January 2020

Saving money means making good choices on the two main expenses in your life: your car and your home. It doesn’t matter if you never splurge on anything else – If you pay more than you should for either of these, you might find yourself strapped for cash in other places.

So – how much should you spend on your second hand car? It is, of course, completely up to you, and depends on variables such as your lifestyle, outgoings, income etc. As much as we would love the all-knowing, all-seeing, forever-wise finance fairy to appear and make all our financial decisions for us with a puff of glittery dust – alas, we must trust our own judgement. We have though, tried to assist your decision by including a very loose, top level spending guide below, some of which is according to MoneyUnder30.

Here at Carrickmacross Credit Union Ltd., we could advise you that you could afford €400 per month for a car loan, based on your monthly income, but it’s up to you how long you spend paying off that loan – which is the deciding factor between a newish BMW or a mid-range Ford Focus. Our staff will chat to each individual person about their needs and ability to repay, so if you have a query, don’t hesitate to drop in and see us, or submit a query online.

So, here are some options to consider:

1. The general option: spend 35% of income on your car

This is more of a catch-all approach. As it is a significant chunk of your income, it might be preferable to be making average or above average wage, and have a capacity to repay over a longer period, if you were to take out a loan.

2. The wiser/frugal option: spend 10% of your income on a car

This will be based on life choices, but spending 10% of your income on a car would be the wise choice – and you may still get a car with acceptable mileage for €2,000-€3,000, based on an average income.

3. The popular option: spend 20% of your income on a car

According to car site Edmund.com, 20% of your wage is their ‘rule of thumb.’ when it comes to spending on a car. This percentage has to include all of the expenses that come with a car as well – so take this into account when planning how long you have to budget/pay back your loan. 

That’s all great, but let’s say I have €7,000 to spend on my car, what do I look out for when spending my money?

In terms of what to know what to invest this money in, just make sure to go for a level up from basic and prioritise the following three things:

1. Car Mileage

At around 3 years old, or 30k-40k kilometres, this is the first major milestone in the lifetime of a car.  The second major milestone is 60-70k kilometres and is the time you may need to replace parts on a car, and the third is 100,000 kilometres. Check how many miles the car has done, and ascertain how much the car is at each stage. What mileage level you decide on will depend on how far you will drive the car on a weekly basis. You can check a car’s history on sites such as cartell.ie or motorcheck.ie.

2. Car Colour

If you’re hoping to resell the car, make sure it’s black, blue, silver or grey.

3. Manual gear box

Apparently, according to Ford, 95% of Irish people would prefer manual over automatic, so better for re-sale.

If you’ve decided on the amount you’d like to spend, and need a little assistance, we’d be more than happy to chat to help you figure out the best finance plan for you.

Loans are subject to approval. Terms & Conditions apply. Carrickmacross Credit Union is regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland.

Carrickmacross Credit Union Ltd. is delighted to announce that it has partnered with the Carrick Aces as its primary sponsor for the Carrick Aces Credit Union 5K & Family Friendly 2K Run which will take place on Sunday March 15th 2020.

Speaking about the new partnership, Marian McEnaney, CEO of Carrickmacross Credit Union Ltd. said “The Carrick Aces are a very highly regarded local organisation, with over 466 members it is the fastest growing Athletic Club in Monaghan and we are very happy to have teamed up to organise this exciting event, which all the family can get involved in”.

Martin McCahey, Chairperson of Carrick Aces also commented “We are delighted with this partnership with Carrickmacross Credit Union Ltd. Their ethos of social responsibility and community development is very much in line with our own core ethos here at Carrick Aces. This is the first time that we have included the 2K Family Run, and we are looking forward to seeing lots of new faces participating this year”.

The 2K Family Friendly race starts at 10am sharp, with the 5K race kicking off at 11am. Both races will start at the Carrick Aces grounds on Oriel Road. You can complete registration online at www.carrickaces.ie  or Pre-Registration takes place on Saturday 14^th March in the Credit Union from 10am – 4pm. Registration on the day will also be available from 9.15am.  

The Family Friendly Run is €5 entry and all runners will receive a medal.

