There once lived two swine named NinjaPiggy and Trend. They were similar in every way, except the later had a taste for the high-end. This is the tale of the automobiles they bought and how their purchases impacted much more than just their trot. Every five years Trend upgraded his car and traded-in, while NinjaPiggy made each car last for ten. 

I narrowed car buying down into two phases. Phase 1 looks at rules for people who are broke, but need to buy a car (I define being broke as having negative net worth and not having anything saved for retirement). Phase 2 is for those who have a positive net worth, are saving for retirement, and who want/ need to buy a car.

Here are NinjaPiggy's car buying rules for Phase 2.

I'm a big fan of using simple rules to help people make easier and better financial decisions. Developing simple rules is a lot easier said than done, as there are a range of viewpoints to consider. I narrowed the car buying rules down to two phases. Phase 1 looks at rules for people who are broke, but need to buy a car. 

I’ve never been a big car person. I can definitely appreciate a nice car, and certainly wouldn’t turn down a free Tesla, but I never felt the need to buy a really nice car. It’s fun riding around in new cars, but, for me, it isn’t worth the high price and monthly payments that come along with the experience. I realize some people are all about cars,  When it comes to money decisions, I try to be pragmatic and avoid blanket statements like “you should never buy a new car’ because I realize money can bring happiness when we spend it on the things we like. However, I'll show you how I recently benefited financially from driving older model vehicles.