIAT product, etc. let's hope you know more about watches than cars.
> 
> The correct answer is small house, no car if at all possible. The smaller the house the less there is to clean, heat, cool, and maintain; not having a car means no depreciation, no wear and tear, no repairs, no insurance.


Porsche.


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## Rallyfan13

AlphaM911 said:


> Porsche.


Made in Germany = unreliable.

Honda has been the best engine builder globally well before the late great LJK Setright pointed it out. Toyotas routinely exceed 300 K miles.

European "luxury" cars are for posing. Garbage.

To clarify: just because it's not listed doesn't make it the right choice. Check the chassis. If it says "Made in ____" and the country is Germany, Italy, UK, you've bought the wrong car.

Sell high before it breaks, buy a Honda or Toyota.

You're welcome.


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## Mediocre

When I was younger, it was all about the vehicles. At one point I had a 2500HD, TBSS, 97 Cobra with a supercharger, and a turbo 99 Trans Am......after some swapping I had a GTO, 335i, ZX6R, etc....

Now I would not say that I live in a mansion or anything, but I am happy with where I live. A little land, room for the family, etc....and most of the vehicles have been sold or traded. Cars will come again in 6-12 months, but for now the focus is on the "dad and husband" priorities.


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## herooftheday

It's all about priorities. I read an article a long time ago how people (guys mostly) will spend 2k a month on a leased car and live in a small studio apartment. When I was younger that sounded great. I see the error of those ways now. I'd rather have the nice house and if I can, a nice car. It makes much more financial sense to do it that way. I work in a very affluent town and I drive past huge, multi-million dollar houses and in the drive way are 30-40k cars. I'm sure they can afford better, but why? 

If you get a chance, read a book called "The millionaire mind." The book wasn't what I expected, but it help put things into perspective. Basically it talks about people who are worth millions and how they maintain that by driving "cheaper" but more reliable cars and reupholster old furniture to avoid unnecessary costs. It's a very interesting read. Check it out.


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## Rallyfan13

When I was young, my family were poor. I hunted rats for the fur. I'd find used matches on the ground, sharpen them, and sell them as toothpicks. Those were hard times.


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## CabbageHead

You don't get rich by writing checks. Leasing keeps you poor. Most "rich" folks got that way by making good financial decisions.


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## Davemcc

Rallyfan13 said:


> Sell high before it breaks, buy a Honda or Toyota.
> 
> You're welcome.


Ugh. Honda and Toyota build appliances that transport people from one point to another. I don't want to drive something that has the same excitement as my fridge or toaster.


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## friedricetheman

In Malaysia, we have a very high rate of bankruptcy among men aged 22-29. This is due to their spending habits and preference for fancy cars and expensive luxury items.

I have a friend who is working in retail, lives in a tiny one room apartment with his wife and two kids but drives a Jaguar XE. The Jag financing eats up 70% of his active income. This does not include petrol, road tax and insurance. 

I heard he is surviving on credit cards and at last count, he has around 10 credit cards from different banks, most of them maxed out.

And surprisingly, this sort of behavior is the norm in Malaysia among the younger set. Malaysia is a place where the minimum wage is USD$250 per month and 75% of the working population are exempted from income tax due to earning less than USD$1,000 per month.

And it should be noted that Malaysia has one of the highest luxury tax in the world. Our cars are the most expensive in the world.


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## AlphaM911

Rallyfan13 said:


> Made in Germany = unreliable.
> 
> Honda has been the best engine builder globally well before the late great LJK Setright pointed it out. Toyotas routinely exceed 300 K miles.
> 
> European "luxury" cars are for posing. Garbage.
> 
> To clarify: just because it's not listed doesn't make it the right choice. Check the chassis. If it says "Made in ____" and the country is Germany, Italy, UK, you've bought the wrong car.
> 
> Sell high before it breaks, buy a Honda or Toyota.
> 
> You're welcome.


You obviously are not a car person. Porsche has been in the top manufacturers in the JD Power & Associates Dependability. It's been #1 or top 3 in the JD Power & Associates Initial Quality. 
The generalization of "all European" cars being unreliable shows your obvious lack of knowledge to any car enthusiast.

Posing? The Porsche GT4 has been named as the best car/best drivers car by many reviewers this year. The GT3/GT3RS has won the multiple awards as well. 
Do you not know Porsche's racing roots?





By posing, did you mean the Lexus ISF's fake factory exhaust tips?








It's sometimes fun arguing with people who can make a point, but arguing with someone who clearly has no knowledge about the topic and pulling claims out their....is just pointless.

I've owned Porsches for years and also currently own(ed) multiple Acuras for almost 15 years. I've had more problems with my Acuras than my Porsches quality, electronically, and reliability-wise.
In fact, even after buying an Acura as my first car and owning 4 other Acuras since, I'm trading in my Acura MDX for a Porsche Macan S this summer. 
Porsche is obviously on a whole other level in terms of luxury. Lexus, Acura, Infiniti, etc. don't even come close. They don't make anything that even comes close to the 7-series, S-class, A8, Panamera..


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## HerrNano

A favorite running route of mine takes me from the standard middle class homes I live in past a large, not so nice apartment complex. I have long noticed how the parking lot of the apartment complex has a disproportionate number of late model, expensive cars and trucks, while right across the road, the houses all have older cars in the driveways. The explanation I came to is that young people more eager to impress with a car live in the apartments, while older people with no desire to impress anyone live in the houses. Unless cars are a particular hobby or love, I would think that most people would eventually just learn the merits of buying a good quality car and running it to death before having to buy another.


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## Drumguy

friedricetheman said:


> I was just having a discussion with my pals over some beer and this topic came up.
> 
> Why do some people drive around in a fancy car but chose to live in the slums?
> 
> What is going on through their mind when they have no qualms about popping serious money on a nice car which could have been used instead as a downpayment on a nice home in a upscale area?
> 
> Also, why do people living in older affluent neighborhoods drive around in Camry's and Honda's when they clearly have the money.
> 
> Is this phenomena common worldwide or is it an Asian thing? I am living in South East Asia by the way.


The short answer is most people are dumb assess. I think older people realize that saving money is better than a new car when the one they own works while younger people do not have their priorities straight yet and are more concerned with impressing others by appearing to be successful.


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## Harley90

After having bunch of cars and houses, I'm now in the downsizing camp. 1 last year of school for the boy then looking to downsize to town homes, Atlanta and Charleston. The missus and I like both cities and have business and family in both. We converted to Toyotas after blowing money on cars for years, our cars are paid off, trouble free, still look good and are fun to drive, little problems. 
The big house is a pain to upkeep, new roof, new hvac, paint, yard work, new driveway needed, just on and on.
We spend a lot of time on the road so headed toward a little luxury after the move. 
Not a choice of cars or house but could have more in either direction if wanted.....just a balance was good for us.
So after all of that, buy what makes you happy,priorities change.


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## zengineer

There's really no making sense of it all, some people are just wired differently. An guy I know who has to be making 500k or more a year plus a healthy monthly car allowance finally traded his econobox sedan for a Buick of some sort. This week he had on a unique watch I didn't quite recognize... odd proprietary strap, maybe some AP or something I'm not in tune with...but then I got a better look, $35 Timex Ironman. I get it, he's not a watch guy but spring for a $150 Seiko or something. Brilliant guy, weird taste.

Yeah, I know, not really on topic, but the original puzzle is unsolvable.


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## shnjb

As someone who drives a cheap car and lives a big house, I sort of do wish that I had a nicer car.

But someone who owns a nice car they can't afford is no different from someone who owns a nice watch they can't afford.
In the end, people have different priorities.
Obviously it's smarter in general to spend less on depreciating "assets," if you can even call cars that, but it is also true that driving a Ferrari is quite exhilarating.


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## Golder

People live very different lives, and have very different priorities, and this leads to very different decision making.

There are probably some trends that are common among these different groups bad house/good car vs good house/bad car.

Bad House/Good Car - I think most of these folks don't have kids. It would be difficult for most folks to compromise on the living conditions of their children while spending money on a very nice car. However there are plenty folks with no kids that do not mind very modest living accommodations. This then free's up some of their cash, and since we are human we want to spend money on things that make us feel good. Very nice cars can make people feel good. When they are driving around in their corvette, no one that sees them may know they live in a place that some may find embarrassing. They can drive around thinking "I am awesome, and all these people looking at my car think I'm awesome." A very nice house is a much higher expense to get this feeling, and also you only get it when you invite people to your house, not every day when you get in your car.

Good House/Bad Car - Trend is flipped for kids. For the typical family in the USA the "right neighborhood" is important. Often the right neighborhood comes with the right schools, the right neighbors, the right friends for your kids. Americans will spend an amazingly high percentage of their income to get the house they want because it comes with these other things. This contributed to the housing bubble and crisis of ~2008, it didn't matter how high prices got, people picked the neighborhood/house level they wanted, and they would pay whatever it took to live there even if it completely destroyed their finances. This is still a fundamental problem with housing in the USA, I'm not sure it will ever stop being this way. Spend every penny you have on your house and there is not much left for cars. This is probably some portion of the good house/bad car crowd. The rest is probably folks that understand the depreciating asset issue. At least a percentage of the money spent on an expensive house is an investment (you do not get your high real estate taxes back), however every penny you spend on a car is truly a penny spent. You don't get it back. People that understand this and are savers don't want to spend money on a nice car. For these people money in the bank gives them better happiness return than money spent on a car.

Very interesting thing happened with a family that lives down the street from me recently, upper middle class, guy is in sales, wife is a nurse, two kids, plenty comfortable but not rich. They had a for sale sign in front of their house but then a month later it went away. They told us they had their eye on an upgrade house, however when it came time to finance and they actually figured out exactly what their payment would be they decided they couldn't afford it. Two months later a brand new white corvette showed up in his driveway. People want things to help them be happy . . . .


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## TheWalrus




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## TheWalrus

In case it wasn't obvious - I'd take a small house and a nice car over a big house and a regular car any day.

A 'big house' is luxury too. i don't intend on having more than one or two kids. I don't need a big house - in fact it's wasteful when you consider how much extra a large house costs to maintain and heat and clean. Give me a modest house (in a decent area), with a reasonable yard... or heck - even a nice townhouse or larger condo plus a couple cars I actually enjoy driving any day.


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## tzakiel

Baham said:


> Cars depreciate. House appreciate.


I wish I could agree. Currently sitting on a condo worth $290k that I paid $365k for in 2006.


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## Toothbras

I like my Honda. Would drive it even if I was super loaded.


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## Heinz

"You can live in your car, but you can't drive your house"


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## nevada1995

Cars are a horrible investment and big homes are a money pit. Neither is the right choice. Live within your means.


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## Al Garete

In general I prefer to keep my mouth shut on these types of questions, but I can't help but notice the conflation of "Big house = luxury/fancy." They are not equal concepts.

Back in the States, where we will retire, I drive a sensible car, and my wife and I live in the best quality house we could afford when we bought.


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## AlphaM911

Al Garete said:


> In general I prefer to keep my mouth shut on these types of questions, *but I can't help but notice the conflation of "Big house = luxury/fancy.*" They are not equal concepts.
> 
> Back in the States, where we will retire, I drive a sensible car, and my wife and I live in the best quality house we could afford when we bought.


I completely agree. More likely than not I pay more for rent in my 1 bedroom apartment in Manhattan than some amazing 4,000+ sq ft. 4-5 bedroom houses in Texas or Atlanta for example.


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## zengineer

Toothbras said:


> I like my Honda. Would drive it even if I was super loaded.


Please don't drink and drive.


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## Micro

I chose a house and a car that are within my means and fits my needs, leaving me with enough discretionary funds to enjoy life.


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## TheWalrus

AlphaM911 said:


> I completely agree. More likely than not I pay more for rent in my 1 bedroom apartment in Manhattan than some amazing 4,000+ sq ft. 4-5 bedroom houses in Texas or Atlanta for example.


That doesn't follow. There's a legitimate presumption in this discussion that we're discussing similar properties in similar locations - in which case more space is definitely a luxury. ie. you'll pay more for a 2 bedroom apartment in Manhattan and a 5000+ square foot house in Texas.


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## bonero

Old car and new apartment 
I owe an VW T2 and love it a lot!!







Since January I'm also living with my family at Pompano Beach in Florida! It is such an amazing lifestyle! I love it here! The sun is shining most of the time, I go for a run like every morning! I could write you a very long entry about what I love but better just read for yourself on http://sabbiabeachcondos.com/lifestyle/
No winter any more


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## seiko_1

it is all about priorities, i love big houses and also love fancy cars but if i'm to choose one, then i will go with the big... that is comfort for the whole family


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## KrazyK

I went though a phase back in my early 20's. Started my own business in the auto collision industry and started making money I never saw before. I always hung out with older, successful people. So expensive cars was something I really wanted a piece of. Back in that time I was ready to buy my first home. The median price was 300k for a nice house. As I was about to get ready to apply and qualify, housing prices jumped from 300k to an average of 700k overnight. This was back in 2005 in Los Angeles, So you can imagine. So I got pissed off and when and bought a 180,000.00 SL AMG Mercedes. I don't have it any longer and realized today that was just a stupid amount of money blown away. Considering at heart I'm an off road truck guy. Bought a Ford Raptor, went into business on the Ford Raptor and that truck became just as expensive as the Mercedes since I had to mod it out over time for the market as a marketing tool. The ironic part is, that expensive truck made me enough to dough to buy a nice house. Go into business on your expensive car and it'll level the playing field quite nicely. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## BEEG

I hate driving and taking care of the house(lived in 130 square meters flat - 1500 sq feet, if my calculations are correct, it was hell to clean the dust), Give me a place located in the Centre of the city, possibly in the same building as a watch shop and call it a day.


