How do you afford a new bike?

ScottyXTUK

Hello

I'm going to be buying a new bike soon but the only real option open to me is to get it on interest free credit after putting down a deposit. The bike is fairly expensive and a big purchase for me. (probably between £1500-£1900)

So I was wondering if it's ok to ask, how does everyone else pay for their new bike?

Do you save up the cash, have spare cash, use credit card, sell you old bike, finance etc?

I'm just wondering what other people do and if I'm in the minority using finance for such a purchase.

Cheers

Mikey41

Saved up £650 and bought it.

RubbishCyclist

Cycle to work scheme for me......otherwise it'd be saving

verylonglegs

Late-thirties, no kids and single. It means money and time for hobbies such as cycling

chuckla

Wish I had cycle to work option! I have bought last three bikes on interest free, paid 2 off early, one after a month and the other after 5 months! New bike is being paid monthly for now, if I have any spare I'll pay it off sooner!

u05harrisb

Save up the money and pay in full. I wouldnt feel comfortable having something of that value "owed" or loaned if that makes sense. However I am willing to take my time saving. Say your "loan" takes you 9 months to pay off in total but you have the bike at the beginning Id rather spend the next 9 months saving the same amount then not having to worry about it at all when I can afford it in full. I am happy to wait if I need to because in reality we don't "need" a new bike do we

danlikesbikes

Save up money, do overtime when able to & sell lots of rubbish that we don't use anymore on Ebay to fund my habit.

Bozman

I married a woman with a good job, this also leaves you with plenty of time on the bike because she's busy working all of the time.

skyeflyguy

Interest free credit cards can be a cheaper option to credit. If you shop around there seems to be quite a few offering 12+ months. I would think you would have to be very disciplined to make sure it was paid off before they clobbered you with big interest rates at the end of the interest free term.
Ive heard of people buying fairly expensive items and at the end of the contract swapping to another provider for another interest free contract with a typical fee of around 3%.
Works out at cheaper than a loan but not without risks!
No Im not a banker, in fact the least amount of money that I can give them, the better!!

iPete

Interest free finance
Cycle to work
Cash
Building bit by bit over time

guado78

iPete wrote:

Interest free finance
Cycle to work
Cash
Building bit by bit over time

What he said^^^

Failing that there is always:

Robbing Banks
Selling Crack
Making Meth
Selling Organs (Internal not Musical!)

Fursty Ferret

Cash. And if I used interest free I'd put down about 70% deposit and pay balance off asap. Obviously we're talking 'normal' prices here, say £2.5-3k but I'd never buy a more expensive bike because I don't buy things I can't afford to buy up front.

Grill

I pay with my card (air miles FTW) and then pay my card off when the bill comes due at the beginning of the month. I'm fortunate in that I have a very good job, zero dependents, and small nut.

southdownswolf

I sold a few bits and pcs that I did not need, went to my lbs and was given a 10% discount.

The big question you have to ask yourself is are you disciplined enough to use a credit card? I only have credit cards for when I go on holiday, as an emergency. They get closed when I get back.
If you can be disciplined, then interest free credit cards are available for 15 / 16 months. But, you would need to make sure you paid off in full by the end of 0% deal, otherwise interest will soon add up.

ScottyXTUK

Thanks for the replies. I actually do need a bike soon as currently I don't have one and I usually start cycling again in March.

I'm going for interest free credit (not credit card) as I can pay it off over 3 years at a price I can afford and I have a 20% deposit too which I've saved up. I can also pay it off quicker which I intend to do but the main thing is not paying interest so I guess I am disciplined in that regard.

mallorcajeff

I pay for mine in cash as I have savings lucky enough but there are lots of free credit cards and if your careful you can do it for free just keep ontop of it. If there is interest free options then that's ok too. Just remember your committed to it but that's ok. Just buy it and enjoy it. I have learnt lately you can pt take it with you and live for the moment life is too short. Be sensible and enjoy yourself. I missed out on a lot in life just to save money. Buy what you can afford. And if you had to borrow a little that's fine just don't go borrowing lots you can't pay back and you will be fine.
Option be move abroad change your nationality then move back to the uk and apply to the government they will probably buy it for you as a welcome gift and leave it wrapped up for you in your new free house.