For the 5K Run the entry cost is €15 and for this you will receive:
• A locally designed medal
• T Shirt (for the first 300 entrants)
• Chip timing
• Great Prizes
• Refreshments afterwards

For more information please see Carrick Aces or Carrickmacross Credit Union Facebook Page.

Carrickmacross Credit Union Ltd. is regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland. Reg. No Cu 141.

In recent years PCPs, or Personal Contract Plans, have become a popular way to finance a new car. Many dealerships can offer you a very attractive-sounding deal on the spot – affordable deposit, low monthly payments, trade in the car after 2-3 years… What could possibly go wrong?

Unfortunately, it’s not quite as simple as all that and there are a number of pitfalls to be aware of when entering into a PCP agreement – most of which can be avoided completely by taking out a car loan with Carrickmacross Credit Union Ltd instead.

Here are some reasons you should talk to us rather than enter into a PCP:

Ownership
A PCP is a kind of hire-purchase agreement, where you don’t actually own the car until you make the final payment. This means if you want to change cars or encounter difficulties during the term of the contract, you can’t sell the car without the agreement of the finance house/dealer.

With a car loan from Carrickmacross Credit Union Ltd you can drive it like you own, because you do!

Flexibility

Because PCP monthly payments are fixed over the term of the agreement, you can’t pay extra each month to finish up early and you will be charged a fee if you need to restructure the agreement in any way.

With us there are no penalties for paying off a loan early, so you can pay more than the minimum each month if you wish.

Balloon Payments
A PCP is broken into three parts – deposit, fixed monthly repayments and a large final payment, often called a balloon payment, that can be anything up to 50% of the value of the car. You won’t own the car outright until you pay off that final amount.

With a loan from us there are no nasty surprises left at the end of the term – your payments will stay the same throughout.

Mileage
As part of a PCP agreement, there is usually a restriction on how much mileage you put on the car. Going over the agreed maximum mileage can affect the final value of the car and end up costing you more money.

Here at Carrickmacross Credit Union Ltd we have no interest in how much driving you do in your own car.

Maintenance
PCP providers often insist you have the car serviced on a strict schedule by someone in the official dealer network. If you come to the end of your term and you’ve either missed a scheduled service or had it done anywhere other than one of their specified locations it could end up costing you a fortune.

Carrickmacross Credit Union Ltd just hope you drive safely and look after your car so you can get the most value out of it.

Negative Equity
When you buy a car it immediately begins to lose its value to depreciation, very quickly at first, but it does slow down. This is normal and with a credit union loan it isn’t an issue, because as depreciation slows down your payments catch up and it all balances out.

With a PCP, especially if you’ve paid a low deposit, you may never actually catch up with the car’s depreciation. This really only becomes a problem if you need to change cars or if your financial situation changes and you need to exit the PCP early, because even selling the car won’t be enough to cover what you owe the dealer.

Costs
PCPs are attractive because they consist of a relatively low deposit and low fixed repayments, which makes them seem very reasonable and manageable at the outset. However, you need to look at the total cost over the term – bearing in mind that the car isn’t even yours until the final payment is made – and it may work out more expensive than a car loan from us.

Community Based
Carrickmacross Credit Union Ltd is made up of people from YOUR local community, who all share a common bond – whether it’s where they live, the industry they work in or an association they belong to.
Saving with us contributes to the loan fund, which directly benefits other members and helps develop your community.

Not for profit
Carrickmacross Credit Union Ltd is run for the benefit of our members, not to profit from their needs.
Unlike commercial lenders, where profits go to third party investors, any surplus income generated by Carrickmacross Credit Union Ltd is returned to members as a dividend or else invested in improving and expanding the service.

Interest Rebate
Not only does Carrickmacross Credit Union Ltd offer fair and reasonable rates on personal finance, but we also offer a loan interest rebate at the end of the year – making a Carrickmacross Credit Union Ltd loan even more appealing!

If you’re planning on buying a new car, don’t get sucked into the first shiny-looking PCP offered by the dealership. Talk to the team at Carrickmacross Credit Union Ltd today about a flexible car loan that suits you.

Carrickmacross Credit Union Ltd is regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland. Reg. No CU141.