But I have to choose - give me the house - I can rent it out


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## MrBlandings

For the most part, I think people have hit the nail on the head here, but just thought I would add my experience. I am an architect and most of my clients....well all of them....are significantly more wealthy then myself. While there have been some clients who have been 1% earners (and even a .25% or two), I would wager that most are in the 2% - 4% range.

While their houses were and are typically in very nice neighborhoods: pre-war apartments on the Upper East Side, estates in the Hamptons or Greenwich, or "cottages" Upstate or in the Berkshires, their car choices have been all over the place.

I have had clients show up to meetings being driven in Town Cars, European sedans, and American SUVs. I have had clients show up in their new MBs, BMWs, or Audis. I have had clients show up in Hondas, Fords, a fair share of Prius' (Prii??), and once a beat to hell Volvo wagon. Some really don't care what the drive, as long as it gets them to where they were going, some had several daily drivers as well as multiple weekend exotics.

The bottom line is just like everyone else, their priorities lie in different places. Like watches, cars are important to some and not important to others.


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## OmegaSMPMan

Neither will make you happy


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## 69mach351

My wife likes the nice house - I am more into sports cars. All that said, I prefer low maintenance and cost of ownership over both. Maybe that is just because we got our property tax bills the other day...


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## Blais223

There really isn't a clear cut correct answer and it's dependent on your personal situation. As a single guy who makes a decent wage and used to travel a lot for work the thought of owning a home that I was never in didn't make sense. So for the past 4 years I've lived in a high rise apartment down town. There's a concierge to sign for packages when I'm not there, security to ensure safety, fob access to the elevators, and a lot of other features that appealed to someone that would be routinely fly out Sunday night and not come home until Friday afternoon. Also, like the NYC and LAX guys mentioned, some area's it makes more sense to rent in when the real estate market is heavily inflated. I'm lucky I wasn't based out of San Fran- talk about crazy high mortgages right now. Not spending money on the monthly maintenance of a house allowed me to have an E55, which I loved. I have a new job now where I won't be traveling and the AMG was traded for an Infiniti Q50 as the daily driver and the savings for a down payment on a house have started. At the same time I love cars- LOVE cars. The idea of living in a very large home but driving a bare bones Camry makes we want to end it all. So I'll stick with a medium size house and always have a decent car.


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## jazz_harvey

At this point in time every fancy car is the same, an appliance. Point A to Point, the end. A home brings people together, a home creates a story. So i'll pick a luxury house. Now if the fancy car was 20 years in the future, I'd take it without a second thought. Self-driving can not get here soon enough.


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## dawn

Quick answer: you can only drive your car around and not your house...different people with different priorities.


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## Blacktocomm

How about neither and spend all the money on watches and travel?


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## SnooPPP

I'd rather have a small house in a nice area. Like beach front or something


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## Vinita

Different people, different priorities.
For me it would be a nice,chic house.


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## GlenRoiland

beeman101 said:


> For me it has to be a fancy ass house as i love my home & in a nice area.....Cars come and cars go...i feel your home is where your heart is....


Kindof this...

my my wife and I struggled for many years. No cell phones, no cable, no internet at all. Couldn't afford it. The cars we drove were gifts from our parents (and they were old). We lived with our first son at my dads house.

so early on, we decided we'd never, ever live above our means. We would always live below our means, assuming just one salary (mine). As our life changed, we were able to afford more.....so our FIRST decision was our house. Not cars or watches. We wanted to be able to bring our kids up in a nice area with a good school district. We busted our horns, and made it big......

so we chose a nice house over a nice car. We were the nice neighborhood people with the beat up 180,000 mile cars in the driveway. Then, for safety of driving our family around, cars became the second priority. Never were our choices about impressing anyone, period. They were choices we made based on our family (our first apartment was outside the train station overlooking the tracks....the number of drug deals and gunshots was alarming to say the least, and when your car dies as you are driving with your children in the back......you make decisions based on safety alone), and the safety of all of us.

So, early on we had neither the house or the cars. Then we moved to an upper class neighborhood with the [email protected] cars. Now we have the nice house AND cars. I'd do it exactly the same way again. .......


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## CdnCarat

I've lived by a very silly rule: Not to buy a car nicer than your boss'. Prefer a mid-Lux car and faster pay down on mortgage...


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## GlenRoiland

CdnCarat said:


> I've lived by a very silly rule: Not to buy a car nicer than your boss'. Prefer a mid-Lux car and faster pay down on mortgage...
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


YUP


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## jasonlee

Honestly, it depends on where you live.
Personally, with spare cash, its always house first then car.
The cheapest car in a particular country can buy a big multi-story house in another country and vice versa.
Then again, most of the time, house appreciates while car depreciates.


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## juancervantes

I want both


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## Sxgt

For me it is a balance - I could have a bigger house, but I like my house, neighborhood, neighbors, location and I can still have nice cars (Audi). It is depressing to see the depreciation on cars, and the recent minimal appreciation in housing. Either way no regrets.


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## fransiscus

For me big house  as the value not as depreciated as much in comparison with the car but again it depends on your priorities and what do you like


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## ds760476

For me, neither. I know I'll never be wealthy doing this, but I like to work only when I want too, and committing to a bigger mortgage or more $ for cars would force me to work all of the time. I'd much rather spend several months/year off with my family.


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## kndy

friedricetheman said:


> I was just having a discussion with my pals over some beer and this topic came up.
> 
> Why do some people drive around in a fancy car but chose to live in the slums?
> 
> What is going on through their mind when they have no qualms about popping serious money on a nice car which could have been used instead as a downpayment on a nice home in a upscale area?
> 
> Also, why do people living in older affluent neighborhoods drive around in Camry's and Honda's when they clearly have the money.
> 
> Is this phenomena common worldwide or is it an Asian thing? I am living in South East Asia by the way.


It's subjective to the individual and also where you are at life. I have changed a lot and my perspective has changed a lot.

For example, I made a few key decisions in the past year and I have no regrets:

a) To avoid eating at restaurants like I usually did and focus on a healthier lifestyle. 
b) I decided at this point in my life that I love traveling and while my money is primarily paying the bills and getting things I want, I needed to cut corners and direct money to more traveling around the world. So, I decided to not go for a BMW or Range Rover and instead, go for a Prius. Sure, it does not have the "Wow! Factor" but damn, I was spending nearly $200 on gas per month. And with a Prius, I only spent $37 on gas and that extra money I have saved, goes into the travel fund (or expensive DSLR fund).

Now to answer your question.....for me and my friends who are fiscally conservative... we are now thinking about the future more than the now. Back then, car was everything, then came the house that was everything but now we think about trying to be more debt free and to have ourselves setup for the future.

Also, this may be frustrating to some people but I live life as if I was broke. Because I like to be ahead of bills by a year or more. I know I can buy certain things now but I don't (unless necessary), I always live to be prepared if something goes wrong or what if I lose my job, etc. Part of this is because I know a lot of people who have made a lot of money and have lost their jobs. Some who were able to bounce back, others who weren't that fortunate. They had no savings and if they did have savings, it was enough to cover themselves for 3-6 months.

Also, if you are a business owner, you never know what to expect, especially when their is a medical crisis. May it be cancer or some sort of messed up illness, the cost of health insurance and treatment can easily deplete one's savings.

Even a few of my family and friends have the same mindset these days of living like they did when they weren't successful, putting the money into their children's future, their retirement (and sometimes paying a flat fee for their divorce settlement) and a well-planned emergency fund.

As for Asia, I am Asian and for those of my friends who do drive great cars and live in nice homes, their parents paid for their vehicles, their homes and education, their rent, their expenses. There are some people who are fortunate to have parents with more money than they can think of and they hope their children will make something of themselves and become successful. Some with parents who already have their children's futures planned to take over their companies. But this is a small percentage...These friends were born to be wealthy.

My parents were not like that. They wanted me and my siblings to learn about being fiscally responsible and college was something that we both had to pay for. They always made it known to us at a young age that we are not going to have it easy like my friends that I grew up with.


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## arejay101

If it was based on my circle of friends. We all have moderate houses/condos and moderate cars. Some tilting the scales slightly towards nicer car and other towards nicer home. I think people do what suits them best. There are a lot of good books out there that examine the habits of the wealthy and poor. Certainly some interesting reads.

As for myself, I prefer not to have any undue attention, so I live in a decently sized condo (which only my close friends can visit) and drive my 11 year old car. The car culture in my area is very real, especially in the surrounding buildings where many young professionals live. It's tempting for me to tip the scale back to a nicer car... But it would have to be a 57' Belair or 60s corvette convertible. Since I'm in my early 30s, I don't think I could muster the maintenance on those old machines.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## mak1277

For me, I just am not a "car guy". I would have no problem wearing a $25k watch and driving a car that cost less than that. When car shopping with my wife recently, the salesman asked what I liked most about my current car. The only thing I could come up with was "satellite radio". Anything more luxurious than that is wasted on me.


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## WatchMeSpend

CdnCarat said:


> I've lived by a very silly rule: Not to buy a car nicer than your boss'. Prefer a mid-Lux car and faster pay down on mortgage...
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


My "Boss" personally drives a Dodge Caravan and I do as well for a work vehicle... I drive used mid lux cars and invest instead of worrying about paying things down because money is cheap to borrow right now and my ROR is much higher than the interest rates.


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## Golder

WatchMeSpend said:


> My "Boss" personally drives a Dodge Caravan and I do as well for a work vehicle... I drive used mid lux cars and invest instead of worrying about paying things down because money is cheap to borrow right now and my ROR is much higher than the interest rates.


^ This. No good reason to pay down a 4% mortgage, when you get to deduct the interest. Better to make your standard payment and keep your money in the market. Better return and simpler access to your assets should you need them (like when its time to upgrade to a nicer house!!!).


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## WatchMeSpend

Golder said:


> ^ This. No good reason to pay down a 4% mortgage, when you get to deduct the interest. Better to make your standard payment and keep your money in the market. Better return and simpler access to your assets should you need them (like when its time to upgrade to a nicer house!!!).


Just a little FYI. In Canada, we cannot deduct interest but the mortgage rates are hovering around 2.5%. Obviously 2.5% is easier to beat than 4%. If you HELOC the money out of the house, you'll get a slightly better rate and so long as that is invested, the interest is deductible. Most people think they should pay off their home ASAP because the price of housing here is going nuts in some areas, but the house appreciates the same amount if you pay it off or not, so why bother when you can either HELOC for a rental property that pays for itself and appreciates the same as your principle property and the ability to write off the HELOC interest.

As a matter of fact, I co own rentals just outside Houston. Go Texas economy, go!!


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## rockroyalty

I know in Dubai people combine both... because almost everywhere is good to live (relatively the whole city is safe), so people spend money on cars... plus the locals here drive A LOT... 30,000kms (20,000 miles) yearly is considered average to Dubai residents, local Emiratis though drive waaaaaaay more than that... between 50,000-80,000kms a year, which is crazy... rushhours are also crazy and happen day and night, so you spend a lot of time in a car around Dubai... might as well spend it in a car that you love and enjoy or feel super comfortable in.

Personally for me, I lived in premier suburbs in Australia, but in small places... a place where my cars would be safe... I lived in a studio apartment in a city while having 3 cars and a motorcycle in the basement garage... because I care about cars and bikes more than I care about having a massive place to live... as long as the locale is great and the suburb is safe and has amenities its all good... I lived in a 4 bedroom by myself before, its a little eerie, especially in those quiet suburbs that has proper fancy old people... they are too quiet for my liking


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## gatster

I think it goes in phases - once you have a nice house and aren't living beyond your means with a decent income if you like cars go get one (but a lot of people in that position don't). If you can't afford both, I guess you have to make a choice.

I know very rich people in huge houses with pretty normal cars, and some young guys at work living with their parents driving amazing cars...the excesses of youth ;-)

Myself, I love houses and cars almost equally. Over the years I have spent a lot on my house, and occasionally too much on cars but that has pretty much stopped since our household has had a 'company' car - don't see much point in owning a hugely depreciating asset. Saying that, I am struggling to see the value in a lot of things I _could_ buy of late!


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## dawn

Houses are better value for money and they hardly depreciate.


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## AlphaM911

dawn said:


> Houses are better value for money and they hardly depreciate.


My car is going for around $15,000-20,000 over sticker(MSRP).


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## clipp

not greedy but both goes together for me


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## smee

A house first and then a car. The way i usually look at it is the car should be around 10 percent of the total value of your house.


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## ty423

38 unmarried and live in a purchased condo. Have 2 rooms rented out to friends and that covers my mortgage. Drive a business paid 2015 Ford Flex that has most of the modern technology and a 2007 Ferrari F430 occasionally. It was more funny when I owned a 650whp gt-r and a prius at the same time.


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## oynag

I really want to say car but the pragmatist in me says you spend way more time in your house. It's a refuge. Car can be too, but in the right situations.


