mazdaspeed 3, grand touring… zippy!!! The money you save in the “depreciation” of one car vs. another is more than spent on the cost of maintenance, this coming from my friends who own the bmw’s. Japanese cars are the cheapest to maintain (and need less maintenance to boot).
Now on to the “the right time to buy depends on each person” topic. I do not agree. I think the right time to buy is at or after the bottom. Why? Say you buy a $500k house in a decent neighborhood of working professionals. Later the house is worth $300k. As old neighbors move out and new ones move in, you go from a neighborhood of above-average-wage professionals to a ‘hood of junkies and gangstas. OK that’s an exaggeration, but you get my point. It happened to me: in this bubble my neighbors went from engineers, doctors, dentists, and teachers to burger flippers, retail sales clerks, and so on. I’m no snob but there has been an increase of unsavory behavior in my neighborhood.
