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Topic starter
16/01/2026 4:10 pm
Going through some boxes last night, I came across this. It's from July 1973 when my (then engaged with me) wife while preparing for our forth coming wedding in January 1974 wedding, bought this brand new '73 Plymouth Gold Duster! While thinking back on this memorable event and not wanting a car payment, we were proud to pay cash for the car. I fondly recall having to write the check for the car, twice. Why? Because up to that point of time in my life, it was the largest dollar amount check I'd ever written out. So I had to write the check over after messing up the first one. How big was the check amount? Drumroll please....
Total price of the car was $3,193.00. Of course our combined salaries at the time was around $500 a month, so for 1973 that was a lot of money for a new car. Admittedly, all these (almost) 53 years later, the Duster for many decades ago is no longer with us. But I'm happy to say, we are still married and enjoying our golden years together.
George Schire
Oakdale, Minnesota
16/01/2026 9:25 pm
"Of course, our combined salaries at the time were around $500 a month....."
About 100 years ago, as I calculated monthly budgets, I vividly remember thinking, "Well, combined new car monthly payments will never exceed $500 - that's $250 for each of us and that's a good number."
The average new car payment in the U.S. today is $750 - and, no doubt, there's some joker thinking, "Well, combined new car monthly payments will never exceed $1,600 - that's $800 for each of us and that's a good number."
🙄 🙄 🙄
Topic starter
16/01/2026 9:39 pm
"Of course, our combined salaries at the time were around $500 a month....."
About 100 years ago, as I calculated monthly budgets, I vividly remember thinking, "Well, combined new car monthly payments will never exceed $500 - that's $250 for each of us and that's a good number."
The average new car payment in the U.S. today is $750 - and, no doubt, there's some joker thinking, "Well, combined new car monthly payments will never exceed $1,600 - that's $800 for each of us and that's a good number."
🙄 🙄 🙄
I was in the banking (lending) business for 30 years. I worked with people everyday to try and fit new loan payments in to their sometimes already tight or overextended budgets. Most often NEW car loans could be extended up to 60 months (5 years), but as the years went on that became too short a time when car payments were getting higher. So guess what? That was when LEASING became available. Car payments could be lower. Now those are higher too, and actual car loans are being granted up to 7 years! It's never going to get better.
George Schire
Oakdale, Minnesota
16/01/2026 9:52 pm
"Now those are higher too, and actual car loans are being granted up to 7 years!"
- yeah, "84 months" has been around for quite some time. There's even talk that 50-yr mortgages are on the horizon. 😜
Topic starter
16/01/2026 10:04 pm
"Now those are higher too, and actual car loans are being granted up to 7 years!"
- yeah, "84 months" has been around for quite some time. There's even talk that 50-yr mortgages are on the horizon. 😜
Well with young people dumb enough to buy starter homes for over $300,000 dollars and homes in general hitting the purchase prices of over $450,000 they are going to need 100 year mortgages. The average new car today is over $50,000. Only people can stop inflation, but as long as their "Wants" are more than their "Needs", inflation is just going to continue going to the clouds.
George Schire
Oakdale, Minnesota
16/01/2026 10:25 pm
@georgeschire Those are all actually low numbers. $500,000 - $750,000 homes and six-figure trucks & SUVS are commonplace. Go to the "coasts," and even these numbers would be deemed "poverty figures."
Jack Dodds and Geno reacted
Topic starter
16/01/2026 11:01 pm
@georgeschire Those are all actually low numbers. $500,000 - $750,000 homes and six-figure trucks & SUVS are commonplace. Go to the "coasts," and even these numbers would be deemed "poverty figures."
Yea, I was being somewhat conservative. Like I said, there is really no end in sight. I'm just thankful I'm not a 20+ year old today. Unless a person is earning a couple hundred thousand or more a year today, they are below the poverty line. In my opinion there no longer a "middle class" in our country. One is extremely wealthy or extremely at or below the poverty line.
George Schire
Oakdale, Minnesota
17/01/2026 12:00 am
Regarding car prices back then, in October 1972, I bought my first new car. It was a 1972 Datsun 240Z. I paid about $4,600 including sales tax. Today, the Sport version of the current Nissan Z is about 10x that amount.
Ed Davis
Inverness, Illinois, USA
17/01/2026 12:11 am
It's all relative, though, isn't it? My first car payment was $45 a month. I thought it was all the money in the world. When Kelly and I bought our first townhouse, we paid $78,000 for one in Northern Virginia. My dad couldn't believe how expensive it was. I guess we were "dumb young people."
John Kuvakas
Warrenton, VA
17/01/2026 2:57 am
"In late 2025 and early 2026, Australia's average (median) house price was around $980,000 to $990,000, with capital cities higher (over $1.1 million) and regional areas lower, capping a strong year of growth (around 8.6%) driven by interest rate cuts, though momentum slowed in December 2025. Key figures: National median near $980k-$990k, Capitals $1.1m+, Sydney over $1.7m."
Keep in mind the exchange rate though. $1US to $0.675Aust.
This post was modified 4 months ago by Geoff Jowett
17/01/2026 8:44 am
@georgeschire George so true. It is like sports tickets for games, concerts etc. I will not pay the prices they are asking, and if for 1 week no one would go, I think you would see the prices drop dramatically.
17/01/2026 8:50 am
I've only ever bought one brand new vehicle, that was enough. The last several we've bought as 2-3 year old models. Still fairly new, but at a better price. Plus, not taking that depreciation hit. Since retirement, I'm hanging on to the two we have as long as possible. Routine maintenance is WAY cheaper than new car payments. Plus we have Ziebarts total package done annually on both.😊
17/01/2026 9:00 am
@ed-davis Regarding car prices back then, in October 1972, I bought my first new car. It was a 1972 Datsun 240Z. I paid about $4,600 including sales tax. Today, the Sport version of the current Nissan Z is about 10x that amount.
I recall when I had decided to trade in my '66 Mustang coupe on something Japanese (my first reaction to the impressive imports, which has never left me) I looked at the 240-Z and LOVED it but the price tag was just far too much for me at the time. Common sense finally kicked in and I settled for a Toyota Hilux pickup.....$2721 including rear bumper and radio upgrades...lol.
17/01/2026 9:45 am
I saw an article a few weeks ago that mentioned shortly we will see 100 month (12 year) car loans with average payments of $1000.00/month. I think I also saw something that claims the average price of a new car is currently in the mid $40,000.00 range and that is for basic transportation, not top of the line vehicles. I'd have to win the lottery before I would even think of buying a new car or truck.
17/01/2026 10:22 am
@old-caddys I do not know where you live, but in the Chicago area, the average price of a new vehicle (car, SUV, pick-up truck) is about $50,000.
Ed Davis
Inverness, Illinois, USA
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