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## speedyam

I've been chunking away at both my entire working life. Separate budgets. Nothing crazy on the cars, but nice to perfectly suitable - I had my mom's old Suburban for a while then bought a VW TDI, then moved to a nice crew cab F150 XLT with some help to the car fund staying healthy from the buyback/compensation from VW for the TDI. I put $10k of that budget in Apple and Google in 2008, which worked out ok. I just closed on my first house. I probably should have done that a few years ago, but the timing wasn't right for me. Nice but not totally renovated 1980s home in south central Austin. I think the thing that will keep me from accumulating watches and guitars will be the want for new bathrooms, kitchen, flooring, siding, etc. I was living in a pretty cheap apartment, so a bit of the money that was going into the down payment budget will now go to payments and additional payments and then I can see it being much less frequent that I have a surplus that seems like it belongs to a watch or yet another guitar.


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## rMv

House of course.


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## s2kstephen

When I was young, cars. I spent my early 20's spending entirely too much on cars. As I got older, I learned that I wanted to make my money work for me, so I saved and turned to real estate. After purchasing 11 rental properties, I am now able to purchase a nice home and spend money on depreciating assets, but it will take some saving and income increase before I feel comfortable buying an 'expensive' car ($35k +) or a new vehicle.


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## nevermind

Davemcc said:


> My personal mantra is that "if I had all the money I've ever spent on cars, I'd spend it all on cars".b-)


I'm going to use that quote a lot. That's EXACTLY how I feel about cars.


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## jalfreem

herooftheday said:


> It's all about priorities. I read an article a long time ago how people (guys mostly) will spend 2k a month on a leased car and live in a small studio apartment. When I was younger that sounded great. I see the error of those ways now. I'd rather have the nice house and if I can, a nice car. It makes much more financial sense to do it that way. I work in a very affluent town and I drive past huge, multi-million dollar houses and in the drive way are 30-40k cars. I'm sure they can afford better, but why?
> 
> If you get a chance, read a book called "The millionaire mind." The book wasn't what I expected, but it help put things into perspective. Basically it talks about people who are worth millions and how they maintain that by driving "cheaper" but more reliable cars and reupholster old furniture to avoid unnecessary costs. It's a very interesting read. Check it out.


The following is my opinion and experience only, not meant to offend anyone. I enjoy people's posts and I can only hope that I can add a little to the watchuseek archives. 
I haven't read any of the following posts, but I was going to add "The Millionaire Next Door" book. Basic summary, the most millionaires in net worth in the USA on average drive Toyota Camrys live in middle middle class neighbor hoods, work for themselves in service type industries like CPA accountants or plumbers, and wear Seikos. If one wants to be financially independent, then do what's necessary to get there. Avoid stealing from your future self. Why people live in "crappy" houses or neighborhoods, and have luxury cars, or have nice houses and economy cars is hard to answer in an opinion based world or WIS, but in a general sociological fun mind game activity, it comes down to a person's values of what's really important in life. Have fun now, live like their rich now, or live modestly now to live extravagantly later. The statistics show those who were millionaires didn't live extravagantly because in their words, never cared for that "stuff" anyway. In my humble opinion, houses, cars, watches are all in a state of decay and are like foundations of wood and straw, only to burn up in the end. If one can afford them (I mean, not sacrificing more important life requirements for them) buy them and enjoy them. Just know these things won't bring true joy.

I know a kid I went to high school with (small Midwest town, slowing rust belt economy) who went all in on a Lamborghini after landing an oil company job in Texas after working for a military private contractor in Iraq. He was always spending all his money on a bigger house and his car that required very expensive service. He was even in a Lambo club. He later lost his job, and was essentially broke with a huge car payment and mortgage. Classic grasshopper and ant fable.


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## SunnyDaze

I try to be sensible across the board. The fact that I'm a DIY / tinkerer type also helps.

I could have gone to an uber-prestigious institution for grad school and come out with hundreds of thousands worth of debt. Instead I chose a state school where tuition was far more reasonable and the likelihood that I'd get research funding was very high. 

I picked up a used BMW X5 that was in need of repair. I turned wrenches in a previous life, thus, it made good sense to snag it as a fixer-upper. I enjoy watching jaws drop when I tell folks what I paid for it. 

We could have bought the 5 bedroom 3 garage palace up the street. Instead, we went with a more modest (yet still "nicer" than most of our friends, family, etc...) place that's a thousand feet further away from the country club / golf course that needed some work.

I could have purchased a new Kimber, but, a SIG will do just fine.

I grew up in a relatively poor area. I didn't even realize that I grew up poor until I moved to the city. Regardless of how much people spend or what they spend it on, I think appreciation for what you've earned is paramount.


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## pixnw

I'm a developer and builder so houses are part of my daily life. I am always amazed how many buyers are recent empty nesters and they're buying a bigger, fancier home that the one they raised their family in. Often I think it's a case of having kids through college and feeling like indulging themselves a bit. 

I will say the majority of our truly wealthy clients pay cash or utilize very large down payments and buy or have us build a home well below their means. Most of our wealthy clients tend to drive rather modest vehicles. The ones tending to drive expensive vehicles are those stretching to buy the most house they possibly can. Its pretty easy to spot those that are wanting to impress others opposed to pleasing themselves. Not in all cases, put fairly often.


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## guspech750

I'm a hobby car guy that loves to turn wrenches. I drive a beater 2002 F250, my wife drives a 2014 SHO and my play car is a modified 2004 Marauder. I'd trade our big house in the burbs in a heart beat for a smaller home on 10 acres so I could have more money for more cars, watches, guns, fishing crap and more. We bought the bigger home expecting to have more than one child. But that didn't pan out. We are tired of wasting tons of money on taxes for our corrupt politicians to waste. Money we could invest, buy more toys and stuff. 

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## MJACLA09

Rallyfan13 said:


> Every car made in the UK, Italy or Germany during this century has been garbage compared to what Honda and Toyota produce. The smart money is on reliable cars.
> 
> If you own a Merc, Jag, RR, Bentley, Lambo, some other VAG product, BMW, Ferrari, some other FIAT product, etc. let's hope you know more about watches than cars.
> 
> The correct answer is small house, no car if at all possible. The smaller the house the less there is to clean, heat, cool, and maintain; not having a car means no depreciation, no wear and tear, no repairs, no insurance.


I'll assume you mean the correct answer for me. Which is great. 


Rallyfan13 said:


> Made in Germany = unreliable.
> 
> Honda has been the best engine builder globally well before the late great LJK Setright pointed it out. Toyotas routinely exceed 300 K miles.
> 
> European "luxury" cars are for posing. Garbage.
> 
> To clarify: just because it's not listed doesn't make it the right choice. Check the chassis. If it says "Made in ____" and the country is Germany, Italy, UK, you've bought the wrong car.
> 
> Sell high before it breaks, buy a Honda or Toyota.
> 
> You're welcome.


I've owned Porches for 25 years. I change the oil and fluids in them and they run amazingly. From my 65 to all of my new ones they are brilliant. So I'll assume you've got bad information and I'll figure you are just uninformed. I also change the oil and fluids in my Italian cars. Seems Italy has been incorrectly named as well.

Lets also assume they are the wrong car for you and not the wrong car for others.

You're welcome. 


herooftheday said:


> It's all about priorities. I read an article a long time ago how people (guys mostly) will spend 2k a month on a leased car and live in a small studio apartment. When I was younger that sounded great. I see the error of those ways now. I'd rather have the nice house and if I can, a nice car. It makes much more financial sense to do it that way. I work in a very affluent town and I drive past huge, multi-million dollar houses and in the drive way are 30-40k cars. I'm sure they can afford better, but why?
> 
> If you get a chance, read a book called "The millionaire mind." The book wasn't what I expected, but it help put things into perspective. Basically it talks about people who are worth millions and how they maintain that by driving "cheaper" but more reliable cars and reupholster old furniture to avoid unnecessary costs. It's a very interesting read. Check it out.


Obviously you've not reupholstered a lot of couches. Fabric can be $1000's plus without labor.

Id only tell someone to live within their means. If you want a 16,000sqft home and 50 cars do it if you can afford the lifestyle. If it's a leased life and you are on the edge every minute you're doing it wrong.


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## SunnyDaze

guspech750 said:


> I'm a hobby car guy that loves to turn wrenches. I drive a beater 2002 F250, my wife drives a 2014 SHO and my play car is a modified 2004 Marauder. I'd trade our big house in the burbs in a heart beat for a smaller home on 10 acres so I could have more money for more cars, watches, guns, fishing crap and more. We bought the bigger home expecting to have more than one child. But that didn't pan out. We are tired of wasting tons of money on taxes for our corrupt politicians to waste. Money we could invest, buy more toys and stuff.
> 
> Sent from my SM-T530NU using Tapatalk


I can sympathize. I wanted to move back to the Laurel Mountains. My wife wanted to move into the city of Pittsburgh. We compromised. Eventually though, I'd love to get back to having a "Let's try out the new Ruger!" type of back yard once again.


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## herooftheday

MJACLA09 said:


> I'll assume you mean the correct answer for me. Which is great.
> 
> I've owned Porches for 25 years. I change the oil and fluids in them and they run amazingly. From my 65 to all of my new ones they are brilliant. So I'll assume you've got bad information and I'll figure you are just uninformed. I also change the oil and fluids in my Italian cars. Seems Italy has been incorrectly named as well.
> 
> Lets also assume they are the wrong car for you and not the wrong car for others.
> 
> You're welcome.
> 
> Obviously you've not reupholstered a lot of couches. Fabric can be $1000's plus without labor.
> 
> Id only tell someone to live within their means. If you want a 16,000sqft home and 50 cars do it if you can afford the lifestyle. If it's a leased life and you are on the edge every minute you're doing it wrong.


Obviously I haven't because I said I read it in a book. But there must be some merit to it because some people who have obviously been more successful with money than I have, do it. I'll re-read it and come up with a better example lol. Point is, they find ways to reuse and renew old things instead of buying new.


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## Mediocre

My wife and I discussed a similar topic recently. We live in a modest home on a few acres with a shop to tinker on vehicles (older hobby than watches for me) and whatever else peaks my interest. I do not drive a "fancy" car by any means, but the wife and I do enjoy keeping a toy or two to enjoy in the garage/shop. 

I would rather have a decent home with a bit of land in which to raise my family, and have a small vacation/getaway spot either near the beach, on a lake, or in the middle of no where with a private pond and a lot of land.


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## Mediocre

Addressing the silly discussion of Japanese vehicles vs. European....They are generally built for a different customer and purpose. I currently DD an 07 Honda Accord EX with a 3.0L V-Tec. It is a dependable daily driver with an automatic transmission with a reputation for being garbage.....and it shudders between many shifts, as expected. It does keep going though. The engine is enough to get ~25.5 MPG and hold its own on the interstate, though it would not be described as exhilarating. It also required a timing belt replacement that is no easy or cheap task. We also own an AWD GMC Yukon, which I replaced the fuel pump in two weeks ago.

Some other recently owned vehicles include an 07 335i, 91 M5, and an 04 X5. Did they require their share of maintenance/repair? Sure. Did they require more than the two vehicles above? Not really. I think people complain about repairing/maintaining BMW's more than GMC's or Hondas because they cost more initially (so they expect them to magically run forever) and they are more expensive to repair if you take them back to the dealer. If you do it yourself, costs are fairly comparable.

That being said, all three of the BMW's were MUCH more fun to drive than what we have now. The X5 even outhandled, outstopped, and hout accelerated the Yukon by a longshot. The others do not even need a comparison statement. We have what we have now because we have another child on the way, and a third row seat seemed like it could be useful. The Accord was FREE (family situation) as long as I was willing to spend some time repairing it, and I decided to reduce the number of vehicles I spend insurance on every month until after the baby gets here.

On a different note, the fun car I have at the moment is a decently modified Mazdaspeed6.....which has forever soured my opinion of Mazda. Never again.


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## orangenSaft

Mediocre said:


> Addressing the silly discussion of Japanese vehicles vs. European....They are generally built for a different customer and purpose. I currently DD an 07 Honda Accord EX with a 3.0L V-Tec. It is a dependable daily driver with an automatic transmission with a reputation for being garbage.....and it shudders between many shifts, as expected. It does keep going though. The engine is enough to get ~25.5 MPG and hold its own on the interstate, though it would not be described as exhilarating. It also required a timing belt replacement that is no easy or cheap task. We also own an AWD GMC Yukon, which I replaced the fuel pump in two weeks ago.
> 
> Some other recently owned vehicles include an 07 335i, 91 M5, and an 04 X5. Did they require their share of maintenance/repair? Sure. Did they require more than the two vehicles above? Not really. I think people complain about repairing/maintaining BMW's more than GMC's or Hondas because they cost more initially (so they expect them to magically run forever) and they are more expensive to repair if you take them back to the dealer. If you do it yourself, costs are fairly comparable.
> 
> That being said, all three of the BMW's were MUCH more fun to drive than what we have now. The X5 even outhandled, outstopped, and hout accelerated the Yukon by a longshot. The others do not even need a comparison statement. We have what we have now because we have another child on the way, and a third row seat seemed like it could be useful. The Accord was FREE (family situation) as long as I was willing to spend some time repairing it, and I decided to reduce the number of vehicles I spend insurance on every month until after the baby gets here.
> 
> On a different note, the fun car I have at the moment is a decently modified Mazdaspeed6.....which has forever soured my opinion of Mazda. Never again.


I feel like a modified version of a low production, high strung turbo 4 is not a fair representation of the manufacturer. I drive 5.0 Mustang so not a fanboy or anything, but I generally admire the Mazda ethos and my wife drove a 3 to the ground before it was finally rear-ended.

