The Money Mustache Community
Learning, Sharing, and Teaching => Ask a Mustachian => Topic started by: bblinley on April 24, 2017, 10:18:20 AM
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I have finally convinced my SO of the value of electric bikes after converting my own bike to electric. We now want to purchase one for her but do not have the cash on hand. My question, since it is in the long run a money saving device would it be okay to use a low apr credit card to purchase the bike?
Thanks in advance for any face-punching :)
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I'll throw in my vote for a big, fat "nope!". :)
If you have to buy it on credit card then you can't afford it. Sorry.
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An e-bike is a great tool, but it's not worth carrying credit card debt. Just save up for a few months until you can afford to pay for it in full. It shouldn't take too long if you already have an MMM-level savings rate.
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If low APR is 0% then yes if you will save money from car transport to do it.
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Nope. First step to FI is eliminating debt (mortgage usually excluded since you often can beat the interest rate with investment return, and everyone needs a place to live). An electric bike is a luxury, not a need. Wait until you can afford it.
Regarding the, "Is it prudent since we'll potentially be saving money in the long run?" the answer is still no. A regular bike is a practical alternative. Any time a decision needs to be made, analyzing what better alternatives are available is a must.
Good luck on your journey!
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Thank you so much. I think I already knew the answer but wanted to convince myself otherwise. I appreciate the reality checks!
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I'm interested in one as well but was hoping for the prices to drop on them. Anyone know if they are decreasing much these days?
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Why not get her an inexpensive or free used regular bike (seems like I see them for free pretty often) and convert it like you did yours?
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Another no. Won't be as satisfying as saving up for it then buying it.
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Good suggestion, we do have a bike for her. We are wanting a cargo bike because we have three kids and want to use bikes as our primary means of transport around town. Radpowerbikes makes a very nice one that is reasonably priced. We are going to save up for it, or I'm going to get a summer teaching gig and use that money for it :)
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You can add a lead-acid battery ebike kit with hub motor to an existing bike starting around $500 (but lead acid batteries are not often sold anymore).
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Thanks for helping me keep my stash! I got the summer teaching gig so the electric bike is in our sights!
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Can you sell Anything you don't use or would take the place of it?... or do you have enough cash for a regular bike? Or even a junk bike? You could fix up, and sell for profit? Could do that 4 or 5 times and maybe have enough. Keep upgrading. I've done that before, cam become a lot of time though...
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www.superpedestrian.com (http://www.superpedestrian.com)
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That copenhagen wheel is cool, I converted my bike with a Hill Topper. http://www.electric-bike-kit.com/index.aspx
I got the Horizon. It's been great.