How did you come to afford your raptor?

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isis

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Life is short and there is no guarantee you or they live to get to spend that 401k.

My Lieutenant also owns his own side business. Every day on and every day off he is busting his ass. Did everything possible for his kids. Wife comes down with cancer. It’s been rough but she will most likely beat it. He had a conversation with her one day about squirreling away all this money that neither may get to see. Shortly there after he bought a Lambo. The future is never guaranteed. You can always make more money. You can never make more time.
My mom died at 61 right before she retired. Her husband died at 63 right after he retired. This was a year after she died. I’ve been squirreling away for a while but turned 40 around the same time. I put the life insurances away in good investments and college funds for my young kids, because I had my own well funded retirement accounts, like 80% equity in my house and No car payments. So I spent some of their retirement money on my truck and an Africa Twin. Neither was new because I simply don’t roll like that but I figured they didn’t get to enjoy it so we would instead. Life is for the living.

I Also drive a grand total of 5k miles across my truck, my cadillac, and two motorcycles so buying depreciation resistant vehicles is part of the plan.
 
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GordoJay

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My mom died at 61 right before she retired. Her husband died at 63 right after he retired. This was a year after she died. I’ve been squirreling away for a while but turned 40 around the same time. I put the life insurances away in good investments and college funds for my young kids, because I had my own well funded retirement accounts, like 80% equity in my house and No car payments. So I spent some of their retirement money on my truck and an Africa Twin. Neither was new because I simply don’t roll like that but I figured they didn’t get to enjoy it so we would instead. Life is for the living.

My Dad passing away with a brand new car that he didn't get to drive much is what finally pushed me over the edge. I initially had heartburn about the price, but once I realized that even if I bought ten Raptors it would have no effect on our lifestyle, I went for it. I'm glad. It's really hard to break a lifetime habit of pinching pennies, even when it becomes silly.
 

isis

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My Dad passing away with a brand new car that he didn't get to drive much is what finally pushed me over the edge. I initially had heartburn about the price, but once I realized that even if I bought ten Raptors it would have no effect on our lifestyle, I went for it. I'm glad. It's really hard to break a lifetime habit of pinching pennies, even when it becomes silly.
I also shared it a bit. Bought my wife an MDX, gave my best friend 5k to pay off his truck and handed him the keys to the Lifted outback XT I had just finished building up. My brother and I bought my dad a nice used boxter off of BAT last father’s day. He was shocked.
 

TDBrown

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Business executive at a mid-sized multi-national. Standard story--B.S. Accounting, MBA, 30 years and five companies later, I now have responsibility for our companies outside the US (UK, India, Singapore, Australia). Still find the most pure joy not in any toy, but in our four kids, four kids-in-law, two grandkids, and assorted family we've "adopted" over the years. Not being funny here, but would trade the Raptor for any of them...after crying for a day or two.
 

dirtgod

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Slaved away 70-80hrs/week as a young lawyer (and single parent of a 2 yr old at the time) at a large regional law firm getting trial experience and making the partners rich. Ten yrs in I went on my own after I had built up my own clientele. Ate Ramen noodles, lived with my folks, drove a 1989 Ford Bronco I had for twelve years and 175k miles, and took no money for a couple years to pay off all the associated debt as I had a very bright kid and I was looking down the barrel of Ivy League tuition in short order. Fortunately, the risk paid off. I now have a physician son in San Fran who has no student loans thanks to me and now my firm buys me a new Raptor or whatever for a company car every few years. This is indeed a great country.
 

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