Car You Drive ? vs. Investments You Have ?

[Joffrey Long]

Ok, long weekend and a little lighthearted fare:

Real estate investors - what kind of car(s) do you drive? Do you prefer luxury cars? Modest cars? How many drive cars with many, many miles on them? And - if you drive a nice car - do you have a "property car" to drive when you go to meet contractors, workers or tenants at properties?

Question 2: How has the vehicle you drive compared to your net worth during the years?

I drove the nicest, most expensive vehicle when I had a much lower net worth.

Now, I drive a very modest vehicle with over 200k miles on it. I can more afford a luxury vehicle than I ever could, my net worth is higher than it ever was, but I keep thinking about that license plate frame that says, "My other car is......." and I want to get one that says, "My other car is an apartment building."

I do feel I've fallen prey to a different, more subtle type of status-seeking. That is the statement that some feel they're making by driving cheap, old cars, basically saying that they know you know they don't have to prove anything financially.

Before you write this off as silly, do note that you make faster progress acquiring wealth if you monthly vehicle expense is $600 (including gas, insurance, maintenance and vehicle acquisition costs) instead of closer to 1500 per month.

Ok, would love to hear your feedback on this. The cars? Oh yeah, they're great:

1999 Honda Civic with 200,600 miles on it.
1998 Ford Explorer Sport with 201,000 miles on it. (great for hauling stuff to the properties)

Joffrey Long