What are your next major purchases?

Moliere · Post by **Moliere** » Thu May 19, 2016 5:15 pm

car battery

Thanks Obama! Err, I mean, thanks desert heat for burning out another battery.

Jag · Post by **Jag** » Thu May 19, 2016 6:05 pm

Bought an Amazon Echo! Not sure it was major, but I didn't see the impulse purchase thread

Post by **ImLawBoy** » Thu May 19, 2016 10:55 pm

Over $100? Well, we'll go grocery shopping on Saturday or Sunday.

Outside of regular expenses, though (I'm not counting car payments or mortgage, obviously), we'll be paying for my son's sit-to-stand frame within the next few weeks. We've already paid the first $2,400 on it, and we'll owe the second $2,400 on delivery. (Thanks, insurance, for declining to pay for that even after the full appeals process!)

We're getting the house ready to sell, so we'll probably need:
- New granite counter tops and a sink
- Fix roof
- Fix 2 bathrooms
- Replace bad boards and then power wash and stain decks
- Landscaping
- Carpet in 3 bedrooms

I guess if we sell the house we'll probably need to buy a new one.

At some point I should get new shoes and some dress shirts.

Default · Post by **Default** » Thu May 19, 2016 10:59 pm

Weeeeeeelllll, Ahm jest an ole country lawyah, but I recken Ahm jest as good as y'all city slickahs with yo fancy bro-gans...

Post by **ImLawBoy** » Thu May 19, 2016 11:05 pm

Default wrote:Weeeeeeelllll, Ahm jest an ole country lawyah, but I recken Ahm jest as good as y'all city slickahs with yo fancy bro-gans...

Hey, a $300 pair of dress shoes will typically last me 3-5 years, while a $70-80 pair from Famous Footwear or Kohl's will be lucky to last me a year. The financials may end up being a wash, but the more expensive shoes are more comfortable, look nicer, and require me to go shoe shopping less frequently.

Isgrimnur · Post by **Isgrimnur** » Thu May 19, 2016 11:09 pm

Got a brand recommendation? I need a new pair. The dog chewed up the ones from my wedding 1.5 year ago, and they have no tread left, anyway.

Post by **ImLawBoy** » Thu May 19, 2016 11:18 pm

I like To Boot New York (I typically get them at Nordstrom), but it's been a while since I looked at styles/pricing. I've also got a pair of Bruno Magli loafers (yes, the brand the OJ said he hated, but wore on MNF) that are crazy comfortable (RIP to the baby cow who gave his skin for them). I wear dress shoes to work every day, and I walk a decent distance in them daily to get to the train so I wear them kind of hard. "They" say that you should have at least 2 pair of dress shoes so that you can alternate days. Cedar shoe trees also helps to extend the life of dress shoes (and prevent them from getting too stinky).

TheMix · Post by **TheMix** » Thu May 19, 2016 11:19 pm

My brother was a big fan of Johnston and Murphy. So that's what I mostly have. I just accepted that he'd done some research. I've found that if you check Dillard's frequently, that you can often get them for 1/2 price.

Zarathud · Post by **Zarathud** » Fri May 20, 2016 12:58 am

Personal: Origins and GenCon

Work-related: Two new suits, suspenders and dress shoes. While I loved my Mephistos that lasted 4 years, I'll probably get another pair of Eccos that will last just over a year because the clothes budget is busted.

House-related: Replace all the plumbing and completely renovate 2 bathrooms. I have the money set aside for the expected work, but it's going to be incredibly difficult to live through and there's a risk of additional repairs.

Health-related: The oldest daughter's insulin pump is now out of warranty, and acting up. That's $800. Plus insulin is $162 per vial, and that adds up quickly with two insulin-dependent kids.

Moliere · Post by **Moliere** » Fri May 20, 2016 12:59 am

Isgrimnur wrote:Got a brand recommendation? I need a new pair. The dog chewed up the ones from my wedding 1.5 year ago, and they have no tread left, anyway.

Ecco. Super comfortable.

gbasden · Post by **gbasden** » Fri May 20, 2016 2:38 am

Zarathud wrote:
Work-related: Two new suits, suspenders and dress shoes. While I loved my Mephistos that lasted 4 years, I'll probably get another pair of Eccos that will last just over a year because the clothes budget is busted.

I'm going on year 4 with my ~$200 Eccos. I do alternate with a pair of Mephistos, but I actually prefer the Eccos, surprisingly enough.

I do agree that more expensive shoes seem to last a lot longer for me, and are more comfortable to boot. Kind of like my desk chair - better to spend $600 on an Aeron that's lasted me 14 years than $100 on a task chair from an office supply store that will be lucky to make 2 years.

