Whether you should pay or defer depends on the interest rate, size of the monthly payment, and the rest of your financial picture.
That makes sense. I'll have to wait and see, then.
How long have you been unemployed? Have you been getting, or did you get, unemployment?
You may get a job that requires you to have a car, so don't ditch the car just yet.
I've been unemployed for nearly a year. I didn't get unemployment. I wouldn't sell the car before ensuring that I absolutely won't require it.
Once you're working, then you can reassess the car situation and make plans about your future education (what's your field, BTW?).
I plan for my formal education to be in mechanical or electrical/computer engineering or computer science.
That's exactly the thing--since there's no good public transport in her town and she may not find a job within bikeable distance, I think it'd be shooting herself in the foot to prioritize getting rid of the car. Look at it this way: if she got rid of the car she would save $350 a month (and not really even that, once you factor in the need to come up with another few grand to buy a beater car). But if she got a job, even a minimum wage job, she would net at least $950/mo after taxes. What's better--saving $350/mo or earning $950/mo?! It's a no brainer!
That last part is especially salient. It is true that even taking into account my low standards for employment, there are very limited options within biking distance.
While waiting for job leads to pan out, do the following: Solicit for odd jobs in the neighborhood. House cleaning, dog walking, lawn mowing, helping old ladies with errands.
This is a good idea - thanks.
Since you're just about even on the car (you can sell it for what you owe), you need to ask yourself just one question.
If I didn't own this car and I could buy it for 10k, would I even consider doing it? If yes, keep it. If not, SELL!!!
Continuing down a path just because it's uncomfortable to change is usually a bad idea.
This is a good way of looking at it. The answer is no, I wouldn't consider buying this car for 10K. I definitely agree about the pitfalls of avoiding necessary change.
-- -- -- -- --
The posters who have given reasons that I should sell - from a strictly financial standpoint, I agree with all of you. However, most recently, CarSafetyGuy's post got me thinking more about the aspect of safety. Again, I don't relish the prospect of taking over this payment, and swapping out for a beater is the best choice financially. But what about reducing death risk?
You know how a lot of people think "It won't happen to me?" I'm almost the opposite. I tend to consider certain dire and grave possibilities. The people who "it" (i.e., maiming, serious injury, and/or death from car accidents) happened to most likely didn't think it would happen to them...and, guess what? It did.
It's pretty morbid, but it's just the truth. It's going to happen to some people; it happens all the time. And outside of how I conduct myself in my own car, I have very limited control over whether that happens to me. Since this is the truth, would it not be most prudent to drive a death-trap that's at least outfitted with as many safety elements as I can afford?
I just keep thinking about if I got rid of the car and the beater I bought didn't have ESC or curtain airbags...and 7 months down the road, that's what would have saved my life.
...this thread just took a dark turn. I truly appreciate the advice that everyone has offered. It looks like at this point, my decision will be most influenced by what I conclude about the relative values of cash/comfortable finances and life-extension precautions.
If you believe that I'm mistaken about the life-saving value of airbags and other safety features, or if you have any opinions about my paranoid-ish outlook, please share! I'll also seek scientific studies about the effect of safety implements on the rates of injury and mortality.
