Earning NT$50,000 a Month and Still Taking a Car Loan? The Brutal Truth About Losing NT$5 Million in 10 Years
The salesman says the monthly payment of NT$25,000 is affordable, but once you add maintenance, parking, fuel, and insurance, your real monthly burn is NT$35,000 — and with only NT$15,000 left, how do you ever get ahead? This article uses the real 5-year account of a NT$1.5 million import car loan, the 10-year NT$5 million opportunity cost, and the gap between a 25-year-old and a 35-year-old's two choices to expose the underlying rules of how the poor buy cars versus how the rich buy cars. It also gives you four non-negotiable iron rules to help you judge whether you currently have any business touching a car loan at all. If you earn a paycheck in Taiwan and feel the showroom glow pulling you in, these numbers will change the way you think about that decision for the rest of your life.