While a customer considering making a vehicle purchase may know how much of their monthly budget they can put towards a vehicle, making the calculations about loans, insurance and maintenance of a used car in New York could be difficult without a lot of scratch paper.

Edmunds.com offers used car reviews and pricing estimates, and says that a new service may limit some of the math required to go from a vehicle’s purchase cost to monthly expenses with a new affordability calculator based on the visitor’s zip code and desired monthly payment.

The application works backwards from there, using Edmunds’ estimate of used car values and maintenance costs to come up with a list of cars that could fit a potential buyer’s budget.

While basing costs of ownership on a monthly basis may help narrow down choices, one consumer advocate says it shouldn’t be the sole rationale in buying a car.

“Car-shoppers should be aware of their desired monthly payment, but not actually focus on it during negotiation,” said Philip Reed, Edmunds.com senior consumer advice editor. “Thinking of a vehicle purchase in terms of the ideal monthly payment can hide the bigger picture, and you never want to lose sight of the bigger picture when making a major purchase.”

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