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## Mediocre

orangenSaft said:


> I feel like a modified version of a low production, high strung turbo 4 is not a fair representation of the manufacturer. I drive 5.0 Mustang so not a fanboy or anything, but I generally admire the Mazda ethos and my wife drove a 3 to the ground before it was finally rear-ended.
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


The experience with Mazda is...

FD RX7, fun car, but finicky is an understatement
Mazdaspeed6, its OK, not terrible, but not what some on the internet may advertise them to be.....and the throttle body issues are nothing shy of enfuriating
Miata, I wanted to buy one for weekend racing, but I literally do not fit in them (didn't really fit in the RX7 either)
CX-7, my sister owned one. She hit a Tahoe in the rear. The Tahoe needed the rear bumper painted. The CX-7 was totaled, literally

Mazda probably makes decent cars for the money, I do not know. I would argue that there are better options out there though


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## KS1144

I wouldn't even take a small fleet of high end luxury vehicles over a large home.

A million dollar house > A million in cars.


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## ShortOnTime3

I probably lean towards a nicer car, but this is likely due to the fact that I don't want kids. I simply don't want or need the space. I would prefer to have a decent 2000 sf house and a shop/garage unattached to the house. Unfortunately I can't find my ideal house for a price or location that makes sense. Most houses that have that have the garage or shop space that I would like are gigantic. 

So I live in a decent neighborhood with a nice car and a reasonable house. By and large I'm fairly satisfied. I can see why people would prefer a nice house to a nice car or a nice house and a nice car. I have a harder time with the nice car in a trailer park. I get that it's about priorities, but I can imagine prioritizing a car over where you lay your head at night. Not to mention, a nice car in a not so nice neighborhood would likely attract attention. I dislike attention. I'm also a huge car guy, so I should get it. But I would never feel comfortable driving something like a new corvette or viper if I lived in a trailer.


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## tzwick

As of now, would rather live in a decent to above average condo, but drive a nice car. When I get a little bit older, however, I'm sure I would rather the house. But as of now, much rather punch it in my C63 than relax back at home .


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## mountbatten

Nice three bedroom house and a Volkswagen fits the bill for me, that is to say, I'm indecisive on the matter....


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## silvertonesx24

House, because nothing depreciates quite like a luxury car.


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## geno2568

House definitely. Holds value better.


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## BerutoSenpai

House of course.


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## ZIPPER79

Sometimes it's a grand ego thing.....To show off you could drive your car anywhere but it's hard to bring your house to the local watering spot.....




friedricetheman said:


> I was just having a discussion with my pals over some beer and this topic came up.
> 
> Why do some people drive around in a fancy car but chose to live in the slums?
> 
> What is going on through their mind when they have no qualms about popping serious money on a nice car which could have been used instead as a downpayment on a nice home in a upscale area?
> 
> Also, why do people living in older affluent neighborhoods drive around in Camry's and Honda's when they clearly have the money.
> 
> Is this phenomena common worldwide or is it an Asian thing? I am living in South East Asia by the way.


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## Crate410

Rallyfan13 said:


> Made in Germany = unreliable.
> 
> Honda has been the best engine builder globally well before the late great LJK Setright pointed it out. Toyotas routinely exceed 300 K miles.
> 
> European "luxury" cars are for posing. Garbage.
> 
> To clarify: just because it's not listed doesn't make it the right choice. Check the chassis. If it says "Made in ____" and the country is Germany, Italy, UK, you've bought the wrong car.
> 
> Sell high before it breaks, buy a Honda or Toyota.
> 
> You're welcome.


Agree with just one comment which is local longevity and tastes.

So where I am the brands that "live" the longest are toyota, nissan and honda in that order. They are also the top three brands that retain their value the most.

Still alot of people here drive german or other european cars cause they can and so do. i was one of them.

I sold an Audi A8 for a Nissan patrol due to the hassles at the dealer (fixing one thing and ruining another) and the nice costs after the service package ended (One major service of that car costs as much as 40K worth of service of my nissan.) I have had ZERO issues in 57K on the clock.

So agree.

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## Crate410

friedricetheman said:


> In Malaysia, we have a very high rate of bankruptcy among men aged 22-29. This is due to their spending habits and preference for fancy cars and expensive luxury items.
> 
> I have a friend who is working in retail, lives in a tiny one room apartment with his wife and two kids but drives a Jaguar XE. The Jag financing eats up 70% of his active income. This does not include petrol, road tax and insurance.
> 
> I heard he is surviving on credit cards and at last count, he has around 10 credit cards from different banks, most of them maxed out.
> 
> And surprisingly, this sort of behavior is the norm in Malaysia among the younger set. Malaysia is a place where the minimum wage is USD$250 per month and 75% of the working population are exempted from income tax due to earning less than USD$1,000 per month.
> 
> And it should be noted that Malaysia has one of the highest luxury tax in the world. Our cars are the most expensive in the world.


We had (still do but its better) the same issue for that same age bracket.

The central bank put rules in place to make sure you cannot get into debt past a certain percentage of your income and the govt opened a fund to help those in legal trouble with banks to restructure their debt and black list them for any more till its paid off.

Its helped.

There is no credit bureau where banks and finance company details are shared and available in Malaysia? That started here about 2 or 3 years back and has stopped the cases where people had 10 cards with 10 different providers.

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## brandon\

I went with both. (The guy in the picture is just my alter ego.)


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## MarcWinNJ

Really at the end of the day it's all about common sense. You need to live and drive what you can afford. It kills me to hear 20 something's talk about buying or leasing a high end car when they work at the equivalent of a
McDonald's salary. All good things come in time. 


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## Hasaf

Ok, I am just a cheapskate. For one thing, my wife and I decided that we would always keep our bills in a state that if either of us lost our job, everything would still be covered. We live in a nice, but small and inexpensive, townhouse less than a mile from two light-rail stops. I commute on my bicycle. I put the equivalent of a car payment in my various funds every month instead of making a car payment.

We live frugally; but if we want something, we can get it.

As such, my vote is small house and no car.


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## benasaki

If you have 3 growing kids there isn't a choice- big house. We drive two 10 year old Toyotas because we can't keep anything nice.


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## gjk5dave

I paid about $400K for my house and put about $100K in it and it's worth almost double that, I paid $55K for my truck and put $5K in it and it's worth about 2/3 that. Math: it's simple.

Over the last 15 years I have made between $20K and $50K per year off of the homes I have occupied. (gross, not counting payments/interest because I have to have a housing payment no matter what). This is with an average turn of 5 years per property. Flips not included. I have only flipped cars and boats for about $20K in the same 15 year period. I guess YMMV.


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## denmarker

a good nice house wins a fancy car, every time.
most of the time, the car is parked and u don't use it.
u sleep in the house, u eat in it, u enjoy time in it, u relax and have leisure in it. u make love in your house.
house > car.

but then making love in a fanciful car is good too. lol


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## Everyworks

It's all about allocation of funds, and priorities. Shoot why do some people spend so much on watches, and drive around in beaters?


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## M.Photog

My home was paid for before i started to spend more on cars. I believe i have achieved a balance.


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## xcellr8tion

It's just my wife and I (plus pets) and we live in a simple, smaller, single story home, in a nice neighborhood. I've put money and lots of labor into upgrades to make it ours, but I've dumped far more money into cars over the same time period, and wouldn't change a thing - but, I have a passion for automotive.


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## tdiallo

i'd rather have a nice looking house since that's were i spend most of my time rather than having a 2017 vet parked next to a house that's about to collapse. I also see that a lot, but at the end of the day, it's a personal choice..


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## carlhicks

beeman101 said:


> For me it has to be a fancy ass house as i love my home & in a nice area.....Cars come and cars go...i feel your home is where your heart is....


AGREED!!


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## way1

I would gladly pick the house considering the traffic in New York.


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## kikat

House then cars letter


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## Zoogleboogle

its about priorities. I am lucky enough that I grew up in a 12,000 sq ft house. I'm far far past the "big house" thing. So my house is 1900 sq ft and im very happy. I have a bmw and two motorcycles. I'm considering trading up and purchasing a car worth about 1/2 the total price of my house (100K). Its not that im buying above my means with the car, but that I bought well below my means with my house. Many people will say "but a house has equity". Yes, but I don't plan on selling my house, and I have equity in my two businesses, various rental properties, etc. I am 26, with no kids. I want my equity to work for me. Why have a $500,000 house when I can have a $200,000 house and rent out two $150K condo properties which pay my mortgage on my house? I basically have a free 200k house vs 500k that Im paying for and sitting on. I think its a grasses greener issue. People think they need a big house to be happy, when you end up just filling it with more crap and only using 2 rooms anyway. 

I don't plan on having kids (the lady cant have them due to illness as a child and im not going to adopt - so I dont see myself needing more room). Cars are a huge interest of mine, like watches. Most will only pay for a casio (those camry driving people w the big house) while others, like us, will save up and buy above what they can easily afford for a "grail watch".


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## JesterIzDead

For me, happy medium all around. I have a nicely appointed house that is more than I'll ever need but not too much more. It is on a large enough plot of land that I'm afforded a nice level of privacy but that isn't a headache to care for. Throw in a luxury pickup and I'm living nicely while still having the disposable income to take trips and buy nice things.


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## Exiled

I live in a modest house in a good neighbourhood. It affords comfortably and is not too much house which is hard to maintain, clean and has rooms never used. I like Swedish cars and tend to buy them used at a modest price but still as impressive around town as if i bought new. I enjoy the finer things in life that my budget does not always afford new.


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## 252063225

There seems to be a lot of comments saying "kids these days live above their means", or something along that line. So let me break it down for you.

I am 27, I am on a modest £33k salary before tax. A 1 bedroom flat/apartment where I am (north of London) cost £200,000 to buy, for a 15% deposit, I'd need £30,000. Which is basically a bit less than my whole year salary before tax , after tax I have about £2k a month. And I am considered to be "lucky" for our generation.

£2k a month, £650 rent for a mouldy and slanted 1 bedroom flat, £150 a month council tax, £50 on gas and electricity, £30 on water. I have £1,120 left.

Then I have to pay for food, petrol, car insurance, car tax, MOT, car service.

After all necessary expenditures I probably have £500 to save a month. Which means 5 years before I have enough for the deposit for a 1 bedroom house, but the fact that it will only be 5 years makes me a "lucky" one. Bear in mind in 5 years time the same flat will probably be £240k. Out of all my friends who has bought a house, they have all had parents' help. My step dad's ex wife took his previous house and my mother and step dad are currently pumping huge amount to settle the mortgage for their house before they retire. Help from my parents are out of the question, and I have been told that if my step dad lose his job, I'd have to take over. Such is the current economic climate for a "middle class" in UK. 

So when I see comments telling me I am living above my means. Please, I drive a 2004 Honda Accord diesel, and watches is just about the only thing that makes me happy, so I bought one for with a huge discount at around £400+/- last year. Shall I go back to my 1990 Citroen AX so if I crash I am guaranteed to lose my legs?

p.s. I am also trying to set up a business, as I realise I need multiple incomes to buy a house with more than 1 bedroom. But I must admit entrepreneurship is difficult for me (I will admit this is one aspect in my life I could do better), I do admire those who does it well. 

p.p.s If you are successful and wouldn't mind mentoring a poor soul, PM me! I need a mentor so bad.


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## conkmwc

It's all about priorities. I love cars, and I bought my house in part because it had a decent size garage. It's still not big enough. But I don't want a bigger house and neither does my wife if you can believe that!


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## xcellr8tion

conkmwc said:


> It's all about priorities. I love cars, and I bought my house in part because it had a decent size garage. It's still not big enough. But I don't want a bigger house and neither does my wife if you can believe that!


Same here!


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## Seikologist

I found that no matter what I had that gave me a sense of well being, there was always something better, something more I needed to get. And now I'm finally learning to be content with less.


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## Camdamonium

My rule of thumb goes along the quote, "Surround yourself with those on the same mission as you." I believe it is necessary to live in a place filled with positivity and an income bracket community of those who you want to be a part of. For example, I desire to live in a $200k-$350k house (prices fluctuate depending on the market) in a nice suburb. It may be small, but a nice, safe, and respectable area where people work to improve their financial standings from their already impressive statuses would work for me. That is where I currently live and is why my parents have never moved. We could get a house infinitely nicer, but we don't want to. We would rather spend the money on cars as a more expensive house will do nothing additional for us. Plus, vehicles can be easily dumped in the event of a financial downturn. I do realize most vehicles are irrational as they are depreciating assets, but they make us happy. Putting a smile on someone's face when you hit the gas of a powerful car or when they ask if they are getting a massage while they are riding is what it's all about. They can enjoy a car with you, but not a house. Moreover, when your commute is hours a day, it would be much nicer to have a Lexus or Jaguar to have for your trek to a suburb than a Toyota Prius to your mansion. 

The truth is I'll always have nice cars. I may live paycheck to paycheck once I get out of high school and college, but I at least want a vehicle that reflects my personality and a watch that embodies the same. I've been able to find that for a $300 a month car (G37S) and a Breitling SOH. I will always work to get in that better vehicle and better house even if I choose not to upgrade. I know eventually the sleepless nights will pay off and the work now will pay off later.


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## faizan1990

Depends on your priorities and your specific situation


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## guspech750

I will always have a toy car or two. I easily don’t live in any slums but I would prefer to have a smaller home just for the simple fact that We are tired of having to clean and maintain a large home. Once our daughter is off t college I would gladly sell our little kingdom for a peasant home with many acres and have more money for more toy cars and mods. 


Sent from the White House on the tax payers dime.


