<p>Niquii, most college students don’t have a car in that price range. You just need to keep it up for less than a year while your child’s away. It’s not that difficult.</p>
<p>@Consolation and romani It was a range :)</p>
<p>Let her apply, wait for acceptances, and make her decision. THEN you can start worrying about the car. As others have said, many campuses do not allow freshmen to have cars, or parking might be costly or distant. If public transportation is good it is not necessary. Our daughter just graduated from Penn State and never had a car. Public trans. around town was great and there was regular bus service to NY,Philly, etc.</p>
<p>In California, mass transit is very spotty. Our son took his car to the large CSU. </p>
<p>The problems with break-ins happen when people leave valuables in view of people walking by the car. It’s very important to take phones, gps, etc away from the car. </p>
<p>As noted above, some schools don’t allow cars on campus - at least for the first couple of years. UC Santa Cruz is one such school.</p>
<p>I “donated” my car to my kids when I bought a new one 3+ years ago. It fell apart soon afterward (which is the reason I bought the new one to begin with) and so I bought an inexpensive car - in good condition - paid cash. My son is a rising a senior, living off campus for the first time - taking the car to school. This makes sense. But living on campus I could not justify him taking the car - especially since his sister needed it to commute to HS and ECs. That said - as long as it makes sense for you and your family - go for it.</p>
<p>It totally depends on the college. My D took her car as a freshman. Cars were permitted and she parked in a secure parking garage across the street from her dorm. She could have easily survived without a car, but it made her life easier. She could go shopping, go golfing (no way to get to the golf course with her clubs other than in a car), go to various events in her college town, etc., all without having to bum a ride from someone. I’m sure there are campuses where a car is completely unnecessary or could make your life more difficult, though, which is why I think you’ve got the cart before the horse here. FWIW, D having a car made MY life easier - I drove down with her (12 hours) to move her in, but she drove herself home for winter break, and then packed herself up, put a bunch of stuff into storage, and drove home at the end of the year. She also was able to drive herself to the airport (an hour away) for T’giving break, which gave her flexibility that the school shuttle didn’t. We have no regrets about sending D to THIS school with her car; however, there are plenty of schools where we would not have considered letting her take it.</p>
<p>If your student is going to college in a major metro area like NYC, Boston, D.C., Philly etc…a car will be more than a PITA. </p>
<p>First…these cities have excellent public transportation. Second, your car insurance costs to have a car in these metro areas is very high. Third, parking is expensive even on campus. It is sometimes very difficult to even get off campus street parking permits if the car isn’t registered in the state where the college is located.</p>
<p>Both of my kids went to college in cities. Neither had a car and both survived. </p>
<p>Save your money. Keep the car at home.</p>
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<p>This… we have an old Subaru with 170,000 miles on it. Doesn’t go to college with them, and I “turn down” the insurance while they are gone. I think I could probably get a few thousand for it if I sold it. Car maintenance/repairs, insurance, gas, tires, and parking do really add up to thousands per year. My D1 is 23, lives in a city with good mass transit, and does not own or want to own a car at this time. Just saying, the assumption that a kid needs a car at college (or even right after college) is something to consider carefully, especially if you are strapped for money to pay for college.</p>
<p>We did not let our oldest take a car to college first semester. The decision had nothing to do with how responsible, etc. we found her. We didn’t want the fast friends that come with a car. We didn’t want her seeking out off-campus employment before she know how much she’d have to study (she did have on-campus work). We wanted her to spend weekends on campus connecting. We did not want her dealing with the hassle of old car maintenance.</p>
<p>The only ones in this family who have $15k to $20k dropped on a car are the parents. The kids get the old hand me down cars…and the cars did not go to college.</p>
<p>In my family, the kids get either new or 1-2 year old cars. My mom’s philosophy is to get us a car that will last through high school, college, and a year or two after we start working and provide little to know problems. I haven’t had any problems with my car. <em>fingers crossed</em> Plus, based on the age of the car it’s under warranty so if anything does break…it’s covered. </p>
<p>The type of money a parent is willing to put down for their kids can be greatly influenced on the type of money they put down for their own car. I can understand why a parent who spent $30,000 on their car would spend less money for their child compared to a parent who spent $50,000 on their own.</p>
