I'm 28 and renting right now. I'm a waiter making decent money I average between 400-600 a week. I have a little more than 12k in the bank and invest in life insurance

 

I paid 8 for my 2000 C5 and financed 5K. Cheap payment and I have the title if I decide to upgrade in the next year or two.

 

so that would wipe out most of your cash reserves. At 28 I would have done same, now 36 I would not do such a thing.

You didn't mention any type of IRA?

Life is short, but I'd be cautious depleting your liquidity on any car, let alone an older one.

Just my opinion as someone that has made numerous bad financial decisions in life.

 

Wanna buy a 1999 LS1 Formula 6 spd with 77k miles for less than 12? lol

I've got 5 cars now and it's gotta go

 

Well, that changes some things. You might want to seek assistance and see if you can take some steps towards improving your credit score. A bad score sitting on your credit report follows you around and can cost you in many ways. Good luck to you and best wishes!

 

In my opinion it would be a big mistake to buy a C5 at this time in your life. But, of course, do what you gotta do.

 

Anyone can be financed no matter what credit you have.

With 12k down may as well get a c6. I wouldn't pay more than 15k top for an old C5. Even though I own one I just don't see anything higher.

I've seen some modded C5 lately on this forum pumping 500hp selling up to 20k.

Are you looking for a project car Or a daily/ cruiser?

 

I'm not sure if this is a thread asking for financial advice on getting the c5, or just on getting a good rate. Its no secret that often times, when someone is dead set on something then a forum full of other recommendations won't help. It's like the guy who insisted on having his car towed to GM for the column lock issue instead of taking my advice and ordering an LMC5.

If you just want to find a decent rate, I would recommend a credit union, especially one that you have a longstanding relationship with. I don't think it's a bad idea for you to finance a car and build your credit score back up. However, you say you have a little more than $12k. It may be smarter to look for a slightly cheaper c5, and put down a little less money in order to keep more in reserves.

 

May I just ask a reality check question...

If you make about $500 per week - that's about $26,000 per year... Doesn't it sound crazy to buy a car that costs very close to what you earn in a year?

Wouldn't you tell someone making $100,000 per year that they were crazy for buying a new C7 or Lambo for $100,000?

Please save yourself the financial burden and wait till you are earning about double what you make...then buy the C5 you want... Also blowing almost your entire savings on a car is about the craziest thing you could do in this economy. Life will throw you curve ***** - its not a matter of if, its a matter of when...and if all your money is tied up in a Corvette - you have no cushion to fall back on...

Trust me - PLEASE be patient. PLEASE do NOT buy a Corvette now.

 

Many have suggested not buying a Corvette or any car for that matter at this time. That is wise. It keeps your money in savings and protects you from the expenses that may hit you owning an older car. However, it appears you are really more focused on how to purchase a Vette. At your age (I'm ancient, now), I probably did the same thing.
If you are really going to purchase a Vette, someone else has probably addressed it and I missed it, but one suggestion is to find a Vette you can pay cash for, trying not to totally deplete your savings. Talk to a credit union about a short term loan using your Vette as collateral. Put the loan money in your credit union account and draw some interest. In the meantime, pay the loan off quickly. You'll make a little interest on the money in savings (not much, but it beats none); you'll establish yourself as a good customer with the CU and you'll have a good payment history to become part of your credit bureau file. And, with the loan money in your savings, at least you have that to fall back on for tires or whatever else you might need.
Good luck and let us know what you finally decide to do.

 

I'm shopping around for a weekend cruiser if I buy the anniversary edition that I want I'll probably keep it low mileage I've seen some under 20k

 

Just sharing what mine was:


2002 C5Z with <50k miles (had to find one with less than 50k miles so I could get a 60 month loan, since it is older)

Through NC State Employees, I financed $17,500 for 60 months at 4.75%. I had a ~720 credit score and only a maximum of 2.5 years of actual credit (I use cards a lot).


So bottom line - it's definitely possible if you find the right car. I had to find the right price and the right miles. I ordered my from Texas and had it shipped (sight unseen, very risky). Unfortunately had a few bills with that of course, but I knew it wouldn't be perfect for the price I paid.

 

For putting 12k I'd go with a c6. Again, in my experience everyone can be finance. Try Craigslist or even the section with C5 for sale and even check the region page.

 

You'd probably be better off buying something much newer for around $12k, paying it off, then selling or trading it to get the C5 you want if you don't have the cash on hand to buy one outright. My credit was more around 740 at the time, but I bought a 2013 car back in 2015 that was $22k. I had a self induced aggressive pay off schedule so I paid it off about 11 months later. Ended up a dealer had the Z06 I wanted, traded that car in and gave a bit more and have the Z06 now and it's paid for.

