‘Just didn’t add up’: Could you survive without a car?

1 week ago 9

By Emily Chantiri

April 24, 2024 — 5.01am

A redeeming of $4000 successful 1 twelvemonth was capable to person Jarrod Purchase that helium did not request a car.

After selling his car, Purchase recovered helium could negociate his proscription needs by cycling, utilizing his motorbike, nationalist transport, Ubers and the occasional prosecute car.

Sydneysider Clare Megahey has been without a car since selling hers a fewer years ago.

“The $25,000 I received from selling my car is sitting successful my offset account, earning $1500 per annum. The costs of buying a car, positive servicing, parking, registration and security conscionable didn’t adhd up erstwhile I had different ways to get around. Also, I’m renting my car abstraction for $50 per week.”

What amazed him the astir was however small helium needed a car.

“I wanted to spot if by not having a car whether I’d beryllium inconvenienced. I unrecorded successful a highly connected country successful Melbourne; it’s cheaper to not person a car. The motorbike is the easiest to get around, though cycling is my favourite mode, and nationalist transport has been rather reliable.”

The lone clip Purchase feels somewhat inconvenienced is erstwhile helium has a ample supermarket store oregon weekends away.

Sydneysider Clare Megahey has besides been without a car since selling hers a fewer years ago.

Megahey started exploring second-hand car options erstwhile she returned from overseas successful 2020. When the lockdowns began, she recovered she didn’t request the car.

“In 2019, I sold my car erstwhile I moved overseas for astir a year. I planned connected getting a car erstwhile I got backmost to Australia, but realised I didn’t request one. Since then, I’ve been getting astir rather good without one.”

She has been capable to locomotion oregon drawback nationalist transport to astir places she regularly frequents.

“I lived adjacent to nationalist transport and crossed the roadworthy from my market store, gym and station office, arsenic good arsenic walking region from a fantastic parkland and beach. Once the lockdowns lifted, I was going into enactment much often, but arsenic my bureau was located successful the Sydney CBD, I spell to enactment by bus.”

What’s driving up car values?

The terms of caller cars has risen arsenic overmuch arsenic 20 per cent since the pandemic, according to GoAuto. The increases are attributed to rising prices of earthy materials, labour costs, logistics and successful immoderate cases, changes successful models, including grades and equipment.

GoAutomedia laminitis John Mellor said the mean terms of utilized cars accrued from astir $23,000 pre-COVID to much than $40,000.

“This was owed to the shortage of caller cars coming from assembly plants. Buyers kept their cars for longer and this created a shortage of utilized cars. Market forces kicked in, and car values increased,” helium said.

Mellor added that caller cars were arriving again, with assorted brands already discounting immoderate models.

“As caller cars participate the market; the proviso of utilized cars from trade-ins volition summation and utilized car prices should autumn disconnected the backmost of that accrued availability. ”

He said the pundits believed the 2025 car marketplace would look much similar the pre-COVID marketplace of 2019.

Average costs to tally a car

The Australian Automobile Association (AAA) Transport Affordability Index, released successful September 2023, recovered the emblematic play household transport outgo successful superior cities was $431. In determination households it was $395. Only 5 per cent of this magnitude was spent connected nationalist transport.

The remaining costs of moving a car comprised car loans astatine 43.7 per cent, substance astatine 23.6 per cent, and tolls astatine 11.3 per cent.

Other mean car moving expenses included car insurance, servicing, tyres and registration fees. Each outgo Australians $30-$40 a week.

For Megahey, the wealth she has saved from not owning a car is going towards aboriginal travel.

“I recovered that I could nary longer warrant making a large concern connected a car. I’d alternatively prevention the wealth oregon usage it to travel. Since selling my car, I’ve ever made surviving adjacent nationalist transport a priority,” she said.

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