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## De Wolfe

Its common everywhere I believe; people having their spending priorities off the norms, but again its their money their life.

But honestly, I would rather have a nice watch that can appreciate in value (ex Patek) instead of a depreciating car, and live in the slums JK


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## k1985

For someone who prioritizes nice things in life, I can’t justify a luxury car. 

I just feel the depreciation is horrible, they use premium gas, and most of the time when in public, my car is in a parking lot (I park at the train station). So it just doesn’t matter to me. Versus a watch that I can wear and look at all day! 


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## srleadjb

My wife and I have had this conversation many times. Where we live, everything is expensive. Our house is worth 1M and it's not in the best neighborhood. But, we also love cars. Without her Land Rover and my Porsche, we could live in the "better" part of town but putting all your money in only your house just isn't fun.

I think the best approach is to balance everything so you have what you need and what you want.

Life is too short to drive a Camry


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## Alansmithee

I've never owned a car so the answer is easy for me.


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## canonken

One thing - moving to a new house is difficult, expensive, and time-consuming.

If I could press a button and upgrade where I live now (the place I rented when I got my first job out of college and moved out here), I would. However, between it being a tight market and it being a royal PITA to move, I am happy to enjoy my lower rent and sit it out. At some point (waiting for the market to pop!?), I will move somewhere else, but for now it is easier to stay put.


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## jatco

House, better resale value...(or the land it's on..). !


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## Deejelite

I bought my second house last year (not concurrent, I sold the first one years ago). For the wife and I, we prioritized real estate over luxury assets such as “nice” cars, watches, and expensive clothes. 

Of course, I would have liked to show up at the realtor’s office in an S-Class, wearing a Skydweller, and a handmade custom suit. I didn’t. I’m a correctional officer and my wife is a nurse. We make good money and are able to live in California (Bay Area and Sacramento) without much stress about money. We chose to focus on saving enough cash for a solid down payment, with a monthly mortgage payment we could still afford if one of us lost our jobs, and would be easily rented out if we decided to keep it as a rental when relocating or upgrading. 

All that said, we’ve since been able to upgrade our cars to what I’d consider “nice.” I’m rockin my cls550 (a couple years used) and she has her one year old Lexus SUV. We don’t purchase anything brand new to avoid as much depreciation as possible. Buying so much house and putting so much of our savings into the down payment forced me to keep driving my beater Nissan but we’re in a better position because of it. 

TLR version- if planning for the future was no issue and money wasn’t as much of a concern, I’d have Ferraris all day long. Wealth planning and compromise was the path we chose and instead we have used luxury cars and a house we love while avoiding depreciation. 


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## canonken

OmegaSMPMan said:


> Neither will make you happy


Money can't buy you happiness, but it can buy things that make you happy!


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## vincentle7914

i will chosee the house


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## Ruthless750

Depends what you consider fancy is it the size or location. I’d say car but that’s from personal view of fancy house


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## Moerdn

A home (in my case, appartment) needs to fulfill my basic needs and I am not looking for anything very fancy (as I am rarely there anyway). Therefore I would say car > home - which supports the hypothesis raised earlier in this thread, that at a younger age some people prefer cars, whereas a home gets more importance with family etc.


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## BradYoung04

Very difficult to get on the housing market for much of America's youth. Cars are more affordable, simply put - and people reassess what's important to them at different stages in life.


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## Tonystix

I'll take a big house over a fancy car any day.


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## whineboy

City dweller who has never owned a car.

I'd take a modest house or apartment in an excellent neighborhood (which is what I have in NYC). Because of the size, my apt is manageable to clean and maintain, while I get all the benefits of living in a nice area - safety, good stores and restaurants, proximity to parks....

If I had to buy a car I'd opt for something reliable and low key (a higher-level Honda?)


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## thegreat4

Balance is key, but as a serious car enthusiast, I learn towards a fairly nice/decent home and crazy car. Not only for vain purposes though, I enjoy going on long drives for no reason, as well as racing events, so I can rationalize an expensive car a bit better than most.


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## bmil128

Balance, priorities and being practical are key. Been in our house 9 years, 3800 sf, could easily upgrade to bigger house or go for "secure" feeling of moving to gated section but no point, have what we need for 2 kids. Invested in renovating our fireplace and media room recently, would rather make the current home how we want it as tastes change instead of move, pay it off (10 yrs left on 15 yr refi @2.5%) and save our money for retirement and kids education. We both drive nice cars that are paid for and not trading them for every new model. Have seen too many examples of relatives and esp my in laws living Beyond their means and keeping up with the Joneses, have no savings and cannot retire with any decent standards.


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## joombo

Big house is better for me...Always wabted to live in a large house


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## kellyon

It depends on your needs. Personally I think buying a property is great investment for the future. Not so long ago I bought my first Antalya property for sale and I don't have any regrets at all. I found one company in London which helped me to find perfect house at affordable price. Now I'm planning to lease it for short-term visitors. Want to buy one more house in the next few years.


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## Denver1911

How about a fancy house? We’re building a medium sized home for our area, but it is a full-custom and will be exquisitely finished per local standards.


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## alberto.b

Honestly WHY should I choose, *when I can have both *


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## quixote

The big house is 1000 times better than fancy cars


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## andyhoang

IMO, I would choose a Big house haha but actually If I'm rich enough to have a big house then a fancy car wouldn't be a problem.


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## alberto.b

andyhoang said:


> IMO, I would choose a Big house haha but actually If I'm rich enough to have a big house then a fancy car wouldn't be a problem.


 exactly!!!!!!


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## dasoler

I personally think is wrong priorities. Some people choose a nice car and not a house because as the saying goes in California "you can't drive a house". On the other had I know many Doctors who rather spend the money on a nice house and trips because the car will loose value each year and for some of them is just a means for transportation that is not worth more than 20k regardless of what it has or does.


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## yankeexpress

In snow country, where roads are salted 1/3 of the year, cars rust out eventually and need to be replaced sooner. 

Nice house is cozy in the winter.


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## cadomniel

Not interested in a big house, and no interest in really fancy cars. Just nice to look at but no practical for I live right now.
Next vehicle will probably get a Pickup truck which can get pretty luxurious nowadays...


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## cdnwatchguy

Can't drive a house.....so car.


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## StrongBad13

Might have been said earlier but it’s far easier to get financing approved for a car than a house, especially as of late. 

Additionally (generally speaking) a house will appreciate over time whereas a car typically depreciates. Smart money typically invests in a house and drives a dependable car (Honda or Toyota) that depreciates slower until the wheels fall off.

Now all that said, I’m a sucker for a car haha


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## Londongirl

Happens a lot in outer London: the fancy car is to impress strangers whilst sitting in traffic, vs the fancy home, which provides an entirely better quality of life for your nearest and dearest.


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## Filski

Just to have my 2 pence on this thread 

I understand the concept really well and I say people should do what they want. If it is important to them to get a nice car and live in a 1 bed apartment so be it, it makes them happy and that what matters. I think few people noted that they have a nice car and don't live in a 'nice part' of the town. I think I would fall into that category. My reasoning is simple when my wife and I were on a very tight budget (her being a student and me at a very beginning of my finance career) and wanted to purchase something that we could grow into (now in UK properties are overpriced per square meter or sq.ft), we found a perfect place that needed work but in what appeared to be a 'not very nice council estate' part of town.... granted at that point in time our vehicles were clapped out ford fiesta, Subaru estate and my little project mini. However, shortly after moving in we have discovered the neighbours were the best, most humble, helpful (I have nothing but good things to say about them). 

Now 5 years later we found ourselves to be in a comfortable financial position and in place where we can move to a nice more affluent neighbourhood, but its really not something I am considering as the risk of losing my current neighbours simply outweigh the benefit of what an 'affluent' neighbourhood may bring. Therefore, decision was made to purchase a, what I consider, to be a nice car but again for the main reason that my wife drives for work and her safety is my no1 priority and it happens to be that nice new car simply does have the better safety features than her clapped out ford fiesta. 

I know people talk about depreciation and I understand that but perhaps for some people owning a property is not 'the goal' in their life and thus they would spend the money on nice cars and other luxuries in life. I think it is a very much cultural thing as I know from my wife's side many people in Germany tend to live in rented accommodation as the market very accessible and not exploited thus there is never an incentive to purchase a property.

Anyway I have waffled on for long enough


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## Londongirl

Filski said:


> Just to have my 2 pence on this thread
> 
> I understand the concept really well and I say people should do what they want. If it is important to them to get a nice car and live in a 1 bed apartment so be it, it makes them happy and that what matters. I think few people noted that they have a nice car and don't live in a 'nice part' of the town. I think I would fall into that category. My reasoning is simple when my wife and I were on a very tight budget (her being a student and me at a very beginning of my finance career) and wanted to purchase something that we could grow into (now in UK properties are overpriced per square meter or sq.ft), we found a perfect place that needed work but in what appeared to be a 'not very nice council estate' part of town.... granted at that point in time our vehicles were clapped out ford fiesta, Subaru estate and my little project mini. However, shortly after moving in we have discovered the neighbours were the best, most humble, helpful (I have nothing but good things to say about them).
> 
> Now 5 years later we found ourselves to be in a comfortable financial position and in place where we can move to a nice more affluent neighbourhood, but its really not something I am considering as the risk of losing my current neighbours simply outweigh the benefit of what an 'affluent' neighbourhood may bring. Therefore, decision was made to purchase a, what I consider, to be a nice car but again for the main reason that my wife drives for work and her safety is my no1 priority and it happens to be that nice new car simply does have the better safety features than her clapped out ford fiesta.
> 
> I know people talk about depreciation and I understand that but perhaps for some people owning a property is not 'the goal' in their life and thus they would spend the money on nice cars and other luxuries in life. I think it is a very much cultural thing as I know from my wife's side many people in Germany tend to live in rented accommodation as the market very accessible and not exploited thus there is never an incentive to purchase a property.
> 
> Anyway I have waffled on for long enough


Nuanced self-awareness. Hadn't anticipated that here.


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## mkim520

Completely subjective POV. Before I was married & 2 kids, nicer car > home. After marriage, home > fancy car. Now I just want a car that runs and is reliable.

Went from Acura -> Audi -> Lexus -> Toyota


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## mkim520

Completely subjective POV. Before I was married & 2 kids, nicer car > home. After marriage, home > fancy car. Now I just want a car that runs and is reliable.

Went from Acura -> Audi -> Lexus -> Toyota


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## took

I love both

Time is a gift...


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## narchibald

eh, really neither for me. I prefer practicality. Reasonable house (easier to clean) and a pragmatic vehicle for carrying people or things (truck)


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## Pastextian

I think it comes down to priorities, if someone has a big house as well as nice cars they don't really care much about the price of things because they're so successful money isn't much of an issue.
But for the majority, as others have noted, a choice must be made in the budget.

Someone who works from home may choose the nice house over the nice car because their home is also their place of work where they spend the majority of their time. Whereas someone who has a job or business that requires to meet with clients or who commutes a lot, would probably choose the nice car because it will help them to make a better first impression or be more comfortable while they travel. 

A nice car could also be used to open doors for conversation with other successful people. Take for example, you're at a Cars and Coffee event and you strike up a conversation with a Lamborghini owner. If you drove up in a Ford Focus they probably wouldn't give you much attention or talk about how they were able to afford a supercar. But if you arrived in something nice, like a Maserati for example, then I'd imagine they'd be more open to network with you and talk about what they do.


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## wjhoffmann

Not if you buy the right cars. I've made significant money on my last 4 Porsche purchases. Do your research and there are opportunities - goes for cars and real estate.


Baham said:


> Cars depreciate. House appreciate.


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## dan360

worst house on the best block with a huge garage full of toys bought "pre-owned" for pennies on the dollar.


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## LuxuryRevolution

Personally I think the house would be a better investment if you have the money. Nothing beats a nice ass home


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## ryanwatchcollection

Different people, different priorities. I personally am not a fan of buying depreciating things, but to each his own.


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## Ruthless750

I'll side with those selecting the house/property but then the definition of what a fancy car to everyone is different, some might say S63 is fancy and some say a Phantom is fancy....


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## krowndd

Very easy to decide because I'm sure we all know cars depreciate and house appreciate.


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## clbryant1981

I second what many have said, priorities are what play a large part of what people do. For example my priorities in life are to live comfortably, not extravagantly, and prepare for my kids college as well as my own retirement. We live in a 4 bedroom 3 bath house on an acre, that is paid for. I drive a 4 year old F150, paid for. My wife drives a 2 year old minivan, paid for. We are comfortable, not extravagant so that we can do the things we want later in life. Those are our priorities.


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## DripCassanova

home over car for me


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## Socal Sam

It's not one or the other. It has to be both. You have to have a nice house to garage your fancy car. Otherwise, you are a pretender.


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## GrouchoM

Socal Sam said:


> It's not one or the other. It has to be both. You have to have a nice house to garage your fancy car. Otherwise, you are a pretender.


The only people that HAVE to have both are pretenders.

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## JDMLS430

House over car for me. The car is in most cases a depreciating asset while a house has potential to increase in value. Probably more due to status. Out in the streets want to show off they drive a nice car but their house isnt that nice. Some people care more about looks and status than where they live.


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## Bluecolt

We finished building our dream home this year, but I drive a 10-year old truck, not because I financially have to, I just basically see vehicles as appliances. Our dream home is much bigger than we'll need in retirement, so even that will get sold eventually and we'll move into something cozier when the kids are out of college and beyond 'boomerang' age (i.e. coming back to live with us age).


