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While you may be ready to buy your first car, we have a few things that you need to consider before making that big purchase.
1. Try and save up as much as you can
According to Wheels24's 10 things first-time car buyers need to know, if you have just left university and started your first job the best thing to do for yourself is to avoid getting into debt. "You’re still young and the time will come where you can comfortably afford the repayments for an expensive house and car," states the article. And if you feel that you must get a car then go for a low budget car instead.
READ MORE: 5 tips for first time car buyers
2. There are a lot more costs involved than you might think
Aside from paying your monthly instalments you need to remember that you will still need to buy fuel, get car insurance and pay for car maintenance says Wheels24. While you may be able to afford your monthly car instalments ask yourself if you will be able to pay the additional costs as well.
3. Try to avoid balloon payments
According to Fin24 balloon payments are an "agreed inflated final payment of a loan that is paid in full at the end of the loan agreement." Balloon payments can be useful when buying a new car but they also mean that you will in debt for longer because they result in an increased interest cost.
READ MORE: Forget about loans - crowdfunding is the new stokvel
While it may sound great to pay a fixed lower amount over the years it won't be great to be in debt for that long.
We created an infographic on affordable cars on the market. We have ranked the cars from least expensive and added in a few specifications of each car such as top speed, fuel tank capacity as well as boot space.
Here's our list below:
WATCH: Readers share their first car memories
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