Jeff V · Post by **Jeff V** » Fri May 20, 2016 7:55 am

I've used the same shoe combo years. My black shoes are Florsheim, same model for at least the past 30 years. They would last longer than they do if I put more effort into caring for it (one thing I miss about not working downtown is the convenience of dropping off shoes to get professionally shined). Usually, they need to be replaced after winter because of salt stains, but after this virtually snow-free winter, my current pair (bought 15 months ago for mom's funeral). Usually I can get them for about $80 a pair. For brown shoes, I've been using Rockports. They have more frequent churn with models, but the current pair I have is quite resilient; after nearly 2 years still looks new with no maintenance and frequent use.

tru1cy · Post by **tru1cy** » Fri May 20, 2016 8:07 am

Clothes... I need to replace my wardrobe. I'm far from a trendsetter as I can wear the same pair of jeans till they become extremely worn. So it's that time that I replace my old clothes with new stuff. This will probably end up being $400 - $500 affair

Isgrimnur · Post by **Isgrimnur** » Fri May 20, 2016 8:08 am

gbasden wrote: Kind of like my desk chair - better to spend $600 on an Aeron that's lasted me 14 years than $100 on a task chair from an office supply store that will be lucky to make 2 years.

That's why you spring for the warranty plan. I haven't paid full price for an office chair in over a decade. When the mounts or cylinder breaks, Staples sends me a gift card, I throw a little extra money at it to upgrade, get a better chair, and start the process all over again.

mori · Post by **mori** » Fri May 20, 2016 9:20 am

Furniture- Since I moved into my house back in March, I have no furniture (I have a mattress/box spring, and desk/chair and that is pretty much it). Being a bachelor that is not a big deal and probably could live like this forever. But I would like to bring a lady friend over occasionally and would like to not look like a savage. My family wants me take the furniture out of the farmhouse but there is not anything there that I really want. Have to order supplies so I can build my bed, buy a dining room set or a moveable island, a couch, recliner, and a big TV for the living area but I have to frame in the old TV inset first. So much to do and I have not done anything in the last 6 weeks except for putting up shelves in the garage.

Jeff V · Post by **Jeff V** » Fri May 20, 2016 9:44 am

Carpet_pissr wrote:Wait, so both LawBeef and JeffV are expecting currently, or did I misread something? If so, congrats to you both!

I've mentioned it before, this was the first I heard of Lawbeef though (congrats! Do you know which model yet?)

Ours is due in September, conveniently ahead my company's split into 3. I have to take time off...but I have to be very involved with work as the number of locations I'm responsible for will jump from 9 to 34. I have a feeling I'll be spending every moment that my wife is sleeping on the VPN.

Jeff V · Post by **Jeff V** » Fri May 20, 2016 9:47 am

tru1cy wrote:Clothes... I need to replace my wardrobe. I'm far from a trendsetter as I can wear the same pair of jeans till they become extremely worn. So it's that time that I replace my old clothes with new stuff. This will probably end up being $400 - $500 affair

Same here, wife is constantly complaining how old my clothes are. Some that seem to me to be quite recent upon further reflection might be 5-10 years old! And things I consider positively new (that she bought for me in the last year or two) she even declares is too old.

I just think buying myself clothes is too self-indulgent given other more necessary expenses.

Madmarcus · Post by **Madmarcus** » Sat May 21, 2016 10:55 pm

I might have spoken too soon. There is an acetone like smell in our garage which might indicate a coolant leak. We have both an old fridge and a freezer in the garage.

em2nought · Post by **em2nought** » Sun May 22, 2016 12:40 am

Sportsman's Guide on the net is great for boots or shoes. Got a really nice pair of Justin lace up boots for $69 I think, made in USA too. Most boots they carry last at least three times longer than anything I can buy locally. Maybe Tractor Supply could compete quality wise, but not price wise.

I'm jonesing for a 1903A3, but 30.06 is kinda pricey.

LawBeefaroni · Post by **LawBeefaroni** » Sun May 22, 2016 6:52 am

gbasden wrote:
Zarathud wrote:
Work-related: Two new suits, suspenders and dress shoes. While I loved my Mephistos that lasted 4 years, I'll probably get another pair of Eccos that will last just over a year because the clothes budget is busted.

I'm going on year 4 with my ~$200 Eccos. I do alternate with a pair of Mephistos, but I actually prefer the Eccos, surprisingly enough.