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## City74

I spend WAY more time in my home then in my car/truck so to me a nice house makes sense. Also it’s an appreciating item.


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## JeffW2

I have always had fairly nice cars but only one car at a time until I turned 70. Now I have my X5 for work but I have three other fun cars, including one I take to the track. I am still working (for myself) and want to have some fun. My cars are nothing but fun.

Jeff


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## seedubs1

I have had multiple cars from very nice and fancy to complete beaters. I've found that as long as it's clean and everything works, I don't get any more joy out of having something more expensive than is necessary for the vehicle to operate properly. I just don't care about cars.

My house on the other hand.....I like my house a certain way. I have put in a lot of work on my house to get it nice (I do a lot of construction work myself and enjoy it).


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## gward10

Although I don’t feel this is common, I do see this in certain neighborhoods. I always thought the cars in these neighborhoods were leased  


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## mt_timepieces

Fancy car and big house!

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## dron_jones

Fancy car and reasonable house


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## Moondancer

We have lived in a fairly nice medium sized house for 25 years and made lots of nice improvements including very nice landscaping. We also drive reasonably nice, but not extravagant, cars. What we have put most of our money into was building up nice retirement accounts which I am coming to increasingly appreciate as I approach 80 and realize that we are going to need to move to a senior living complex and get away from all the yardwork and home repair work. I am also facing the fact that my vision is steadily getting worse so we are probably going to have to give up the cars by the time I turn 85. Living in the complex will be somewhat more expensive that living here up until we need serious help and cannot drive or do yard work and home maintenance. 

We have enjoyed living in a nice house and driving nice, but affordable, cars. My recommendation is to keep everything moderately nice and keep a close eye on those retirement funds. There is a huge difference between early (vigorous) retirement and old age retirement. Plan for both, but enjoy life along the path and make good memories. But I am going to miss driving my little 3 series BMW.


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## planetwine

shelter goes first for me. i sure can't be riding a lambo and having raindrops from my roof.


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## lawtaxi

Both. Or go home LOL


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## mpatton4re

It’s always a good idea to buy appreciating assets. If you must by a luxury car... buy it 3-5 years old. Let somebody else eat that initial depreciation AND the luxury tax.


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## Msiekierski

Well said on appreciating assets!!! That’s why I pick house over a car...but my older self would have loved to talk my younger self into grabbing few air cooled 911s back in the day 😀


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## Royal68

I prefer big house over fancy cars just because cars depreciate and houses don't but then again i live in NYC were it might be different


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## paulhotte

eightbore said:


> The first scenario is someone realizing they will never be able to afford a nice big home so they buy whatever degree of luxury they can afford in the automotive sphere. The second scenario is someone who likely got wealthy enough to buy a nice big house by realizing that "investing" large sums of money in depreciating assets like cars is ridiculous. I know a guy who is worth probably in the high 8 or low 9 figures and I have never known him to buy a new car of any sort. Sure, he will buy a Mercedes, but only two or three years old after someone else has taken a big depreciation hit. He then drives it into the ground as far as I can tell. I remember his kids drove old Toyotas when they were in school. while their friends had new Porsches. He also bought his home at probably a 50% discount from a bankruptcy auction about 25 years ago. Financially, he is my spirit guide.


That should be the best option if asked. I like my space so I rather have a big house. Besides what happens if the car deveops a fault or get bashed or something...
Big house then a nice poartable car which will definitely drive on the same road as the big car and cover same distance too...


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## noleblooded

Nice/Big house any day. Cars have an expiration date the second they are manufactured, and the minute they go past the expiration date, repairs start adding up (assuming you actually drive the car and it's not stashed away in the garage). Houses do require maintenance obviously, but they tend to appreciate over the long-term. If you can get both the nice house and car, great. But all too often people get a nice car and drive it home to a not so nice house. Especially in the US. Perhaps because it's so easy to walk into a dealership and walk out with a new car...and terrible APR.


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## socalmustang

Ugh. Off lease used car, and a house that you can pay for on a 15 year mortgage. Get the weekend car and vacation home after the equity and wealth accumulates. 

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## jamesmartin11

A fancy car?? Now that is luxury but not a necessity and I rather own a big house ...


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## johnmichael

Baham said:


> Cars depreciate. House appreciate.


Truely, a man after my own heart from nearly 3 years ago! But, the message remains the same. I've found a way around the car quandry though. I buy new but I keep them forever. If you genuinely maintain them, they don't become junkers. Also, it is wise to remember, happy wife, happy life.


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## TheWalrus

Revisiting this, because it popped up.

Not sure what I said earlier - but I'm pretty committed to "small house & small car". 

Our condo is 1000 sq feet. We won't need any more. Our car is a Honda Fit. Efficient, practical, and fun too. And the amounts we save are incredible. Most of that goes to various hobbies and life and savings and what not.


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## PANICiii

I don't know, seems like I will never be able to afford any of both.


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## kellyon

Who wouldnt want a big house? I think it's a status thing. I want to sell my old house in Calgary and buy a big one in the suburbs. I've already found local house buyers service to get more cash for houses fast. Hope my dream about big house will finally come true this year.


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## vintageretro

Big house.


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## VintageVagabound

Fancy Watch > Fancy car & big house


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## jake_2m

TheWalrus said:


> Revisiting this, because it popped up.
> 
> Not sure what I said earlier - but I'm pretty committed to "small house & small car".
> 
> Our condo is 1000 sq feet. We won't need any more. Our car is a Honda Fit. Efficient, practical, and fun too. And the amounts we save are incredible. Most of that goes to various hobbies and life and savings and what not.


Agreed. When my ex and I split and I didn't own a lot of stuff, I moved into a very small place and suddenly didn't spend a lot of time, effort, or money on maintaining a bunch of stuff. I had all of that available for hobbies (like watches) and can say beyond a doubt that's some of my happier times as an adult.

Not that I begrudge people who want a big house or car, circumstances vary of course, but for me smaller = better.

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## kwoody51

This a very tough question as it really depends on what’s important to you and how you’d like spend, or not spend, your money. 

Houses, in general, have the opportunity to appreciate and serve as a piggy bank. Cars rarely appreciate. 

While my desire for a nice car is very high my wife and I have chosen to invest in our home for the time being. Meaning it was time for me to get a new car but we decided to finish the basement and I will keep my car for another year or two.


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## Ard

I really may not be qualified to post on this but can't help myself...….

Ever since I was in my late 20's I have opted for modest cars and homes and focused on having real liquid assets available to me at any time. I found over the forty years since I started this behavior that the cash reserves allowed me to weather some things that sent many into foreclosure or repossession. 

When I was really young, 18 to 23 I was all about spending money based on signatures. I had an early marriage that ended with me on the losing team financially and that was what changed my behavior for all decades to come. By the time I was 33 I had paid my mortgage off while driving less than flashy used cars. After that I eventually bought a Mercedes sedan but sold it after only a couple years of ownership. I bought a pickup truck I could incorporate into my business and tax reporting which turned out to be way smarter than driving the S class and looking posh. Now I'm almost 65 and still have the same squirrel like lifestyle waiting for the next lean season to appear so I will be vindicated for keeping it small and keeping it all once more


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## Ben93

kwoody51 said:


> This a very tough question as it really depends on what's important to you and how you'd like spend, or not spend, your money.
> 
> Houses, in general, have the opportunity to appreciate and serve as a piggy bank. Cars rarely appreciate.
> 
> While my desire for a nice car is very high my wife and I have chosen to invest in our home for the time being. Meaning it was time for me to get a new car but we decided to finish the basement and I will keep my car for another year or two.


Honestly with how nice a Toyota or Honda is now a days having a fancy car is unnecessary. Having a reliable car that holds value well is the way to go and houses are a good asset to have. So you have more money to spend on watches ofcourse.


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## Watchguy08

Big or small a house is always worth owning. As others have mentioned a car will depreciate while a house you will get close to or more than what you payed for it.


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## RMS911

I think its a matter of priorities in both situations. People who drop money on nice cars but live in .... have their priorities mixed up. Liking cars is one thing but having a sweet car when your house is falling apart is just stupid. On the flip side, when people with big houses drive cheap cars its also priorities but probably got their priorities straight. Cars lose value instantly. Houses typically gain value. Its obvious the difference between these two types of people. 


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## yankeexpress

Made a pile on the first house we flipped (Greenwich, CT) set us up for life. 

Had some Wow cars along the way and enjoyed them mightily as well. 

Worked hard, traveled the world on the Company dime and took some insane risks but fortunately good, competent shipmates and a healthy dollop of good luck, never had a collision, grounding, shipwreck, sinking, death, arrest, bad injury, oil spill or even a car accident.

But Ivy League schools cost too, as do pleasure boats (a hole in water into which one throws money). 

Good investments in quality stocks certainly helped as did sweet tax shelters.


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## susko

How big the house is or how nice the car is doesn't concern me as much as:

Safe neighborhood
High end furnishings inside the house
Modern, open layout.
Private, outdoor space


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## DonLuis

Cheap car here. Expensive house but small (San Francisco Bay Area). Was thinking about upgrading but went on to invest in real state instead.


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## G1Ninja

susko said:


> How big the house is or how nice the car is doesn't concern me as much as:
> 
> Safe neighborhood
> High end furnishings inside the house
> Modern, open layout.
> Private, outdoor space


I don't know about the high end furnishings if you decide to have pets. But this is pretty much accurate. Safe neighborhood is tops first along with decent people that live there. I believe the saying is location, location, location. But I've met many bad people that live in nice areas. Eventually they can bring their garbage to your safe and nice neighborhood. You don't want people that think it is ok to associate with criminals living in your safe neighborhood because one day those criminals could show up. There was an episode of one of those housewives shows like that when their bad associates tagged along to their upscale homes or vacation area and got into some kind of fight.

Also on cars vs house. The house should come first of course. You don't want to park your fancy car on the street.


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## WilliG

fancy big house is always better...property is a good investment for the future in any case


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## kellyon

That's true. Investing in property is more pofitable. I bought my new house in Bulgaria and don't have any regrets. I have found all info about Bansko properties Suprimmo.net and their specialists helped me to choose the perfect house at affordable price. It looks gorgeous indeed. Now I can rent out it for summer for short time visitors.


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## Buddy Shagmore

In Detroit in the 60's, I recall driving thru the bleak, blight-like inner city with my dad, seeing beat up old houses, and sometimes a brand new shiny Cadillac in the driveway. I asked my dad how can that be? Dad said, "that's a time share Cadillac". Meaning usually 3 men would chip in on it, the main argument being, who gets it on Friday and Saturday nights?


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## Username_13

With rates in the 3's right now, it would be wise to go for the house imo.....


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## The Watch Ho

Both if you can swing it! Only live once! If cars and houses are your thing.


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## ShortOnTime

Both? It can be done. However, what I see in this thread are a lot of people who aren't car people. That's ok because this is a watch forum. I'm a car guy before a watch guy though. I've never really been into houses. Ideally, i'd have a small house and big garage space. 

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## Henraa

House comes first for me and I drive a Honda CRV. I could spend a bit more on a car but to be honest I’ve gone from Audi, BMW, VW to Honda’s due to reliability. I’d rather spend the money on my family and house. 


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## SpaceLuxury

Invest in a property first then go for the car. Have investments that can pay for your liabilities 


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## CallMeJarob

Property all day but I dont want a fancy big house. Always into cars too but property investments always come first


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## WatchScene

Location first, house size/age second, backyard size third, car in a garage distant fourth. 

As far as why folks buy a luxury car instead of investing in a nicer home. Simple answer. Home prices are high, and used luxury vehicles can be cheap. It's also a lot easier to get an a loan for a car than for a house.


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## TheWalrus

Powdernation said:


> Location first, house size/age second, backyard size third, car in a garage distant fourth.
> 
> As far as why folks buy a luxury car instead of investing in a nicer home. Simple answer. Home prices are high, and used luxury vehicles can be cheap. It's also a lot easier to get an a loan for a car than for a house.


Also: some people just like cars more than houses.


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## comstar

Buy a Mercedes Benz Sprinter 170" High Roof and have both!!


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## toddr91

I prefer the car over the house but couldn't get wife to agree.


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## dmrrn782

Personally for me it would be a nice house but different people, different priorities.


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## jhwarthog

House

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## 2star

Different people with different tastes but personally i would rather have a nice fancy house in an upscale area over a luxurious car or fancy car. Overtime cars depreciate while houses will only appreciate. Also, you can make a house into a home but can not make a fancy car into one.


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## mpatton4re

Read Rich Dad, Poor Dad.... accumulate assets, not liabilities. Cars are typically DEPRECIATING so you’d be wise to avoid investing too much $$$ in them.



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## dctesla

Both


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## SequoiaMan

Different strokes for different folks.

I like to have a modest house, older vehicle with no car payment, and lots of cash in my bank account to travel with.


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## bsubtown

The wife and I just built our forever home. Lived in a very modest starter home for 7 years while we paid of student loans, had children and set ourselves up to build what we wanted. We have nice vehicles but nothing too outlandish. Sometimes I think of my truck as being a bit too much (2016 GMC 2500 Denali Diesel) but when I bought it my dad worked for GM and I got it at a price that would have beat a much less nicely appointed Ford F150. I often think about buying a third vehicle, something a bit sporty and more fun to drive. Not in the cards right now. As was said before traveling and experiences are becoming more of a priority. My kids are getting older and I would like to start taking them to see the world more. As you may expect Auburn, Indiana is not exactly rife with culture.


