Finance
FIN 1103
Week 5 Individual Work

Reducing Expenses to Buy a New Car and Considering Debt Consolidation

Assignment Instructions
To complete this assignment:

1. Answer all of the questions below in the space provided.
2. Reflect on the information presented in this week’s lesson and provide an insightful response to each question writing no more than two paragraphs.

Save and Submit to Dropbox
1. Save your work as a Microsoft Word 2010 (.docx) file that includes your name, course code, and title in the file name. For example: JaneSmith_FIN1103_Week5.docx.
2. To submit your assignment, go to the Dropbox and click "Submit Assignment."
3. Click on the drop-down menu to select the Week 5: Individual Work basket in the Dropbox.

Objective: Compare financial alternatives for major purchases
Locate the Financial Planning Exercises on pages 194-195 of your textbook.

Financial Planning Case 4: Reducing Expenses to Buy a New Car
Courtney Bennett recently graduated from college and accepted a position in Manhattan, Kansas, as an assistant librarian in the public library. Courtney has no debts, and her budget is shown in the first column (no debt) of Table 6-2 on page 173. She now faces the question of whether to trade in her old car for a new one requiring a monthly payment of $330. Taking the role of a good friend of Courtney, suggest how Courtney might cut back on her expenses so that she can afford the vehicle.
a. What areas might be cut back?

Areas in Courtney’s budget that might be cut back are entertainment, food, transportation expenses, utilities, gift/holidays, health club and clothing. Yes food is a necessity but like most of the areas I mentioned it is not a fixed cost; so there are always ways to cut down in that area; like not going out to eat for a while or getting a store member discount card at her local grocery store. For