So your getting your drivers license?

Attention 14 and 15 year olds, you will want to read this entire note if you plan on getting a car anytime soon: Start thinking about car insurance and other items such as oil changes and buying tires if you plan on getting a drivers license. Start looking for a good part time job.

If your parents add you to their insurance, a 16 year old will cost about 92 to 150 per month for full coverage. The cost will vary with the type of cars, trucks and the years. Check with your agent for exact rates

If you have really good grades sometimes this will lower your rates so have your parents check with your insurance agent to see it they get discounts for good grades.

If you get your own insurance it will depend on the car and whether it is just liability or full coverage but if your not on your parents policy then plan on about 250 to 300 a month.

Liability insurance = pays for the costs to fix the other guys car but not your car. (This is required by law) Keep in mind if you depend on your car to get to work then this option may not be the best for you unless your car is an older junker car.

Full coverage = pays to fix your car and the other car you hit (costs more)

The coverage can include medical expenses and there are different deductibles. Example: If your side window gets broken and it costs 300 to fix it and your deductible is $500 then you should just fix it yourself. If it costs $600 then you pay the first $500 and the insurance pays the extra $100. You can talk to your agent about having a lower deductible and have them figure out that rates according to your needs. If you have a really expensive stereo system in your car you may want to add extra coverage for that.

Girls normally don't have as high of rates as boys. (Check with your agent) Do some calling around. Also make sure you decide on a reputable agency. If you get really great rates but when you need the agent you don't get service then it might not be the best choice.

If you get into an accident your insurance can go up. Years ago I got a ticket and I already had 2 others and my insurance went up like 60 something a month. I went to traffic school and when I finally got them off my record the rates went back down but many times you have to talk to your agent to make sure that happens.

Always pay your speeding tickets, parking tickets or moving violations on time because if you don't many times the costs can go really high. One of my employees got a ticket in Park City and it was like $25 dollars and he did not pay it and it went up to $450 in a few months.

Tickets in school zones can be over 200 depending on how fast you are going and this will add points to your record and not the good kind.

A neighbor got a ticket and did not pay it and she was also driving without insurance and when she got pulled over they impounded the car. She had to pay almost 1200 to get the car out of the impound lot. Now her insurance is much higher because she is considered high risk.

The lesson here is not to get into the high risk category. Keep your grades up and your insurance rates low. Don't text while driving and keep the radio volume low enough so you can hear sirens and horns from other cars. Slow down in the rain and snow and make sure everyone in the car has their seat belts on.

Rates on your parents policy $117 times 12 = 1404 a year

Rate on your own policy $300 times 12 = $3,600 a year (be nice to your parents)

Now add tires (about 25-44 per month is a good estimate), oil changes every 4000 miles or so or plan on $13 per month so you have the money in 3-4 months.

Estmated costs for your car per month: Car Payment on a midsize newer used car in good condition $200 ----- Payment on a new car $300-400 Car insurance $117 to $300 depending on the type, your age, your tickets etc.... Oil changes $13 ($35-$40 every 3-4 months) Replace air filters, fuel filters and other items every so often as well Gas per month $100 to $200 depending on how far you are driving Car repairs - If you bought a used car then put aside money for repairs every month so you will have it when needed

Plan on a low end cost of $430 per month and a high end cost of $913 if it is a new car payment

With that in mind if you make $10 dollars per hour then you end up with about $7 or $7.50 per hour after taxes So if you are working full time 40 hours a week you will get a gross check every 2 weeks of $800 or $1600 per month Understand that taxes will reduce this down to about $1200 per month

If you get $1200 per month then pay $430 for your car you have $770 left over which is not enough to move out on your own and pay RENT ($500-800), Food ($200 or so), Insurance and all the other items I mentioned in my other note where I explain what you will need to move out on your own.

Part time at $10 per hour - say 20 hours a week is $800 gross per month or $600 NET leaving you $170 left over minus your cell phone bill leaves you just over a hundred a month to go on dates, movies and buy clothes.

Now if you're working a min wage job 20 hours a week making almost $8 or say $8 per hour then your gross is $640 and your take home after taxes is around $480 leaving you $50 left over. So now you might want to save up for a while and get a good used car so you don't have a $200 dollar car payment each month so then you will only be concerned about putting gas, insurance, tires and oil changes into the budget.

When you get a full time job before you move out rather than blowing this $770 extra each month, put some of it away so you will have savings when you move out on your own. If you have enough to put down first and last months rent, deposits for GAS (to heat the apartment) deposit on the phone and deposits on the Electric bill then you can also have money to get cable, dish, Internet etc....

This is the car Jr wants but the insurance is like $700 per month.....