Originally I was going to go into it and finance on one, but the 2013 appealed to me at first and later on realized I didn't like it but the same concept seems like it would work. People here are rather optimistic at what price you "should" pay for a C5, I waited and waited and got what I'd consider a good deal on my Z06 but according to others here I would have paid "too much". Similar ones to mine were already a few grand more than I paid, so you're basically looking for the "steal" price if you follow some of the advice here. You might have to give up on that, unless you have a long time to look and will drive far and wide for it. I was looking for a year and a half. If I had my other car paid off sooner, I probably would've ended up with an '08 Atomic Orange Z51 Vette instead that I found.

Definitely don't rush into it though. There was a '99 C5 near me that was $11.5k and had 50k miles on it, but it had like 7 previous owners and the A/C was not working and the DIC was wonky. And that was like 2-3 years ago IIRC.

 

Johnny92, if it were me...

I would save like a bugger and just pay cash for one. You are not far off the price of a 2003 C5 anyways. I have seen them in the $16000 USD range up here in Canada. They are not worth much more than that anyways.

That is.... if you can wait! It is definitely a waiting game to find the right car but they always pop up eventually. I have seen C5's for as low as $8000 here. (about 10 000 CAD - I am in Canada).

Cash is king. Good luck!

 

As much as a Corvette puts a smile every time you drive, you might want to think that once you buy your car there might be other expenses. Either you will get the mod fever or your older car will have other expenses such as upkeep or repairs . There is a Corvette tax unfortunately so make sure you keep some money aside just in case s..t happens.

 

If I buy the corvette I don't plan on doing any mods to it just keeping it all original. Im just waiting to hear back from Navy Army credit union to see what they'll offer me. I definitely will put money aside for maintenance hopefully I won't run into any maintenance problems. I also have a 04 Lexus LS that's been very reliable

 

I did find one that was 18k 2003 50th anniversary convertible with 65k miles if everything checks out good with the credit union I'll be driving a sweet ride

 

As a financial advisor, couldn't agree more. I've seen people who have just filed chapter 13 with a higher score then 600.

 

Johnny92, This is gonna sound like an all-out flame. Across the internet, stark financial rules and analysis always does, especially since voice inflection and intent cannot be relayed personally. I'm not meaning to flame you-- like the other "old fogeys", I'm trying to steer you away from some gross financial errors I made as a younger guy...

You said, "I have always managed my finances well the main reason for my low score is that I had a medical bill go to collections..."

The sentence contradicts itself. If you managed your finances well, you wouldn't have had any of your bills degrade to the point of a collections referral. If you manage your finances well, you wouldn't be considering spending the bulk of your savings on a car you intend only to use at a maximum of 104 days out of each year. No offense meant--I'm just writing what I "see".

You're only 28; you've got plenty of time for fast cars later. Yeah, "life is short"--when you get close to retirement age (and if you're one of HALF the American adult population), you won't have enough saved, being short by close to 80%. That's what the conservative Wall Street statistical analysis says. You say you're putting away $500/month, and that you make a weekly $400-600. That means that you're barely saving aside what should be your minimum for a retirement fund. Conservatively, you should be squirreling away 20% before taxes for retirement. You should have $8,000 in a minimal emergency fund—that’s 3 months’ gross wages—and that amount should grow if your gross annual income grows… and ideally, you should have 6 months’ gross saved for the emergency fund. Fortunately, you’re renting. That generally means less financial obligation than home ownership, so you could theoretically last longer if you were unemployed for 6 months. ANYTHING could cause you to be unemployed for 6 months—the economy going south, some kind of personal disaster, anything.

Don’t spend your strong 6-month emergency fund on a weekend toy; not yet. $12G’s is coincidentally just about what you should have as a bona fide E-fund. Skim 25% of your income for an IRA or 401k and then add another $500/month savings for your car. You can fund more with better credit later. Basics, basics, basics. You must excel at something—do you play baseball, golf, any sport? Chess? Are you one hell of a waiter? Each practice has its’ own required basics—financial soundness and security has its’ own, too, and we’re just tryin’ to push you in that direction.

You’re on a forum where a large portion of the authors/owners are financially set. We’re a buncha old dudes done what you’re about to do. A lot of us learned the hard way. I bought a car that was too much for me when I was young. Drove around in style, spent my retirement and emergency money funding repairs and exorbitant insurance rates; it took 11 YEARS of accelerated saving later to make up for the 3 years of stylin’. That was no fun. We didn’t cut a lot of corners for my youthful indiscretion, but we missed a lot of nicer vacations, better furniture, nicer homes, etc., etc.

Consider what you’re gonna do against your future. You’ve got a strong start on rebuilding your financial strength. Don’t splurge it on a weekend toy; it’s not only the cost of the car—gas, insurance, maintenance—you’ll be livin’ paycheck to paycheck to keep up with the car once the 12 is spent. No offense meant. Listen to JR-01, Vetteman, et. al.