Upgrade Your Home Not Your Car

   

My commute right now is pretty sweet. It takes less than 15 minutes to get to and from work. Since I go to work only two days out of the week, my commute is a total of an hour or less per week. I’m fortunate because, for some people, they are commuting two hours or more per day, but that’s a whole other story.

On the weekend, I’d say typically car time could be two hours in total. So for seven days or 168 hours, I’m in the car for roughly 3 hours; that’s only 2% of my time. A large percentage of my remaining time is spent at home.

Given I work around 40 hours per week and add 10 more hours of cushion (e.g., friends and family homes, parties, mall, grocery store, errands, etc.), I can comfortably say for most weeks I am home for 113 hours (168-3-40-10) or 67% of my remaining time. Right off the cuff, 1% in a car versus 67% at home is significant in time.

From time to time I ask myself, does it make sense for me to upgrade my car? Will it add value to my life? Will it significantly increase my level of happiness? It turns out that the answer always ends up being “no.” And I know this already from experience since I owned a luxury car in the past. It didn’t take long for the excitement to go away. Instead, it makes much more sense to upgrade your house or buy a house with the help of a real estate agent Winston Salem (or one local) if you do not have a house. If property investment is not part of your plan, just move closer to your place of work. Moving closer will reduce your commute, meaning you get to spend more time at home. I’ve thought about moving, and looked at a mover near me to make it happen, but I’m already pretty close to work. For others, it could make a lot of sense – more sense than getting a new car anyway.

I’m not saying that it’s not worth it to upgrade your car and if it makes sense to you, go ahead. I’m saying at least for me and many others, the math doesn’t add up and the satisfaction of owning one is not there either.

Commute Increases May Not Matter

Looking back just a couple of decades ago, there’s no doubt that the commute time on average has increased and significantly. Per the chart below from the U.S. Census Bureau commute time has gone up by 18% between 1980 to 2015.

Upgrade your home not your car commute simple money man

However, the opportunity to telework one or more days has increased too depending on the nature of your work. So you’re commuting time may be offset with the perk of working from home one or more days per week.

You Spend More Time At Home

In the area I live in, people commute on average of one to two hours to and from work. A lot of that time is sitting in traffic. What are you going to do in a fancy car if you’re just sitting in traffic? Plus, think about the maintenance and fuel charges you need to invest in. Of course, it is much more economical if you are leasing it from somewhere like All Car Leasing, otherwise, it’s not a great save!

On the two days that I actually have to go into the office, I get home around 6:30 pm and go to bed around 11:00 pm. My wife works from home so her commute is not really applicable unless you count picking up and dropping off kids.  So it goes without saying that we want to make the most of enjoying our home. We’ve tried to optimize this experience with upgrades that will continuously provide relaxation and for our happiness.

Easy upgrades to your home to optimize relaxation, enjoyment, and happiness:

  • Comfortable and durable furniture
  • Smart TV with crisp picture and clear sound
  • Comfortable and durable mattress – a good night sleep is ultra-important for your health
  • Outdoor space for when the weather is nice. We have a table and chairs in our garage that can be folded up. We can just roll up the garage door on a nice day and hang out in the driveway!
  • Cozy and relaxing atmosphere through wall paint and artwork.
  • Upgrade the lighting in your home by hiring an electrician bentleighh or elsewhere. This could give your house a new look in terms of wall color and other interior decorations like new lamps or new chandelier lights and so on.

And with these updates, if you ever decide to sell your home, you can take them with you to your next place too. So you’re actually updating your living experience within your home and not the home itself. Sometimes you can even roll up your sleeves to make updates to your living experience yourself and learn a new skill in the process.

Thus your home is not just an investment of money; it’s an investment of your time and dividends in the form of relaxation.

Your Home Appreciates In Value, Cars Don’t

Chances are your home has appreciated in value. This calculator from CNN Money can show you how much your home is worth and if it was a good investment.

On the other hand, installing cool gadgets and upgrades on your car may seem nice in the beginning. But after a while, you may not use those gadgets. And according to Linda Richard, it may become difficult when you try to sell the car as it gives off the impression that you ran it hard. Finally, if you are desperate and take your car to a dealer for sale, they may offer you an even lower price if you have installed after-market items to your car because it may not attract at many future buyers.

Suze Orman definitely agrees, in that cars are a “lousy” investment because they only lose, not gain value. She says it’s best to purchase a car outright instead of taking on a loan. But if you do need to take out a loan, make sure it is paid off in less than three years. The money afterwards can go towards a better investment: your home.

Homes Can, Cars Can’t

When you’re in your car, how many aspects of it provide happiness?

  1. Ride/Performance – you can only go the speed limit; maybe 5-10 MPH more, but I don’t endorse that!
  2. Style – you can’t see the outside of the car when you’re driving it. You can walk around your home anytime and appreciate the updates you’ve made J
  3. Music – can you still drive effectively with the music up really loud?
  4. Navigation – use your phone’s navigation; it’s free to use and free to update. You’ll have to eventually update your car’s navigation system maps and that’s an additional expense.

When you’re at home, how many aspects of it provide happiness?

  1. Good area – good schools, nice parks and shopping centers, helpful neighbors, and less crime
  2. Fairly new or recently renovated – don’t have to worry about rotting wood, vermin, good HVAC system, water pipes and electrical wiring
  3. Relaxation – mentioned above

Your thoughts:

  1. Have you made upgrades to your home which you continue to enjoy? Have you regretted some?
  2. If you have a luxury car, do you enjoy the driving experience on a regular basis?
  3. If you had an extra $1,000 to spend on a home upgrade, what would it be?

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