We were so happy last year when I won a contest and was able to pay off my car early. If we hadn't won that, I would still be paying off my car until December of this year. Now we have been 18 mos or more without a car payment. Kevin's car is 10 years old and while mine only has 70,000 miles on it, I know the time will come when the dreaded thing will happen...another car payment. Today, I have done what I've been meaning to do for quite awhile.
Today I've created a fake car payment. It isn't nearly as much as a regular car payment, but it will prepare us with a downpayment when one of the cars needs to go or when it needs a giant repair. I decided to set this up as a separate account, as I need the disipline. We bank with etrade, entirely online, so this was easy to set up--it took less than 2 minutes. I plan to funnel $20 per week into this account. While this isn't much compared to a regular car payment, in one year (if no giant repairs come up), this will add up to $1,040, plus whatever measly interest is by that point, so maybe $1,050. But that is the beginning of a safety net with regards to transportation cost. Even $1/day and you'd have $365 by the end of the year. Every bit counts. The key is automating this. I will have $20 withdrawn from the checking account every week and put into the savings account I've titled "CAR PAYMENT."
I'm hoping you consider setting up an account like this, too. When you go to buy your next car, this will feel like free money! :)
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