Ecco is in the sweet spot for me. Nice but not too expensive, very comfortable, and last a long time. When I used to wear them all day, they'd go a year easy. Now that I'm in the habit of changing at work, the shoes stay there and look brand new after a year and are on track to last indefinitely. Likewise the pair I have at home for when I need something kind of formal. I usually try DSW first. Last time I got a $150 gift card on Raise for ~$100, paid for the shoes with it, and still had a few bucks left. Of course now Raise is popular, the 25% discount on DSW is hard to find.

EvilHomer3k · Post by **EvilHomer3k** » Sun May 22, 2016 9:57 am

ImLawBoy wrote:Over $100? Well, we'll go grocery shopping on Saturday or Sunday.

Yeah, I went last night and spent $80 for what was essentially one meal. Now, about half of that was for beer and wine but with three boys we easily spend a few hundred a week. It's pretty easy for us to spend $500 a month on groceries and half the trips come out to $100+.

We have no major purchases coming up other than vacation. There are some things I'm looking for ( antique secretary hutch that if I find at a decent price I'll buy) but we made our purchases for the summer already. We put in new carpet in the basement a few weeks ago. I fixed our old treadmill but we'll be getting a new one within the year. I'll also replace the countertops in the kitchen after my wife burned them with a candle.

LawBeefaroni · Post by **LawBeefaroni** » Sun May 22, 2016 11:47 am

City sticker: $141 for 19 months (19 months?).

For those not familiar, if you live in Chicago, the city sticker allows you to drive and park in the city without getting a $250 ticket for not having a city sticker.

Jaymann · Post by **Jaymann** » Sun May 22, 2016 12:13 pm

Tesla Model 3.

Isgrimnur · Post by **Isgrimnur** » Sun May 22, 2016 1:40 pm

LawBeefaroni wrote:City sticker: $141 for 19 months (19 months?).

For those not familiar, if you live in Chicago, the city sticker allows you to drive and park in the city without getting a $250 ticket for not having a city sticker.

One more reason I have no desire to live there.

geezer · Post by **geezer** » Sun May 22, 2016 4:47 pm

LawBeefaroni wrote:
gbasden wrote:
Zarathud wrote:
Work-related: Two new suits, suspenders and dress shoes. While I loved my Mephistos that lasted 4 years, I'll probably get another pair of Eccos that will last just over a year because the clothes budget is busted.

I'm going on year 4 with my ~$200 Eccos. I do alternate with a pair of Mephistos, but I actually prefer the Eccos, surprisingly enough.
Ecco is in the sweet spot for me. Nice but not too expensive, very comfortable, and last a long time. When I used to wear them all day, they'd go a year easy. Now that I'm in the habit of changing at work, the shoes stay there and look brand new after a year and are on track to last indefinitely. Likewise the pair I have at home for when I need something kind of formal. I usually try DSW first. Last time I got a $150 gift card on Raise for ~$100, paid for the shoes with it, and still had a few bucks left. Of course now Raise is popular, the 25% discount on DSW is hard to find.

Allen Edmonds. Great shoes.

Octavious · Post by **Octavious** » Sun May 22, 2016 9:27 pm

Bought a new center speaker. I rearranged my receiver so that I could put my center in the middle shelf. I then realized I measured wrong and it doesn't fit.

It's 10 years old and f'n huge so time to grab something that will actually fit.

MHS · Post by **MHS** » Mon May 23, 2016 10:02 am

Unfortunately, probably a new car. I really don't want a new car but my (paid off) Mini has now had 2 car repairs costing around $1800 in the last 4 months and this model and year are known for falling apart once the major repairs start. I don't want to sink more money into it.

Kraken · Post by **Kraken** » Mon May 23, 2016 11:55 am

MHS wrote:Unfortunately, probably a new car. I really don't want a new car but my (paid off) Mini has now had 2 car repairs costing around $1800 in the last 4 months and this model and year are known for falling apart once the major repairs start. I don't want to sink more money into it.

In my "Fun Car Suggestions" thread I was warned off the Mini for exactly this reason. It's a pity because the Mini checks a lot of my "want" boxes and should have been at the top of my list, but after 12 trouble-free years with the Miata my tolerance for mechanical defects is near zero.

How many miles did you get before it turned on you? It might make a difference if its shortcomings are mileage-related rather than age-related since I drive so little (41k miles on my car in 12 years).