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## Alfa2600

I'd rather have a bigger garage and s*d the house 😆


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## aabikrman

If it was just me ? Garage-Mahal for sure.....

Then I'd fill it with toys....Cars, motorcycles, canoes, kayaks, etc....


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## zygomatic21

To quote a friend's wife (when asked about my requirements for a house): he basically wants a garage / workshop space with a small area for living.

Truthfully, I think a lot of newer houses have sold "square footage, high cielings and granite countertops" ahead of good design. A well designed house "lives" better than something that is just big - and, frankly, above a certain point it is just more to clean. So, I'd say smaller house and spend money on hobbies


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## Alfa2600

zygomatic21 said:


> To quote a friend's wife (when asked about my requirements for a house): he basically wants a garage / workshop space with a small area for living.
> 
> Truthfully, I think a lot of newer houses have sold "square footage, high cielings and granite countertops" ahead of good design. A well designed house "lives" better than something that is just big - and, frankly, above a certain point it is just more to clean. So, I'd say smaller house and spend money on hobbies


Couldn't agree more!
Big houses are no fun at all, especially old ones.
My girl friend owns an early 17th century listed farmhouse with land. From the outside I'm sure it looks idyllic, but trust me it's not!
You spend sooo much time on maintaining the grounds the outbuildings and constantly have contractors in for one reason or another! It really is never ending.
A comfortable house that suits your needs and a garage big enough for 3 or 4 cars and room for tinkering is enough for anyone.....so long as the garage is heated 🙂


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## yankeexpress

Garage has 3 racing boats in it. The 3 old cars are outside in the snow and ice.


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## Alfa2600

yankeexpress said:


> Garage has 3 racing boats in it. The 3 old cars are outside in the snow ice.
> Racing boats 😃. Nice, what BHP are you running?


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## yankeexpress

Alfa2600 said:


> yankeexpress said:
> 
> 
> 
> Garage has 3 racing boats in it. The 3 old cars are outside in the snow ice.
> Racing boats &#55357;&#56835;. Nice, what BHP are you running?
> 
> 
> 
> Zero
Click to expand...


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## Alfa2600

Oh 🙄


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## zygomatic21

Alfa2600 said:


> Couldn't agree more!
> Big houses are no fun at all, especially old ones.
> My girl friend owns an early 17th century listed farmhouse with land. From the outside I'm sure it looks idyllic, but trust me it's not!
> You spend sooo much time on maintaining the grounds the outbuildings and constantly have contractors in for one reason or another! It really is never ending.
> A comfortable house that suits your needs and a garage big enough for 3 or 4 cars and room for tinkering is enough for anyone.....so long as the garage is heated &#55357;&#56898;


You, Sir, speak the truth! I grew up in a town with 18th century houses. They looked terrific. But were CONSTANT maintenance nightmares. Friends lived in one and there was always - and I mean always - something going wrong. The one that sticks out in my mind: the kitchen -- which was an add-on to the house - was literally separating from the main house and threatening to "tip over". When I saw a visible gap in the ceiling, I swore never to own an old house.


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## SaMaster14

I can understand driving an exotic car and owning a modest home.

What confuses me is when I see people or hear of people living paycheck-to-paycheck, renting an apartment (i.e., not building equity, probably “throwing away” $3-5k a month) and also driving an exotic (most likely a lease) as their only car and having to park it on the street or in a mass-car garage... 


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## mercurynfo

Easy.

Houses bought at the right price, can and do appreciate. Compared to renting, compare the amortization of $300k over thirty years at 4% (215k interest alone)...over half a million just to own and build equity. And if the house appreciates to say, $400k, the annualized return equates to about 1.1%. I'd would much rather rent and put that $215k or $600/month in a well diversified portfolio. In thirty years you can expect with high probability to see, worse case, 3 compounding periods if not more, winding up with somewhere north of half a million if invested in a sensible, diversified way.

Then there are cars which, at least 99% of the time, will depreciate.

To each his own.


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## MHe225

So many things being said here ring true. Back in The Netherlands, we lived in a house that was built in 1620 ... gorgeous and unique, but maintenance and upkeep ..... spent many weekends on house stuff.
We moved to Texas in 2000 and opted for a brand new home. Overall disappointed by the build quality, materials used and contractor grade “equipment”. 
Now, 20 years later, ready to downsize to 2/3 of the size of my current house, only 1 story. But a 3 car garage |>
The car isn’t fancy at all, but my ‘19 GTI Rabbit Edition is more fun than a barrel ful of monkeys. And then there are 2 motorcycles ;-)


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## aabikrman

zygomatic21 said:


> Truthfully, I think a lot of newer houses have sold "square footage, high cielings and granite countertops" ahead of good design. A well designed house "lives" better than something that is just big - and, frankly, above a certain point it is just more to clean. So, I'd say smaller house and spend money on hobbies


Amen to that ! I have absolutely no desire for a big house. The 3200' sq ft our family of three is in now is too big. About a 1/3 of it is what I call a "museum". Rooms that house furniture that seldom get's used. For our lifestyle we could probably cut the house size into almost half, probably about 1800 sq ft and everyone be just as comfortable but with less expense and upkeep. 4 car, oversize garage would be nice....

In 2010, between marriages, I bought a 40' Toyhauler 5th wheel and wandered around for almost 4 years. Was the easiest time of my life....Not sure what I was thinking when I "settled back down" and bought the house we're in....haha


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## forsakenfury

90% of the people you meet will know your car...but only 10% will know where you live.


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## double

House > Car. A house will most likely appreciate, it's a better asset.


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## Terb

Cars in my opinion are not investment but houses are so why would i want a car instead however it is down to personal interest and priorities. I would love to own a big house and then i can consider a fancy car.


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## ceos

Big house, fast car, accurate watch - american dream!


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## adam_svt

Gotta make the right financial choices but people let their emotions control what they buy and their priorities are just skewed


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## yankeexpress

adam_svt said:


> Gotta make the right financial choices but people let their emotions control what they buy and their priorities are just skewed


Ur Still frozen at 69 posts.

Which watch are you gonna post on f29 For sale?


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## tdg2064

Definitely the house... assets over liabilities

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## jatco

tdg2064 said:


> Definitely the house... assets over liabilities
> 
> Sent from my SM-G930U using Tapatalk


Yep


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## DrDubzz

In the spirit of the thread, house over car. But really, I'd rather have a really nice but moderately sized house (2K sqft or so) over a big house of any quality as it's more to clean, keep heated/cooled, etc.

So for me, nice but medium house, and something fun to drive but not terribly expensive (currently in a GTI, so something like that)


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## DrDubzz

DP


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## Familyman310

friedricetheman said:


> I was just having a discussion with my pals over some beer and this topic came up.
> 
> Why do some people drive around in a fancy car but chose to live in the slums?
> 
> What is going on through their mind when they have no qualms about popping serious money on a nice car which could have been used instead as a downpayment on a nice home in a upscale area?
> 
> Also, why do people living in older affluent neighborhoods drive around in Camry's and Honda's when they clearly have the money.
> 
> Is this phenomena common worldwide or is it an Asian thing? I am living in South East Asia by the way.


There are plenty of people who really know their cars, and can spot a great deal on a car to get in, enjoy for 6 months and get back out without losing a penny. On the other hand, there are plenty of people who know real estate really well, and can spot appreciating trends and value, but no nothing about cars. Some fancy cars drop like a rock forever. Others drop, then level out, and in some cases go up in value. Another scenario is some of the best exotic car repair shops in my city are really close to the worst neighborhoods. And, it's no surprise that some of the best mechanics happen to live in or near those neighborhoods.


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## dino888

a house is always a wise decision


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## Airlyss

House is an investment, cars are an expense. Most houses go up in value over time, cars are all but guaranteed to go down. So my vote is definitely house. 


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## cratercraver

Yeah, this should even be a question. When I was much younger, I was told "Houses appreciate, cars depreciate, end of story." I think that does sum it up well enough, as others here have said as well.


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## Sam K

Responding to the original question(s): culture, self image and the need to feel respected by your "peers".

There are many subcultures where a fancy car is a source of pride and respect, whereas your house isn't as important. My experience is that in (sub)cultures where your home is seen as your castle, people are less concerned with what others may think of their place of residence. Socialising takes place in public places (pubs, cafés or such), so you car may be a major part of your public image. You can see a variant of this among Young Urban Knowledge-workers (we'll call them YUKs, cause why wouldn't you?) who may live in small, sublet apartments with a long commute to work, but who will always dress very properly and frequently wear expensive high fashion brands.

On the other hand, my grandparents were working class to the core. Grandpa paved streets, grandma ran the house and worked extra cleaning a local elementary school. My grandmother would wear simple, home sewn clothes, but keep the house she and my grandfather could eventually afford spotless and very decorated with knicknacks and fresh flowers. The garden was spotless. And whenever one of the neighbours would come over for coffee, she would always offer 7 kids of biscuits (a Swedish tradition).

The junior banker wearing Armani for his 2 hour commute, the guy living in a trailer but driving a Corvette, or my grandmother offering biscuits to visitors are all trying to live up to their self image, and earn a respected place in their respective community. To the banker, being seen as "proper" and "stylish" is important. To my grandmother, being generous, a good host, and keeping a spotless home was part of her identity (bless her, I wish I'd taken after her in that aspect).

As for the people living in luxury houses and driving wrecks? Well, as someone almost said: _"If you were living here, you wouldn't see much need to leave either."_


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## mig0s

TBH, i got the fancy car before the house. But with time and maturity, I think everyone will realize one day that investing in real estate > spending on depecriating assets


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## pfern10

Most people know what investments are good and bad. Fancy house with a modest car may be better than the opposite. Live within your means and investments will take care of it self. 


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## imaCoolRobot

My parents used to live in an 8000 sq ft house on a 40 acre estate. It was a piece of crap. 

I hated that place. Always cold and drafty, water came from a stream that always froze during winter. Driveway was 100m long and sucked to shovel in the winter. 
A big home isn’t always better.


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## chiefenergy

....its all about the journey....why buy an expensive watch?.....I prefer travel.....and that's where me, my watch, and lol....all my money goes!....enjoy your choices


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## Ike13lol

I'd rather have cars then a big house.


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## theFOXza

I think I would feel a little uncomfortable driving an exotic car and living in a tiny house... not sure why or where that stems from.. but it is so lol


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## Fredette

Young money old money 

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## Atom_99

House in the right location. Small house in NYC is different than small house in Cleveland.


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## Maverixk

I guess you're living in a similar country to mine, 

For ourselves, We picked the big house, my father drove his bmw for 10 years. 
When my moms bmw came up for renewal we opted for a Mazda CX9 instead. 
For myself, I sold my scirocco and opted for a 116D from bmw, and i'll likely drive this car till its up for renewal. 

The only way to put it is different people have different priorities. There are people who are comfortable living in small houses or flats, while we are not. 
We rather have our own space to unwind at the end of the day. 
I know someone who owns 2 ferraris staying in a 3 room flat. 
compartively, my neighbours stay in a 14 room house and have 2 toyotas and a Honda.


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## jatco

A better wine


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## dfwcowboy

No matter how nice the car, when you get it up to highway speeds and pull back on the steering wheel nothing interesting happens.

Unless you have one of these...


----------



## jatco

Need a long...parking lot...


----------



## SolarPower

dfwcowboy said:


> No matter how nice the car, when you get it up to highway speeds and pull back on the steering wheel nothing interesting happens.
> 
> Unless you have one of these...
> 
> View attachment 15066551


And from up there every house is small


----------



## Carreravintageguy

Rather than a fancy car i would suggest a vintage car, perferably german made  rather than a big house.


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## GrouchoM

Carreravintageguy said:


> Rather than a fancy car i would suggest a vintage car, perferably german made  rather than a big house.


A 1963 VW bug?


----------



## TickTopia

To each their own... There's no rhyme or reason.


----------



## Tekkamaki

Small house in good location (preferably on an island)
Beater island car.
Nice boat or yacht


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## cowboyjack

Simple house we mostly built ourselves. Lots of land. Older reliable used cars with lots of mileage on them. No mortgage. No car payments. $50k watch portfolio. Lol


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## texwatch

When I see a beautiful home in an nice area and then see average or small cars in the driveway. I smile and tip my hat to them. They have figured out the importance of investing or spending your money wisely. I admire people who have money but don't feel the need to show it off. They get pleasure from the sight of a good balance sheet.


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## TheWalrus

GrouchoM said:


> A 1963 VW bug?


pfft He never said WHICH Germany. I would suggest...

The Trabant


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## brianinCA

You're going to die someday. Might as well do whatever makes you the most happy. For me, fancy cars and fancy houses are both too expensive to justify the amount of work required to pay for them, but at least with a house you don't have to replace it every 5-7 years to stay current (assuming you care about having the current generation of fancy car). That said, I say live below your means to lessen the pressure and stress in times of economic downtown (like now). Cheers!


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## neilziesing

Big Fancy Car House!


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## Watcherct

This one is easy big house, your house is an investment that goes up in price, a car loses 20% when you drive it off the lot and depreciates every year after.


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## MONTANTK

Watcherct said:


> This one is easy big house, your house is an investment that goes up in price, a car loses 20% when you drive it off the lot and depreciates every year after.


I agree with the home being an investment but I think the phrase is misused. At least where I live, when you factor in taxes, maintenance/upgrades, and interest, you're probably not making as much as you think.

