How many miles do you drive in an average year?

[Smash255]

When I was working in Manhattan it was less than 5,000.  Bought a new car in Mid August of last year have approx 7,500 miles on it now.

[Linus Van Pelt]

I think I will be under 5,000 even with a summer drive to Ontario and back, though I'm not totally sure. Public transit in Madison is adequate if you have a typical rush hour commute (which I do) but sporadic otherwise, so it's handy to have a car for some weekend errands and the like, but I only drive to work a handful of times a year.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

Probably around 10k, I voted for the third option to be safe.

[morgieb]

Don't have a licence, so 0.

I live in the city, not the suburbs anyway, so meh.

[Fuzzybigfoot]

Zero, because I'm too cool for cars. 

[opebo]

So 15 units, all by yourself? Do you feel like it's been a good investment?

I've no doubt Torie's income from those 15 is greater than my father's was from his 80+ units.

[muon2]

I drive 30-40K a year and public transit is not really an option for my commutes, though I use it when I can. However, the hybrid I bought last year will pay for itself rather quickly.

[Grumpier Than Uncle Joe]

I drive 30-40K a year and public transit is not really an option for my commutes, though I use it when I can. However, the hybrid I bought last year will pay for itself rather quickly.

I remember fondly muon2 veering quite a way out of the straight route home to stop by the Burgh suburbs for a cup coffee with me.........you are man who doesn't mind driving, I'll give you that

[Torie]

So 15 units, all by yourself? Do you feel like it's been a good investment?

I've no doubt Torie's income from those 15 is greater than my father's was from his 80+ units.

They were that bad eh, opebo?  Sorry about that.

Yes, bgwah, real estate "empires" can be a good investment if you hold them long term, preferably for life, and they are located in hoods that have a long term potential to hold their own or even better, gentrify. They are sort of like holding a long term TIP, with a two or three  percent higher annualized rate of return and much more favorable tax treatment (in particular the depreciation thing), but it involves considerable work, it's illiquid, and has high transaction costs to buy and sell. It's best if you just love architecture and landscaping and decorating, and construction projects and so forth for its own sake. Then you get some psychic income to boot.

Oh, and avoid over leveraging. It's just too risky. Using savings to pay down mortgages is itself quite a good investment actually (unless you can get one of those government subsidized long term 30 year fixed interest rate mortgages (for income property available only up to 4 unit properties) in peculiar interest rate environments like now, where interest rates are rock bottom because lending is way down, and the government is flooding the market with currency to replace that destroyed by the truncation of fractionalized banking).

[Tetro Kornbluth]

0. That is also the amount of miles I have driven throughout my entire life.

[Franzl]

0. That is also the amount of miles I have driven throughout my entire life.

Good for you. But it's almost impossible for anyone who has spent considerable time in America outside of large cities. Even in my little village in Germany, it would be relatively uncomfortable without a car.

[opebo]

0. That is also the amount of miles I have driven throughout my entire life.

Good for you. But it's almost impossible for anyone who has spent considerable time in America outside of large cities. Even in my little village in Germany, it would be relatively uncomfortable without a car.

Presumably he has been driven about by a chauffeur, no?

[Grumpier Than Uncle Joe]

0. That is also the amount of miles I have driven throughout my entire life.

Good for you. But it's almost impossible for anyone who has spent considerable time in America outside of large cities. Even in my little village in Germany, it would be relatively uncomfortable without a car.

Presumably he has been driven about by a chauffeur, no?

Gully or Torie? 

[Tetro Kornbluth]

0. That is also the amount of miles I have driven throughout my entire life.

Good for you. But it's almost impossible for anyone who has spent considerable time in America outside of large cities. Even in my little village in Germany, it would be relatively uncomfortable without a car.

I know (it is the same in most parts of Ireland actually). I just felt like mentioning that... for, you know, life points or something.