What do you do? How do you afford a Ferrari?

I've had fun reading all the replies to this thread. The answer is quite simple though. You need to be able to afford not just buying the car, but also maintaining it properly.

"Rich" is way too subjective a term. To some people I am filthy rich while to others I am dirt poor. It all depends on your perspective!

Life is all about choices. If you want a Ferrari work hard and DO IT!!

 

Sorry I haven't read through all the posts in case this has been said before. But you certainly don't have to be 'rich' to buy a Ferrari but deep pockets to run one.

 

Income is relative. Doctors go bankrupt, secretaries are financially independant.

In NYC/LA, of course 100K isn't a much. Cost of Living is relative to the area. It's the eqivilant of 30K here. But, you guys choose to live in the area and the ever-raising cost of living. Luckily SV figured it out, and more and more business is getting the heck out of these downward spirals

My house is under construction. It's ~5000sqft, which is tiny compared to some here. It's got room for 8 cars, spanned across a built-in and external garage, comming in at about 2500sqft worth of space total. I'm proud of my accomplishment. It's plenty big for me. At my rate, my net worth will be ~1mil by age 25. Here, thats the equiv of about 3mil+, depending on what cash-drinking area we're talking I spend money, but I do it wisely (I think anyway).

It's all about priorities. Having my house paid off in less than 2 years, that's a priority. I have been looking at buying a 550, but am holding off until I can get even more things squared away, so I can retire at 30 LOL. Everyone makes their own choices about what they want.


I love Ferrari, and I will own one soon enough. But, as much as I would love to let my "lust" take over the checkbook, I stick to my guns and make my infrastructure as sound as I can for the future while I'm young (23 in 8 months...getting old LOL).


Enjoy the drive gentlemen!

James

 

With myself in my line of work, it depends how much trouble a client is in and how long the contract is........as well as how wealthy he or she is. As long as my clients are breathing, i have money. Ill be F**Ked if i lost one, bad news travels fast in my line of work. My work has a use by date ,age wise.I guess i am a poor man who is needed by wealthy men.

 

Rammer, you are getting good all-round advice on the cost-analysis approach to owning a Ferrari and I will add my two cents' worth, or rather my twopence worth since I live in England.

I am not sure that I can afford to keep my 86TR indefinitely, the servicing costs are substantially higher than on my previous car, a Mondial. This tells you that I am an owner at the low to mid-range end of the Ferrari gamut.

But... I developped a passion for the cars and decided that whatever length of time I am able to enjoy this marque, I shall do so to the full. The previous owner of my car had put 19,000 miles on in 17 years; I have added 6,000 in six months, mostly on the German autobhans and French autoroutes. Depreciation ? Yes, and how! Could I keep the car from depreciating ? It would be hard with a TR, it would have to be kept in concours condition and therefore not enjoyed in the manner I do; also, remember that on the whole you buy retail and sell wholesale.

Why not take the plunge and try one of these magic cars ? Even if you conclude that it is not worth pursuing, you will have had the privilege of enjoying the experience and you can write off the expense with the knowledge that you too have driven Ferrari. Once in every lifetime, surely ?

 

Most know that, but one usually gets paid more to do the same thing in NY compared to let's say TX.
If you own a business that's not location senstive, then sure it is always better to be in a cheaper area.

 

They get paid more on paper, yes...but it's all relative
But in the governments eyes, everyone gets the tube of KY hehe


MM

 

It's all about priorities and "management" of your resources. You can buy many older Ferrari's for less than many new "everyday" cars. The maintenance on some may be more than the typical econobox - but if done properly, and if your priorities are right...you really don't need to be RICH. $100K a year is in the ball park of affordability for many Fcars...

 

You are living my dream life Mad Maxx tell me what u do please. just like in 9 years(i will be 25 yrs old then) i hope to have a nice exotic, good wife who loves me for me not my money(hard to find)and a nice house. When you are 16 it sounds so easy, but i no its not gonna be. as my brother told me, "You win some, you lose some, and some get rained out." by the way, my first post go me

 

MadMAxx, paying off the house in 2 yrs? Can i ask why you are doing that as opposed to paying it off over 15+ years?

 

Hey tim u live in Westchester county. i lived there like my whole life, but i moved last summer. i lived in eastchester, what about u

 

Greetings and thanks for writing! I also love cars and how can you not love Ferrari?? I saw a TR being serviced at a local dealer a few weeks ago and it was stunning. I had been checking out newer 348's and 355's inside and the TR looks so much more exotic! I know at some point I will buy an F-car but the time might not be right yet. In any case, I am glad you are enjoying that TR.

 

Anyone can afford a Ferrari. It depends on what you will sacrifice for it. Your wife needs to be a partner or forget it. You'll be spending time and money on a Ferrari so she'd better be up for that. If you buy a top condition Ferrari that is at the bottom of it's depreciation (like a 328) you'll get back what you pay if/when you sell it. That means you only pay for maintainence which can be about what a normal new car will depriciate. If you're a DIY type you'll just be paying parts and this isn't so bad if it's your only expense.

But if you have a catostrophic failure....you're in trouble.

Ken

 

"

 

Let me see where I am. I work in the field of finance and make a decent income and the Mrs is a MD. But, even with income in the high six and low seven figures. I am without a decent ride. We own an Infiniti FX and a VW Jetta. Now, why do I drive these cars instead a F car or a P car(had 2).

The cost of living is out of control here in ny area. A decent home is in the seven figures and paying for our newborn son's college cost me 100K upfront. Also, the Mrs brought a large loan as most MD's do(almost done on that finally).

