Cost of owning a car in NYC.

Hi guys,

Whats the total "extra" cost of owning a car in the city.

Whats the cost of parking per month? Are there any other costs?

Anyone know any ways to save on parking? Like park the car in queens or something?

Also is insurance more in the city than in say Long Island?

Thanx guys.

Vivek
Wednesday, January 14, 2004

Be sure to include parking tickets, which are common and expensive.

Sure, I know a great area in Brooklyn to park your car. The main problem is Alternate Side parking, and that all the neighborhoods with parking are so far from the city - 30 or 40 minutes by train. Plus eventually someone will report as abandoned if you don't move it.

Long Term parking... I don't know the cost, never did it. Insurance.. I forget, just liability or comprehensive?

New York City includes the boroughs, so a house in Brooklyn with a driveway will be different than a loft in SoHo where there's no parking anywhere ever.

www.MarkTAW.com
Wednesday, January 14, 2004

I'd say about five parking tickets a year, if your garage is far from your apt.  Otherwise none.  Assume $70 a ticket.

A far garage would cost exactly $200/month.  A near one close to $450 depending where you live.

That's it.  Those are the only "additional" costs to owning a car.

Michael H. Pryor (fogcreek)
Wednesday, January 14, 2004

Life is a little different here in Brooklyn, where you can park on the street and expect to get a ticket if you forget to move it to the other side several times a week.

www.MarkTAW.com
Wednesday, January 14, 2004

If you will be driving a car occassionally (not owning one) and need what is called "non-owner's" liability, be aware that it is pretty expensive because the inordinant amount of accident fraud in NYC drives the price up for everyone else. I pay about $850 a year for this. In other parts of the country, this type of insurance is about $250-450.

John Perkins
Saturday, January 17, 2004

If you only drive occasionally, what about that time share car. I forget what it's called.. zipcar? It sucks having to make it to the drop points, but they're common enough. If you just want it for weekend getaways or going to Ikea, it might make sense to do this.

www.MarkTAW.com
Monday, January 19, 2004

Actually zipcar seems to be more expensive than renting a car... its around $75 for a day... hmm actually I didnt think of insurance and gas. ... hmmm now that I think of it... it would probably be cheaper.

One problems is that the cars are small cars .... Minis and VW beetles?

Vivek
Wednesday, January 21, 2004

Dunno.. seems to me like zipcar isn't really that much cheaper.  I looked into it and I'm not convinced...

Michael H. Pryor (fogcreek)
Wednesday, January 21, 2004

i used to be a zipcar member in boston. it isn't cheaper than renting a car, if you add up daily rates.  it is far more convenient than going out to the airport or suburbs to rent a car, if you just need a car for a couple hours. it is useful if you don't want to own a car, but need a car for a few hours a week to buy groceries, etc. 

the company was conceived in cambridge, ma, and zipcar actually makes sense in cambridge. it is dense enough to make car ownership really annoying, but it isn't easy to just walk to the supermarket.

i can't imagine that zipcar would be useful in manhattan, where you can just walk downstairs to the market, and hail a cab at any given hour. 

Wednesday, January 21, 2004

I need a car for the summer, every weekend.  I wonder if I should just take over someone's lease for a couple of months from one of the lease swapping sites.  Of course, then I owe parking fees and insurance too... but renting just seems way more expensive ($100/day in manhattan, so $300 a weekend).

Michael H. Pryor (fogcreek)
Wednesday, January 21, 2004

What's a lease-swapping site? And what are some of the good ones?

Jeremy

JeremyNYC
Monday, January 26, 2004

In NYC you don't have to go to the airports or the suburbs to rent a car.  All the major car rental companies have several locations arround manhattan.

When I had a car in Brooklyn, I managed to get a ticket every week.  that added up to almost $200/mo.  Also got my car broken into a couple times because if I moved my car too late, the only available spots were in a desolate industrial area.

Monthly parking depends alot on what part of the city your in.  Aren't they close to $800/mo in the Upper East and West sides?  Maybe more like $300/mo in the burroughs, but the parking probably won't be all that close to where you live.

Sorry, I can't remember what my insurance cost. 

Life is better if you can live without the car.

Keith Wright
Monday, January 26, 2004

I live in Queens, and I pay $153 a month for full coverage insurance through GEICO for my  wife's '97 Civic.

We're lucky to have parking right behind our building, so that's not a problem, and the alternate side of the street thing in Queens is usually only once a week unless you're on a major street.

Most of the garages in Manhattan seem to charge about $50 a day for parking, or $350 a month if you pay the entire month in advance.

rg

Rob Graham
Monday, January 26, 2004

The total cost of owning a car in NYC is crazy. Parking in the UES is anywhere from $350 (for a small car) to over $700 for a SUV.

Parking on the street is a pain in that you have to move it (at least on the UES) for street cleaning 2x a week.

Tickets? Don't get me started. In manhatten expect many. They are very expensive now ~110.00 usually.

Gas is expensive in the city, currently 2.05 / gal (premium).

Jon Webster
Thursday, February 19, 2004

When Homer Simpson went to NYC, he got mugged, his car got booted, and nobody would let him pee anywhere, so he eventually had to relieve himself in a mailbox.  Based on Homer's experience, I wouldn't go to NYC.

Chris
Saturday, February 21, 2004

My one visit to Manhattan, I used a phone on a subway platform. Someone had blown their nose on the handset of the first phone I tried. Gotta love that Big Apple.

Got Kleenex?
Monday, March 29, 2004

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