Sorry off soap box now

Buy it and enjoy it you only live once. I'm just about to order a new bike too.

VTech

If you do buy one on credit do not pay it off early if you need to maintain high credit status as it looks bad and goes against you. When you take out credit you have a contract over time yet what they dont tell you is that early redemption takes away monthly payments on your credit file which doesnt look good even though you have paid perfectly well.

I have also posted about costs before, I found decathlon a great stop for people on a budget.

Gabbo

This sounds interesting. What online retailers do interest free finance? Maybe I could get something in particular early

P.S.. I'm rather impatient and want it NOW.., not 2014

Grill

VTech wrote:

If you do buy one on credit do not pay it off early if you need to maintain high credit status as it looks bad and goes against you. When you take out credit you have a contract over time yet what they dont tell you is that early redemption takes away monthly payments on your credit file which doesnt look good even though you have paid perfectly well.

I have also posted about costs before, I found decathlon a great stop for people on a budget.

Not necessarily (I'm a former finance manager). If we're talking credit scores (experian and the like) it's more important to keep a low revolving than paying monthly installments on a credit card. The items in which you want to show payment history (to prove that you're reponsible enough to handle credit) are your big ticket loans such as your mortgage or car. You will never get financed with your cards on a high balance as your revolving available (what the banks deem to be your "emergency funds") will be non-existent.

thegreatdivide

Single, employed, no mortgage, getting knocked off the bike followed by a very large payout from the driver's insurance company, successfully taking a monster lifestyle brand to court for breach of copyright ;-) Most recently I’ve been buying and selling bike stuff, just like I used to do with vinyl records.

VTech

Grill wrote:

VTech wrote:

If you do buy one on credit do not pay it off early if you need to maintain high credit status as it looks bad and goes against you. When you take out credit you have a contract over time yet what they dont tell you is that early redemption takes away monthly payments on your credit file which doesnt look good even though you have paid perfectly well.

I have also posted about costs before, I found decathlon a great stop for people on a budget.

Not necessarily (I'm a former finance manager). If we're talking credit scores (experian and the like) it's more important to keep a low revolving than paying monthly installments on a credit card. The items in which you want to show payment history (to prove that you're reponsible enough to handle credit) are your big ticket loans such as your mortgage or car. You will never get financed with your cards on a high balance as your revolving available (what the banks deem to be your "emergency funds") will be non-existent.

Thats really odd as my credit score hovers around 980-990 yet I paid off a 3 year contract after 5 months and immediately went to 746, I called experian after getting the usual text alert and they told me exactly what I wrote above and having spoken to the wealth manager (and before people have a pop, thats available to anyone on a premium account) he confirmed what experian had told me and advised whole heartedly against paying off balances early if you need credit soon after. He also told me, as did experian that these normally only effect you for the following 3 months, unlike a missed mortgage which counts for at least 6 months.

neeb

For a big purchase I usually just stick it on the credit card and pay it off in 2 or 3 months (like some others I have a salary and no dependants). If I was organised enough and had the time I would shuffle things around to avoid interest, but to be honest for £100 or so once every year or two it's not worth the hassle. I guess I have a relatively relaxed attitude towards credit cards as I basically lived off them in the 1990s when I was a postgrad student / employed on a poorly paid short-term basis etc. In those days you could always find another card offering zero interest for 6 months or a year and just transfer your balance at the end of the period. I ended up with 3 or 4 cards and ridiculous credit limits (one with 10,000 and another with 15,000, although I was only intermittently employed..). It was still easier to pay off the debts I had on them when I started earning than it was to pay off the loan I took out to finance a postgrad degree, which despite being sold as a "sensible" option was a complete rip-off in terms of the interest I paid. The good thing about credit cards is that the repayment schedule is completely flexible - obviously you pay for that through the interest rates (in theory), but if you read all of the small print, do your sums and take advantage of the right marketing offers, they can often work out cheaper. I still have the two credit cards with large limits on them, and although I mostly keep them dormant or pay them off at the end of the month, it's good to know that they are there for emergencies.