But, it all comes down to comfort level. I am one of those guys who isnt comfortable till everything is paid in fulll. I dont want a mortgage nor would I ever lease or take out a loan for a car. So, my dream of getting in 355 has to wait a few more years.

May one day, God bless me with a F car.

 

Absolutely. I am looking for a new daily driver and I went to test drive MB's last week and I really don't feel good about buying one. I worked it out and I don't think that I can justify owning an E55, G wagen, or S class until I'm bringing home about 950k a year post tax, simply because I feel that at my age it's like throwing away money.

Don't get me wrong, I am not saying that a person shouldn't drive a Mercedes, just that I'm only 28 and I don't need such a great car to drive daily. Daily drivers are the cars you really lose the money on and Mercedes lose as much as any other car.

It's one thing to buy a Ferrari where you really get the driving pleasure and can really get your money's worth but something like an S class is nothing more than a great daily people mover. It's hard for me to justify when I can get one of the new Volvo S40s with a T5 and AWD for less than $35k. Losing half of that in 4 years is bad enough. Losing 40k or 50k in that time at my age is simply reckless spending.

So I guess in summary I don't feel that you need to be as wealthy to own a Ferrari as you need to be to own a new S class MB.

 

sjmst,

A 20,000 Honda will take you anywhere, everyday, everytime, and will be dirt cheap to run. A 20,000 Mondial MAY be reliable and MAY always start, but will NEVER be cheap to run.<<<

That depends on who does the work. Frankly, my 1993 Honda with 60k miles has been just about as $$ as the Ferrari to operate all in all.


>>>It is a 20,000 toy. If you can realize that...and afford that, go for it.<<<

Ok, i will


>>>Realize too you can get an Alfa Romeo or Fiat that is fun to drive and designed by the same Italian Designers as Ferrari, for the price of a major service on most f cars.<<<

True, but they are not a Ferrari.


>>>So, an f car has to be THE toy you REALLY WANT.
It is not practical, in the usual sense of that word.<<<

Agreed, and a few $k a year to operate/maintain seems reasonable to me. Life is short, play hard

Enjoy the Drive,

Steven R. Rochlin

 

It's been said here before, you don't have to be wealthy to own a ferrari, but it does help. There are costs to properly maintain the car, and there's no way around that fact.

To add to Steve's comment- life is short, play hard and buy boatloads of expensive electronic equipment.

 

I have thought about it alot. For me, the criteria are:

1) Would buying the car change how I live day to day? If I tell my wife she cannot do something because of a car, it will be trouble, since she knows I do not need it to get to work.
2) Can I maintain my retirement plan/college fund/etc and still get the car? I don't want to work too many extra years, after all. If you look at the opportunity cost of a 300K car that depreciates, that is a big chunk from what could be earning income later.
3) Can I set aside the money to fix it when it blows a clutch, etc, and not worry about it as a hobby cost?
4) Is there a way to let the corporation help pay for the car or write-off some of the costs for business use?

The flip side, of course, is that life is short and unpredictable. I am a cancer specialist and every day I see people who were not able to live out dreams they were waiting on until later to pursue, when the time was perfect. We have to live along the way; there are limits to the logic of deferred gratification in a world with finite lifespans and unpredictable individual outcomes.

My wife and I came to agree on one thing-once the needs have been met responsibly, it is ok to pursue a crazy hobby every so often.

steve

 

airplane! I don't mean a jet either. We got into flying a few years ago and bought a Piper Cherokee 180, which is a small single that will carry 3 normal size people or 4 midgets. I approached buying a plane just like I do a car - buy a low milage with a history. The plane was $32,000, and to make it perfect and keep it that way for 5 years has ended up being over $110,000! After that, my Ferrari Mondial seems like a bargain. I don't consider myself rich - just old enough to have my house paid for and my kids rasied, so I now use that money for the things I was deprived of earlier in life.

 

I'm a computer geek by trade. However, my passion is in cars. I've been wheelin' and dealing for many years now (on the side). I've restored a few muscle cars, and usually made good $ on the return. I got into exotics a few years back, but have only had 2 thus far.

My day job revolved around computers. I just got my dream job (well...it's special to me anyway) at Microsoft. I think I'm the youngest on my team, but I dunno... been there 4 days LOL.

Finding a good wife is very important, I will admit. Having someone as smart as you are, who will support you when you need it is a MUST. I am very happy I found such a wonderful woman to be with for the rest of my life

At any rate, do whats best for you. There is always time to play with toys, but get yourself setup with a solid base as fast as you can. Don't fall into debt (plastics) and don't extend yourself too far financially. It's better to live below your means if possible.


MM

 

Don't like paying interest I'd rather have a 500K house in my name (although I will have to find something else to pay on to keep uncle sam off my ass) by 24 so I can have more freedom in the future. I may sell it off at some point (not planning on it..but ya never know) and take the money and build another one. I seem to nearly double my investment every time I build (this is my 3rd). Coupled with the investments I've been making over the last 6 years and savings/assets, I'll be living nice at 30 for sure. I'm not talking 40' boats and 5 million dollar homes... I don't want that. I just want to be able to buy and sell toys when I want, and have enough money do what I want (within reason).


There are advantages of paying on a home over time for tax reasons I'm sure, but in the long haul... I'd like to retire at 30 and have only the most simplistic bills to be owed at the end of the month. Money isn't everything, I value freedom and having no debts to anyone I could live mighty nice on 50K a year for example if I had only 800$ a month in bills total LOL. It's all relative.



MM