I still live with my parents and when I do the math their property taxes annually are about 5% -8% of what they paid. After 30 years your at 150% of the homes value. At best, the house will probably double in value over that time and the other 50% will be spent on maintenance and renovations. And this is also a scenario where the house was acquired 15% under market value.

I'm sure this scenario doesn't hold true for other areas of the country but I don't believe a home will be as sound an investment for my generations as those before me.

With that being said, I'd still probably opt for a larger house with an average or slightly above average car. I prefer balance and wouldn't want to stick out in my neighborhood with a fancy car.


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## j1n

Cars a depreciating asset so a lot of people who are rich and saved up to become rich have some issues shelling out the money for a nice car. Nice problem to have to be honest. But I'm not a huge fan of those who have really nice cars with large payments but do not have a home/live in the slums.


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## TheWalrus

MONTANTK said:


> I agree with the home being an investment but I think the phrase is misused. At least where I live, when you factor in taxes, maintenance/upgrades, and interest, you're probably not making as much as you think.
> 
> I still live with my parents and when I do the math their property taxes annually are about 5% -8% of what they paid. After 30 years your at 150% of the homes value. At best, the house will probably double in value over that time and the other 50% will be spent on maintenance and renovations. And this is also a scenario where the house was acquired 15% under market value.
> 
> I'm sure this scenario doesn't hold true for other areas of the country but I don't believe a home will be as sound an investment for my generations as those before me.
> 
> With that being said, I'd still probably opt for a larger house with an average or slightly above average car. I prefer balance and wouldn't want to stick out in my neighborhood with a fancy car.


I find people really underestimate the amount of interest they pay - even on a shorter term, lower interest, mortgage. You're borrowing a lot of money for 15, 20, 25 years. That is never a cheap proposition.


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## SolarPower

That ^^^ is so anti-hedonistic


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## MHe225

TheWalrus said:


> I find people really underestimate the amount of interest they pay - even on a shorter term, lower interest, mortgage. You're borrowing a lot of money for 15, 20, 25 years. That is never a cheap proposition.


You are absolutely right - it's an eye-opener (if you've never done this before) to model various mortgage options in a spreadsheet and see how much you're really paying. Accelerated payment always pays off (unless you're really great with investments and use the money for that purpose).

Too big a house is a drag / burden, too fancy a car ditto. That said, get what's within your means (i.e. doesn't keep you up at night) and gives you the most enjoyment ;-)


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## Henraa

Not necessarily big but a nice house over a nice car any day of the week. Cars lose money, houses usually gain. 


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## SolarPower

I do not understand "vs." part of the question. Seriously, these two are more often than not in different leagues money-wise.



Henraa said:


> Not necessarily big but a nice house over a nice car any day of the week. Cars lose money, houses usually gain.


So for me I will take one of my cars over my house any day of the week when I need to drive from point A to point B. I take my house over any of my cars when I need to rest and sleep. I value comfort of my house, it's size, pool, backyard etc.

And BTW some cars don't loose money and some even go up many folds. This, however, IMO should not be the criteria.


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## Noelandry

Modest house and most car with no payments!


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## adam_svt

Living in South Florida that's a very common occurrence as well. Def weird lol


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## Henraa

SolarPower said:


> So for me I will take one of my cars over my house any day of the week when I need to drive from point A to point B. I take my house over any of my cars when I need to rest and sleep. I value comfort of my house, it's size, pool, backyard etc.
> 
> And BTW some cars don't loose money and some even go up many folds. This, however, IMO should not be the criteria.


Both objects go hand in hand for their own uses. I didn't really apply a specific emphasis on cars. A fancy car could be a 3 Series BMW to some people or it could be an Aston Martin DB5. One will lose money quicker than a drunk student and the other will be a growing investment. For me I have a nice house and a nice but modest car. I spend more time in my house than i do my car but am confident my car is a pleasure to get from A to B. Your house is more of a long term investment and will bring more pleasure to your family than your 4 wheeled pride and joy IMO.

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## JD10

I would prefer the house certainly. 


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## drlagares

House 100%


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## tmvle5m

should be a house first. hobby should stay as hobby


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## drlagares

Big house!


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## Barnaby'sDad

friedricetheman said:


> I was just having a discussion with my pals over some beer and this topic came up.
> 
> Why do some people drive around in a fancy car but chose to live in the slums?
> 
> What is going on through their mind when they have no qualms about popping serious money on a nice car which could have been used instead as a downpayment on a nice home in a upscale area?
> 
> Also, why do people living in older affluent neighborhoods drive around in Camry's and Honda's when they clearly have the money.
> 
> Is this phenomena common worldwide or is it an Asian thing? I am living in South East Asia by the way.


I see both ends of the spectrum in my area. Personally…I get the people that have a nice house, but drive a modest car. Why?

You have to pay property taxes on everything that you own around here. Cars, boats, motorcycles, RV’s, etc. It adds up quickly. I.e. For my three year old Subaru and three year old Suzuki, it was $600/year. I only pay $1,800/year in property taxes for my house, which is under $400k (classified as a starter home in this market).

I would be curious to know what people in my area with a $750k+ house, $60k SUV, $60k car, RV, motorcycle, etc. are forking over in property taxes each year.

If I got a substantial raise tomorrow, I’d keep driving what I’ve got and stay in the current house, as they meet my needs and I don’t look forward to forking over anymore money to the man than I absolutely have to.

If you’re 25, don’t own a house, and your only concern is going out to the club and chasing skirts, then I guess go buy a car that’s a real panty/underwear dropper.


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## ccheezy

Most of the absurdly wealthy people I know have decent money dumped into their real estate and like OP states drive normal cars.... not that any car is priced normally in 2021. I assume why I lean that way is because my house and cars are somewhat mismatched in that way. I just don't particularly care what I drive nearly as much as where my family gets to live or selfishly what is on my wrist. Gang gang.


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## anonymousmoose

We prefer a medium sized house in a great suburb and drive a VW and entry left Audi. Happy with that

We can drive;
10 mins to work/central-CBD
20 mins to beaches 
5 mins to river 
60 seconds to restaurants and shops


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## rem6775

I think it’s much easier to get a loan for a car you really cannot afford than a mortgage for a house well above your income level. And I think it’s common for people to try and use a car to convey a higher level of wealth than they actually have. As for people who have more money and drive cheap cars: in my experience it’s usually because they just don’t care about cars at all and see them as simple appliances. I work with many people whose cars are worth less than they make in a month simply because they don’t really care at all about cars and don’t see a reason to spend money on it.


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## tman916

There's some people who own what's called car condos out there. Essentially, a deep 2 or 4 car garage with a loft for the living space. That would be my dream!


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## RBleigh81

friedricetheman said:


> I was just having a discussion with my pals over some beer and this topic came up.
> 
> Why do some people drive around in a fancy car but chose to live in the slums?
> 
> What is going on through their mind when they have no qualms about popping serious money on a nice car which could have been used instead as a downpayment on a nice home in a upscale area?
> 
> Also, why do people living in older affluent neighborhoods drive around in Camry's and Honda's when they clearly have the money.
> 
> Is this phenomena common worldwide or is it an Asian thing? I am living in South East Asia by the way.


Different strokes for different folks


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## Hobs

A house/land is an excellent investment. A car is a financial liability. Driving a new/expensive car is not a necessity; it's an extremely expensive hobby.


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## anonymousmoose

tman916 said:


> There's some people who own what's called car condos out there. Essentially, a deep 2 or 4 car garage with a loft for the living space. That would be my dream!


If I were single - me too. Small apartment with great cars! Family changes that.

It's house and 'sensible' cars for us.


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## Pongster

How about big car and fancy house?


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## anonymousmoose

Pongster said:


> How about big car and fancy house?


Not sure I understand the context. Lots of cars are big, both expensive and cheap ones.


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## mrwatches

Big houses are nice but be ready to pay the upkeep. Here in TX its 2.5% annually just to live in your house. 
The bigger the house, the more things will break. Anything over 3400 sq ft you need 2 central AC units. Heating and hot water is another story.
Cleaning 4 bathrooms is a chore too.


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## Lumefreak

To each their own and I respect either as folks need to live their life where it makes them the happiest. For me, a nice home takes priority over a nice car. I've been blessed enough to be able to have both


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## topslop1

eightbore said:


> The first scenario is someone realizing they will never be able to afford a nice big home so they buy whatever degree of luxury they can afford in the automotive sphere. The second scenario is someone who likely got wealthy enough to buy a nice big house by realizing that "investing" large sums of money in depreciating assets like cars is ridiculous. I know a guy who is worth probably in the high 8 or low 9 figures and I have never known him to buy a new car of any sort. Sure, he will buy a Mercedes, but only two or three years old after someone else has taken a big depreciation hit. He then drives it into the ground as far as I can tell. I remember his kids drove old Toyotas when they were in school. while their friends had new Porsches. He also bought his home at probably a 50% discount from a bankruptcy auction about 25 years ago. Financially, he is my spirit guide.


That's a smart guy right there. I'm doing old cars, small house, and putting as much as I can away as far as stock/index/retirement funds.

As more cash flows in with better career advancement you'll see likely the same thing happening; just more flowing into the other pockets. Heck, my infinti was $7200!


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## B.Kohr

A) My antique/vintage cars have done well for me. But, they require proper storage, and upkeep, and can be difficult to finance, I think. 

B) Grew up in an absurdly large house. (One of those very old ones, which rambled as it was remodeled). Most people need a “better” house, not a larger one. (More designed storage, better sound proofing, better schools, etc)

C) AMEX was brilliant when they came out with the Different color cards, so you could show off. (I know when I was a kid, I was dumb enough to think the color of mine meant something.)
If someone comes out with a way for people to show off their investment portfolios, it will work out well.

I know some investment firms - Morgan Stanley and Citi and Crypto.com have different color debit cards for different size portfolios.

Somehow, we have to sex up investing and financial acumen, rather than rap songs about goods which didn’t used to be mass produced, because the mass consuming public shouldn’t consume them.


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## sandywhite

I always wanted to live in a big house. Luckily I've bought one last year. For my house I ordered 3D exterior rendering services from https://fortes.vision/blog/what-is-3d-exterior-rendering. They helped me to see the final result before spending money on remodeling and they did all work at the highest level. I use their services when I need to be sure that I've chosen the right colors and units. Luckily they have affordable prices.


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## OotOot

I see this all the time in my neck of the woods. $100k+ cars in mainly rental areas. Some people just have different priorities I suppose


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## FuzeDude

Fancy car vs big house? It ain't a zero sum game. You can have both. But it takes some serious coin. Amateurs need not apply


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## anonymousmoose

Regarding housing. It's more about the location for me over the size. We are currently is a modest family home, but 4.5km from the CBD. It's great for commuting.


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## Barnaby'sDad

OotOot said:


> I see this all the time in my neck of the woods. $100k+ cars in mainly rental areas. Some people just have different priorities I suppose


As a property owner…I’ll throw out the perspective that a “owned” property is a money pit.

In many areas (I.e. Metro DC), buying a home is an exercise in settling, as there’s often only 1-2 viable properties that match your parameters (I.e. First floor master bedroom) per COUNTY.

The grass is greener on the other side, as far as home ownership goes. I was over in Europe over the Christmas break and was worried about stupid **** like pipes bursting because it was around 0* back home. If I was a renter…that wouldn’t have even factored into my thoughts. If I’d gotten home and a pipe burst, I’d have filed a renters insurance claim and had a coke.

I feel for people that want to buy a home, but can’t afford it. For people that are bright enough to dodge the bullet of home ownership and build wealth in other ways…good for them. That and they can travel without a property hanging over their head.

If they’re just pissing their money away on luxury toys and not saving a cent though…well…a choice was made there.


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## DON

Rooming house across the street. One border owns an Audi A4 and another a $40,000 pick up truck (forget the company).

rooms $800 - $1000 a month

these are young guys. Under 30 I’m guessing. Maybe at the stage where the nice car is more important than the unaffordable house

i bet a majority of those driving those nice cars are leasing them and don’t own them

Leasing or buying. Have to show you can afford the monthly payments and maybe address isn’t taken into consideration

not everyone can afford a house. Mine is $1.4 million. The rooming house about $1.6. House next door sold for $2.2

When the house is out of reach. Having a nice car is a way of showing you made something of yourself


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## GrouchoM

DON said:


> Rooming house across the street. One border owns an Audi A4 and another a $40,000 pick up truck (forget the company).
> 
> rooms $800 - $1000 a month
> 
> these are young guys. Under 30 I’m guessing. Maybe at the stage where the nice car is more important than the unaffordable house
> 
> i bet a majority of those driving those nice cars are leasing them and don’t own them
> 
> Leasing or buying. Have to show you can afford the monthly payments and maybe address isn’t taken into consideration
> 
> not everyone can afford a house. Mine is $1.4 million. The rooming house about $1.6. House next door sold for $2.2
> 
> When the house is out of reach. Having a nice car is a way of showing you made something of yourself


Some don't want to spend their time at home nor the time and money to maintain a home. 
It's like vacationing. Some want a 5 star hotel other a campsite/hostel. 

Typos courtesy of Samsung Auto-Incorrect


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## jcp123

I wouldn’t go so far as to live in slums, but I’m not house proud. I would much rather have a “fancy” car (which is probably not what most folks would consider) than a fancy house. I don’t particularly feel comfortable in anything bigger than 1500-2000sf - more than that is just a waste of space and money, both for purchase and for climate control. Pool is a hard no, etc.

Then again I am a car guy first and foremost, so I’m biased.


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