I've been blissfully car-free since 2010. I decided I'd buy a car when NOT owning one became more of a pain in the ass than owning one. Since then I've used a combination of walking, public transportation, Zipcar/Car2go/rentals, and borrowed cars. Recently my career started heading in a direction that makes me think it might make sense - if not now, then soon. Here is my situation:
- Driving to my 9-to-5 job is not in the picture. There's a years-long waiting list for a spot, which you then have the privilege of paying $100+/month for, and they provide generous incentives to use transit or bike.
- I recently started a consulting business which has me traveling up to about 10 miles from home once or twice a week. The trip I do most often is a 15-minute drive if I borrow my boyfriend's fuel-inefficient truck, or a full hour on two buses. I could conceivably bike this sometimes. I do not want to miss future opportunities because I don't have transportation.
- I'm in the stage of my career where I often need to attend far-flung professional meetings, conferences, and shindigs. In April, I have a conference about 75 miles from home, a fancy cocktail-hour reception in town, and an evening meeting in the suburbs about 15 miles away.
- Aside from work, I'd only end up using the car once or twice a week for errands/shopping.
- No kids. Maybe later. No debt aside from mortgage on a rental property.
If travel is directly related to my 9-to-5 job, they will cover the cost of a rental car or mileage. The bureaucracy involved with that is a medium-level hassle. If travel is related to my business, my understanding is that I can expense the rental car, or mileage if it's my own car (e.g. not my boyfriend's truck that I'm borrowing).
In this scenario, would you buy a car or keep toughing it out? My priorities are fuel economy, reliability, and a bit of cargo space, so I'm interested in paying cash for something like a 2010-ish Prius or Honda Fit.
