Ktnewell

So far the only barrier to enjoying my recent move to Atlanta has been trying to sort out a car. Honestly its a nightmare and has made me want to go home on more than one occasion.

To give you some background.

I cant enrol on any of the IAS programmes (annual is below the minimum requirement)
I have moved alone and am a girl who knows absolutely NOTHING about cars....
Money is not unlimited - I need to try to keep this cheap!

I have agreed to purchase a colleagues car, as quite honestly I have no other option, its a 2001 VW Jetta.

I am now struggling with two things
A) I need to ship it from NYC to ATL, as according to the Georgia DMV I cant legally drive it - no GA plates/title etc and they wont provide temporary out of state ones (what??? what are you meant to do then?)

B) Insurance. I got a quote from Progressive for $250 per month!!! Is this normal? Who are the best to go with as an expat?

I honestly don't understand why its so complicated here. I am longing for the days of GoCompare.com and MOTs!

Hotscot

Haven't you spoken to these folks? (Is that what you mean by IAS? What's 'annual' in reference to?)

International Autosource
Expat Car Sales without a Local Credit History & Global Car Rental | International AutoSource

A 2001 car that may have experienced inclement weather and other stressful driving conditions over the years is a bit of a risk.
There's a lot of basic cheaper cars that you can buy new.

What's your context...have you moved for a job?
Did your employer not provide relocation assistance?
Aren't you being paid a decent salary to live comfortably?

A dependable car is very much a necessity in most places here.

That insurance sounds normal to me....

Ktnewell

International Autosource require a minimum income of $60k which I am below, they offered me a lease option which was not a good deal in my opinion. A Ford Focus car with $3000 up front, $250 per month not including tax, insurance, state fees.....

My company have not provided any assistance in regards to sourcing and buying a car. Something that has caused me endless frustration I might add!

Hotscot

Did you transfer from the UK to the US with the same company?
Or is this a new job?
What sort of job is it?

That's a very low salary for a professional job in the US. (Although teachers for example start on 40K or less.)

How about a car dealer and a cheap car like the Fiat 500 or something over four or five years?

Ktnewell

I transferred from the UK to the US with the same company in a HR position. I was told the salary was benchmarked - I'm starting to feel differently about it now I'm here.

The problem with a car dealer is credit, no credit history here. And also moving away from the big dealerships like VW, Ford etc and I start getting into dangerous territory or being sold a lemon.

kodokan

A car dealer will offer you credit - it'll just be at a high rate, as you have no history. There's no real way round that; the alternative is to risk driving an old beater car for a year or so before buying a 'proper' one, but that's not a good route for a person here alone who knows nothing about cars and probably needs reliable transport to get to work.

Paying to ship a car across states and re-registering it sounds rather expensive and daunting for someone newly-arrived. Round here, teens seem to manage to buy reasonable cars based on their part-time jobs, spending about $6k and getting it financed, and they presumably don't have a credit history (and in one case I know, the parents are undischarged bankrupts, so can't be co-signing). So it must be possible.

The insurance is normal; mine is $2k a year and I'm probably older than you (mid-40s). It apparently drops after 3 years of having a US license; I shall excitingly find out in November! I think domestic brands are cheaper to insure, as any repairs/ parts are much less.

Pulaski

You seem to have a lot of issues, but I doubt that shipping a 13 year old car from NY is a good idea. Road salt and harsh winters are rough on cars "up north".

Under the circumstances you describe I would be looking at a used car from a "buy here, pay here" dealer. They do their own finance and you'll need to take them cash each month. They will typically have much of their signage in Spanish.

Personally I wouldn't look at anything below about $5k if you can possibly afford it. A "buy here, pay here" used car dealer is going to want probably $1k-$2k down, and then you're probably looking at $200/mth +/-, for three years. In other words the finance isn't going to be cheap, but it'll get you on the road in something fairly road worthy. $2,000 cars are basically junk, and are going require constant repairs.

What ever you do, make sure your car has a "Carfax report", and get a mechanic to look it over- I think AAA offers that service.

Insurance in the US is expensive, and $250 sounds high, but isn't off the scale crazy. About $2,000/yr seems to be the starting point for most new immigrants.

Nutek

Possibly a job for CarMax?

The insurance doesn't sound too far off.

Pulaski

They're mostly dealing "nearly new" vehicles and selling them at nearly new prices. Banks won't finance vehicles older than six years IIRC, which is why she might have to resort to the "next tier" of used car dealers.

Nutek

Gotcha.

A 2001 Jetta would scare me a bit. Great till they break, but pricey to fix. Did they have the electrics sorted by then?

mrlion

We are paying 350 / mo for two cars - we're both in our late 30s so your quote sounds reasonable.

FWIW I was pointed to a specialist broker who helps expats and the cheapest deal I got was still Geico online.

Your point about go compare - couldn't agree more! In many ways things are really advanced here but in other ways it's like taking a step back in time to the 80s.

Nutek

Are there sales tax considerations buying on one State and shipping to another?

Pulaski

You typically have to prove that local sales tax was paid when you register it if you bought it within the past 12 months, or provide evidence that tax was paid somewhere else, and I think the state where you're registering it goes and claims at least part of the tax from the state where it was paid.

Bob

The car will be a heap of rusting shit...or a very good chance of it, it being New England and also being a Jetta.

Buy something in state and avoid a car that has come from a flood prone state or a snow prone state if you don't know anything about cars.

Sales tax, usually if you're buying out of state, you either pay in the state you buy in and claim that in your state and pay anything over if it's less, or you get a certificate type thing to say you'll pay tax in your state and not the one you buy, or you pay sales tax in both states and then claim the sales tax back from one of the states at tax time. If you have a insurance broker, they should know this and be able to help you out.

Car insurance rate sounds about right for a decent new car, bit harsh for a banger....expect $1K per six months. You've got no US credit or driving history.

Gillymonkey

Talk to the dealers near you. The likes of VW have expat schemes. Most should be able to offer you some type of financing it may just be at a higher rate. I would really caution against buying a very old car. We've done this now a couple of times and it has been a nightmare!

Small rant - I think some of the oter users need to remember that not everyone on here earns massive amounts. I am in a professional job and don't meet the IAS income requirement. Brit Expats come from a wide range of earning backgrounds.