Transportation:
Assume that you will be looking to buy a car. You can walk, bike, or take
the bus. However, you may want a car for convenience and pleasure so
we’ll look at a couple of different options.
Cars, new or used, have a monthly cost:
Look around at buying or leasing a new car.
Complete some research and provide the following information about a car you selected:
 Make:
 Model:
 Year:
 Cost:
 Where is it being offered?
Using Edmunds.com Auto Calculator, or another of your choice, provide the following
information.
Assuming that you will need to finance 60% of the car, or if you decide to lease:
How much you would finance
Your expected Loan Rate
Number of years you would finance
Monthly Cost of Car Loan
Now assume that you would have to finance 100% of the car:
How much you would finance
Your expected Loan Rate
Number of years you would finance
Monthly Cost of Car Loan
Using the Edmunds.com site figure out the regular vehicle maintenance:
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List the types of regular maintenance on the vehicle you chose. If your vehicle is not
listed, select a vehicle that is similar in size, style and years.
Total Cost of maintenance
Assuming that regular maintenance would need to be done at least every 3 months, what
would be your monthly total
Gas is another expense with a vehicle
Number of miles (job and personal) that you
intend to drive each month
Current price of gas (do a web search, there are
lots of places that list current gas prices)
Total cost of gas each month
Finally there’s insurance
Check around to a variety of places and find out how much it would be to insure the vehicle you
selected:
Types of insurance you would use on your vehicle (list):
Monthly cost to insure vehicle:
So finally:
Monthly cost of the car loan you decided to use
Monthly cost of maintenance
Monthly cost of gas
Monthly cost of insurance
Total monthly expense of car
Transportation Monthly Budget Entry:
Select one of the following options for your monthly budget entry on Page 1:
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If you choose not to have a car, then you must budget $100 per month to cover the cost of
a bus pass, cab rides, etc.
If you already have a car, then you must still put in the cost of regular maintenance, gas
and insurance.
Or you can decide on a loan option.
Obtaining a Loan to Furnish Your Apartment
Assume that you must acquire appliances and furniture to furnish your apartment. You will
obtain a loan for the total amount of money needed to furnish your apartment. Below is a list of
items needed to furnish your apartment. For this assignment, assume that you do not already
own any of the items listed.
Refrigerator (if your apartment does not include appliances)
Stove (if your apartment does not include appliances)
Television
DVD player
Stereo
Microwave
Bed
Dresser
Kitchen Table and Chairs
Couch and Chair
Dishes
Cutlery
Pots and Pans (your choice)
Two sets of towels (you may add more)
One set of sheets (you may add more)
How much of a loan do you require? You must find the price for each of the items listed above.
These items can be found in the classified section of the newspaper, in the penny saver, in flyers
from retail stores, or on the Internet.
You must scan in each advertisement or else give a link to the online ad with the price of each
item. Don’t forget to calculate the taxes for new items which is currently about 7.5% in Fort
Collins. Be sure to clearly indicate the price of each item, and the total amount of money that
you need to purchase all of the items, which will be your Loan Amount.
Loan Amount =
___________________
Monthly Loan Repayment = ___________________
(assume you will be receiving a bank loan from The Loyal Bank of Colorado at a rate of
7%/year amortized over 2 years.)
Note: There are many ways that you can find out what your monthly payment would be on a
loan. One of the better ones is at Bankrate.com, or you may find your own:
Include the Monthly Loan Repayment amount in your monthly budget (Page 1).
Now that you’ve had a pretty through budgeting experience, it’s time to write about what you’ve
learned:
 Do you think you could live at this salary?
 What would you do differently?
 What are some things that could impact your salary?
 What are some things that could impact your budget?