Post by **ImLawBoy** » Mon May 23, 2016 12:55 pm

Turns out my next $100+ purchase (non-groceries division) is one of my son's medications. Onfi is brand name (no generic available), and on the non-preferred list, so insurance only covers 50% of the cost, up to $800 for a 3 month supply. It's ridiculously expensive (over $4000), so we're going to pay the $800. The good news is that will leave less than $800 remaining on our out-of-pocket maximum for the year!

geezer · Post by **geezer** » Mon May 23, 2016 1:24 pm

Kraken wrote:
MHS wrote:Unfortunately, probably a new car. I really don't want a new car but my (paid off) Mini has now had 2 car repairs costing around $1800 in the last 4 months and this model and year are known for falling apart once the major repairs start. I don't want to sink more money into it.
In my "Fun Car Suggestions" thread I was warned off the Mini for exactly this reason. It's a pity because the Mini checks a lot of my "want" boxes and should have been at the top of my list, but after 12 trouble-free years with the Miata my tolerance for mechanical defects is near zero.

How many miles did you get before it turned on you? It might make a difference if its shortcomings are mileage-related rather than age-related since I drive so little (41k miles on my car in 12 years).

Mini is all my wife will drive. No joke - I've offered to buy her a Porsche and a Tesla in the last 3 years, but it's keep her old Mini or buy a new Mini and she refuses to drive anything else. Honestly they've been pretty good cars, or at least as good as contemporary bmw/porsche/mb cars, meaning electrical gremlins and such are, unfortunately, not unusual and are expensive when out of warranty.

That said, hers (a 14 cooper S) is really fun to drive and has a lot to recommend about it. For a fun, relatively inexpensive car (except remember that repair costs are on par with luxury brands) it's a really neat little ride.

$iljanus · Post by **$iljanus** » Mon May 23, 2016 1:38 pm

Since a new house seems out of the question right now due to the overheated real estate market around here we'll bide our time, save cash and in the interim I'm getting one of those new Nvidia 1070 video cards which are at a nice price point for the performance it supposedly will deliver while my wife will get an iMac to replace her Mac Air.

stessier · Post by **stessier** » Mon May 23, 2016 2:51 pm

Apparently we have to pay for books for my kids' school for next year. $500 due Friday. I'm a wild man.

MHS · Post by **MHS** » Mon May 23, 2016 2:54 pm

Kraken wrote:
MHS wrote:Unfortunately, probably a new car. I really don't want a new car but my (paid off) Mini has now had 2 car repairs costing around $1800 in the last 4 months and this model and year are known for falling apart once the major repairs start. I don't want to sink more money into it.
In my "Fun Car Suggestions" thread I was warned off the Mini for exactly this reason. It's a pity because the Mini checks a lot of my "want" boxes and should have been at the top of my list, but after 12 trouble-free years with the Miata my tolerance for mechanical defects is near zero.

How many miles did you get before it turned on you? It might make a difference if its shortcomings are mileage-related rather than age-related since I drive so little (41k miles on my car in 12 years).

It only has 57,000 miles on it and I've owned it 6 years. I've already replaced the water pump (!!!) and now have a thermostat issue that's looking to run close to a grand. That stuff and the tires needing to be replaced about every 8 months have really turned me off of Minis. Neal loves his. Mini owners tend to be extremely loyal, almost rabidly so, but as I said to the mechanic, I'm pretty sure that's an emotional response, not a logical one. They are super fun to drive, inexpensive to buy cars, but the BMW engine parts just rack up the cost on repairs once they start needing them. I'm going to lease something cheap for 3 years until I'm debt-free and then buy a reliable Lexus.

The Meal · Post by **The Meal** » Mon May 23, 2016 4:24 pm

geezer wrote:
Kraken wrote:
MHS wrote: my (paid off) Mini has now had 2 car repairs costing around $1800 in the last 4 months and this model and year are known for falling apart once the major repairs start. I don't want to sink more money into it.
In my "Fun Car Suggestions" thread I was warned off the Mini for exactly this reason. It's a pity because the Mini checks a lot of my "want" boxes and should have been at the top of my list, but after 12 trouble-free years with the Miata my tolerance for mechanical defects is near zero.
Mini is all my wife will drive. No joke - I've offered to buy her a Porsche and a Tesla in the last 3 years, but it's keep her old Mini or buy a new Mini and she refuses to drive anything else. Honestly they've been pretty good cars, or at least as good as contemporary bmw/porsche/mb cars, meaning electrical gremlins and such are, unfortunately, not unusual and are expensive when out of warranty.

That said, hers (a 14 cooper S) is really fun to drive and has a lot to recommend about it. For a fun, relatively inexpensive car (except remember that repair costs are on par with luxury brands) it's a really neat little ride.

