As young people grow old, they achieve different milestones. Two common milestones on the mind of every millennial involve either buying a car or an apartment. The number of car owners and home buyers is always on the rise.

With that said, it might be difficult to decide which one to go for first. You must assess the importance of each option before making the right decision.

You‘ll note that buying an apartment before a car comes with several benefits. For instance, you‘ll become more responsible, gain independence, and own an appreciating asset.

There are also several benefits of purchasing a car before an apartment, including getting the freedom to explore the world at your convenience.

Here, we’ll focus on the advantages of each option in an effort to help you to make the right decision.

Should I Get a Car or Apartment First?

If you’re wondering what you should prioritize between buying or renting a home or a car, we’ve got you covered. Let’s consider the advantages of each option below:

Pros of an Apartment Before a Car

Even though buying or renting a home can appear daunting, especially coming up with the initial down payment or move-in costs, it can be rewarding and might end up exposing you to new possibilities. Keep reading to understand the advantages of buying or renting a home before a car:

It Provides Independence

After buying or renting an apartment and moving out on your own, you’ll gain independence. This is a necessary step that everyone needs to take at some point in their life.

Relying on friends and family for a roof over your head doesn’t give you the freedom to do everything you want. For instance, you can make your own decision on what to cook for supper.

It Teaches Responsibility

You will understand what true responsibility involves when you get your own apartment. This may involve buying groceries on your own, cleaning the apartment, and learning routine apartment maintenance tips, among other things.

That extra responsibility provides the necessary push required to help you grow into a well-adjusted adult.

You’ll Gain Financial Management Skills

While living with friends or family, there are things you are likely to take for granted. For instance, you might not even know how much groceries cost.

When it’s finally your turn to pay electricity bills, you’ll become better at financial management and learn how to save money while living in an apartment. This is only possible if you leave your safety nest and fly out into the world.

You’ll Live Where You Want

While relying on others for housing, your life is confined to that specific location. When you decide to get your own home, you’ll select the location you want. For instance, you can move close to college or your first job. Don’t rule out enlisting the services of real estate agents to help find what you want, where you want.

There is a Chance to Lease/Buy a Car Later

After acquiring an apartment, you can shift your attention to another long or short-term goal. With the financial management skills you’ll have gained after you adjust to apartment living, you can save on purchasing or leasing a new car, even if it takes a longer period.

Pros of a Car Before an Apartment

Now that we understand the benefits of getting an apartment first, let’s focus on the pros of going for a car first.

You Save Money While Still Having a Safety Net

If you can still stay at your friends or family’s house, you can invest in your first car. It doesn’t mean that you’ll never get a home for yourself, it just gives you enough time to save more money for your moving expenses. Having enough money allows you to select your preferred home.

It is Cheaper

Buying or leasing a car is way cheaper than buying or renting an apartment. Of course, purchasing a car is more expensive than a single month’s rent, however getting an apartment means absorbing extra expenses, like groceries, electricity, water, and other service provider bills. Fuel, on the other hand, will be the only major regular expense for a car that requires consistent money.

There are also several ways to buy a car, including going for a cheap new one or a secondhand automobile. You can also finance the vehicle and make monthly payments on it.

You Become More Mobile

When you own a car, you’ll have more mobility than ever before. Even though you won’t get as much freedom as moving out on your own, it’ll be at least more freedom than you have at the moment.

For example, with your car, it becomes easy to travel to and from your place of work. Many people find it difficult and inconvenient to rely on public means to get around. You also have the choice to drive far away from home for fun to clear your head.

Cars Can Also Teach You Responsibility

We have seen that having your first apartment will teach you to be more responsible, but having a car can too. For instance, you’ll be forced to budget for regular maintenance and fuel expenses.

Alternatives

A lot of things have natural substitutes. For instance, an alternative to purchasing a new vehicle would be getting a fairly used car, a cheaper one, or even a lower model.

If you intend to avoid public transport, it won’t matter the type of car you select. Thinking this way broadens your mind and offers you more options to select from.

The same is true for a house. You can find 3-bedroom apartments or houses for rent instead of buying one. There is also the alternative of settling in a relatively cheaper neighborhood.

The bottom line is that your principles and needs will ultimately determine the best route for you.

Considerations to Make the Right Decision

The considerations below may help you make the right decision on what to go for first between a car and a house:

What Do You Require More?

Even though you might want to have both a car and a home, you should consider what you need more. For instance, if you rent with a roommate or live with your family, but have a long commute to work, owning a car might be the best idea.

With that said, you need to work out whether paying rent is a cost-effective solution that you can afford and whether it’s okay to continue with it for some time while you pay off your car. You need to prioritize what you need more for your life situation.

What Can You Afford?

There is a major difference between what you want and what you can afford. For instance, if you decide to rent a house, you’ll have to save enough money for the transaction fee and security deposit. You’ll also have to afford to pay the monthly installments, property rates, bond installments, and renters insurance.

Buying a car is far more affordable than a house. Don’t make a decision that will leave you struggling with your personal finance plans, because that is simply a disaster waiting to happen.

Consider Your Current Lifestyle

You might come across people who don’t mind an apartment for rent and don’t like public transport. Such people would, without question, select a car over getting a home.

With that said, others prefer having a place to call home, even if it means commuting by public means. Or you may need more space, hence needing a bigger apartment than sharing a one bedroom or two bedroom apartment. You need to understand your priorities and be honest with yourself before you make a decision.

Final Verdict

Buying a car and an apartment are great milestones that must be celebrated. Just because you can settle on one before the other doesn’t imply that you can’t eventually have both.

With that said, when forced to choose between them, we recommend buying or renting an apartment before buying or leasing a car. This is mainly because a car is a depreciating asset.

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