Grill

VTech wrote:

Thats really odd as my credit score hovers around 980-990 yet I paid off a 3 year contract after 5 months and immediately went to 746, I called experian after getting the usual text alert and they told me exactly what I wrote above and having spoken to the wealth manager (and before people have a pop, thats available to anyone on a premium account) he confirmed what experian had told me and advised whole heartedly against paying off balances early if you need credit soon after. He also told me, as did experian that these normally only effect you for the following 3 months, unlike a missed mortgage which counts for at least 6 months.

Nope. Look at number 7. http://www.experian.co.uk/consumer/top-10-credit-myths.html

mrbubbaman

Gabbo wrote:

This sounds interesting. What online retailers do interest free finance? Maybe I could get something in particular early

P.S.. I'm rather impatient and want it NOW.., not 2014

I tried here, but was turned down but I pay my credit card off every month, so probably not good for credit?
http://www.tredz.co.uk

Never understood why people buy on interest free and then pay off early??

Frank the tank

Save up + sell older bike usually.

mlgt

I am in the same boat and debating to get a new bike or not.

But have been toying to demote the bianchi to a winter bike and save/pay with credit card and purchase a sportier model.

Inutero

Interest free credit. Put down a £200 deposit on a £1000 bike, £80pm for 10 months with the option of paying it up when i want. Will be paid off by August.

AchillesLeftKnee

Personally, out of existing funds.

I'm a middle* earner with moderate living costs, but tighter than a ducks bum when it comes to expenditure on luxuries, so I save as a matter of course. Living an S/3 lifestyle on a salary of S pretty much covers it. Essentially, it's just a different take on "save up for it", except instead of the mental process being "I'd like an X, so I'll save up for an X", it's more along the lines of "I'll save for some sort of it, I don't know what it is, and there might never be an it, but if there is I'll be able to just pop out and buy it".

On the specific subject of bikes, I reckon borrowing money to pay for a luxury that depreciates like a dead badger is bloody barmy. Okay, so it would be different if it were a professional tool of the trade, or it was a case of needing it for transport when there were no cheaper options, but as a luxury... no, that's just nuts.

* Which is kind of irrelevant really as I had the same approach when I was on buttons, and you could quadruple my salary and it wouldn't change.

Gabbo

mrbubbaman wrote:

Gabbo wrote:

This sounds interesting. What online retailers do interest free finance? Maybe I could get something in particular early

P.S.. I'm rather impatient and want it NOW.., not 2014

I tried here, but was turned down but I pay my credit card off every month, so probably not good for credit?
http://www.tredz.co.uk

Never understood why people buy on interest free and then pay off early??

Have no idea, don't ask me!

Try westbrook cycles. I believe they're a little more lenient when it comes to scoring credit history

team47b

what about giving something else up and funding a new bike with that?

give up drinking and the average drinker could save up a grand in less than a year.

Who here would get to a grand quickest? challenge

I bought two bikes in year one! And I didn't think that I used to drink very much compared with other people

VTech

Grill wrote:

VTech wrote:

Thats really odd as my credit score hovers around 980-990 yet I paid off a 3 year contract after 5 months and immediately went to 746, I called experian after getting the usual text alert and they told me exactly what I wrote above and having spoken to the wealth manager (and before people have a pop, thats available to anyone on a premium account) he confirmed what experian had told me and advised whole heartedly against paying off balances early if you need credit soon after. He also told me, as did experian that these normally only effect you for the following 3 months, unlike a missed mortgage which counts for at least 6 months.

Nope. Look at number 7. http://www.experian.co.uk/consumer/top-10-credit-myths.html

Why do you always do this ???
http://uk.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20090731081217AA5bEzf
I offered great advice, true advice yet you have to argue. My point had nothing to do with credit cards, I answered about 0% finance, a totally different kettle of fish and one where by payin early can lower, in fact WILL lower credit for a time. I hate arguing with you as you then go all guns blazin to fight back at me but it doesn't change the fact my advice was correct.