MHS wrote:Neal loves his. Mini owners tend to be extremely loyal, almost rabidly so, but as I said to the mechanic, I'm pretty sure that's an emotional response, not a logical one. They are super fun to drive, inexpensive to buy cars, but the BMW engine parts just rack up the cost on repairs once they start needing them.

My '07 turned into a mechanical nightmare (MHS's '10 seems on the verge). Enough so that I leased the '15 (which is far afield of my preferred finance method). MHS is correct that I'm a big fan, and both she and geezer are correct about how much fun they are from behind the wheel. 2014 was the first model year where they converted over to a scaled-down version of a tried-and-true BMW engine, exactly for these reliability reasons. TBD whether or not this will prove to be the case (enough so that I wasn't about to rave about my car in a thread which clearly rated reliability as a known quantity).

MHS · Post by **MHS** » Tue May 24, 2016 4:18 pm

MHS wrote:Unfortunately, probably a new car. I really don't want a new car but my (paid off) Mini has now had 2 car repairs costing around $1800 in the last 4 months and this model and year are known for falling apart once the major repairs start. I don't want to sink more money into it.

So, I did end up trading my Mini in for a Hyundai Veloster lease. With my trade-in, the lease will end up costing me $72 for the 36 month term; my payments are $127 per month for 36 months after putting $2000 down (the $2000 coming from the Mini trade-in). The taxes and fees were also covered by the Mini trade-in, and they are sending me a check for $4500 for the rest of the trade-in value. I feel like I got a decent deal and now I don't have to drop the $2200 the Mini would have cost me this month for thermostat repair and new tires. Yay?

LawBeefaroni · Post by **LawBeefaroni** » Tue May 24, 2016 4:37 pm

MHS wrote:
MHS wrote:Unfortunately, probably a new car. I really don't want a new car but my (paid off) Mini has now had 2 car repairs costing around $1800 in the last 4 months and this model and year are known for falling apart once the major repairs start. I don't want to sink more money into it.
So, I did end up trading my Mini in for a Hyundai Veloster lease. With my trade-in, the lease will end up costing me $72 for the 36 month term; my payments are $127 per month for 36 months after putting $2000 down (the $2000 coming from the Mini trade-in). The taxes and fees were also covered by the Mini trade-in, and they are sending me a check for $4500 for the rest of the trade-in value. I feel like I got a decent deal and now I don't have to drop the $2200 the Mini would have cost me this month for thermostat repair and new tires. Yay?

Sound like a good deal.

Any reason you didn't just tell them to apply the check to the lease, give them $72 and say "see you in 3 years!"?

MHS · Post by **MHS** » Tue May 24, 2016 5:01 pm

LawBeefaroni wrote:
MHS wrote:
MHS wrote:Unfortunately, probably a new car. I really don't want a new car but my (paid off) Mini has now had 2 car repairs costing around $1800 in the last 4 months and this model and year are known for falling apart once the major repairs start. I don't want to sink more money into it.
So, I did end up trading my Mini in for a Hyundai Veloster lease. With my trade-in, the lease will end up costing me $72 for the 36 month term; my payments are $127 per month for 36 months after putting $2000 down (the $2000 coming from the Mini trade-in). The taxes and fees were also covered by the Mini trade-in, and they are sending me a check for $4500 for the rest of the trade-in value. I feel like I got a decent deal and now I don't have to drop the $2200 the Mini would have cost me this month for thermostat repair and new tires. Yay?
Sound like a good deal.

Any reason you didn't just tell them to apply the check to the lease, give them $72 and say "see you in 3 years!"?

I thought about it, but there was no finance charge for financing it, so I'd rather have the money in hand now so I can use it now since there's no downside to having a non-interest payment.

gbasden · Post by **gbasden** » Tue May 24, 2016 5:03 pm

MHS wrote: So, I did end up trading my Mini in for a Hyundai Veloster lease.

I'll be interested in finding out what you think about that vehicle after you've had it for a bit. It's one I'm interested in as well.

MHS · Post by **MHS** » Tue May 24, 2016 5:26 pm

gbasden wrote:
MHS wrote: So, I did end up trading my Mini in for a Hyundai Veloster lease.
I'll be interested in finding out what you think about that vehicle after you've had it for a bit. It's one I'm interested in as well.

I'll be sure to let you know!

Scuzz · Post by **Scuzz** » Tue May 24, 2016 5:45 pm

LawBeefaroni wrote:City sticker: $141 for 19 months (19 months?).

For those not familiar, if you live in Chicago, the city sticker allows you to drive and park in the city without getting a $250 ticket for not having a city sticker.

What about tourists? Or if you have to come into town for some special reason?