<p>Around here MOST high school students do not get new cars. They drive older cars either bought used or from their parents. And this is not a poor area. Most of my kids’ friends who went to college in large metro areas did not take cars with them to college as undergrads. Some of the friends in less urban places, or where driving home for breaks was possible…took cars with them after the first semester. As noted, many schools do not allow cars for freshmen…or the parking is so far away from the living, it is inconvenient to have a car. </p>
<p>FYI, I did not pay $30,000 for my most recent car purchase. I could have, but I didn’t.</p>
<p>We have given our kids used cars. When they have jobs and are self supporting, they can then purchase new cars for themselves.</p>
<p>Well I was able to privately purchase a 2003 Volvo with only 30K miles. The wife owned the car and began commuting by train into the city - so the car just sat to several years in a garage in the suburbs. The car came with a price tag a little less than blue book value. Now this is the type of car that a kid can take to college.</p>
<p>Edit: knock on wood</p>
<p>Kennedy, we have a 2000 Volvo. We love it…but would not send it to college with a student. Repair costs and even regular maintenance are too expensive.</p>
<p>Our kid’s first car was an old used Volvo with 124,000 miles on it. Coat $2500. No…that one didn’t go to college either!</p>
<p>We have only owned the car for a little over a year - and although we hear horror stories about repair costs - nothing has gone wrong with the car - perhaps because of its low mileage. Volvo is solid and safe - just keeping my fingers crossed and praying to make it through my son’s senior year. We would have gotten our moneys worth. Check in with me this time next year…</p>
<p>Just wait and see which college she chooses. H and I never owned a car until we were in our mid 20s and married. Our sons never needed cars during college and we don’t want to pay for insurance. They are licensed, but never drive. 25yo still doesn’t own a car (shares a car.)
We let D take a car to her out of state college to participate in a sport. It has been convenient for shopping and going out with friends, though some students do take advantage, ask for rides, don’t pay for gas. One roommate regularly drove D’s car to her off campus job–though MY rule was that NO ONE drives the car except my D. Roomie did pay for gas, and D felt like she couldn’t say no because the roommate needed the job. D told me this after the fact.
H owns the car. It was already 8 years old and had about 120K miles freshman year. Now D is graduating (next week), and the 12yo car still runs fine. I think it should last another 5 years! We have any necessary service done when she has been home for Xmas or summer breaks. H also drives a 12yo car with over 200K miles. (Both Hyundais-- very reliable imo.)
D has had no problems with the car–other than one speeding ticket. And campus parking fees aren’t that cheap. Though I worry constantly about D’s safety, I’m glad I let her take the car and think it was the right decision for her.</p>
<p>Agree that the car on campus would be at the bottom of my list of questions…but, fwiw…</p>
<p>D did not have car on campus. But, a friend of hers did. Friend was constantly asked for rides, or to borrow. She let a roommate borrow her car. The roommate then let a guy drive it, without owner’s approval. He crashed. (No injuries, thank god!). Totaled friend’s car (which was 8 year old SUV). She got the totaled value…which was minimal. No way she could get another car for what she got from insurance. And of course, the roommate and the guy did not offer any $$. D’s friend learned expensive lesson.</p>
<p>S joined a frat freshman year (no car). Pledges required to be designated drivers for older frat brothers. I will say my S is excellent driver, so wasn’t too worried. But one of his fellow pledges did not drive until the summer before college–limited experience…and was driving around, new area and mostly late at night. Even my S said we would not have liked how this kid drove cars…</p>
<p>If she will be in Boston or New York, forget about a car. Dumb idea. Also, a lot of schools have ZipCars for student use. Perfect for occasional needs.</p>
<p>My oldest son could have a car at college, but for four years, never had one. His roommates and friends all had them, so he just chipped in for gas. He never felt he needed wheels. Because he only drove when home, our insurance on him was basically nothing. So look into the cost of insurance if you do not take a car with you. </p>
<p>Our younger son is looking at schools where he can have a car. Again, it really is not needed, so he probably won’t take one.</p>
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<p>Wouldn’t want to hear a peep from your parents about the high cost of college and that they couldn’t afford it (maybe they are paying happily, no idea, so if they can afford to do both cars and college then kudos to them).</p>