Owning a Car Costs More in Georgia: Study
Owning a car isn’t cheap anywhere, but it’s steeper in Georgia than any other state.
A new study by Bankrate.com examined the average costs of repairs, taxes, gas and insurance to find that Georgians pay an average for $4,233 each year to stay on the road. People in Oregon pay just over $2,200; the least of any state.
California and Wyoming took the number two and three spots with owners paying $3,966 and $3,938 respectively.
According to the study, those costs are driven primarily by taxes and fees. Repair costs state-per-state are shown to be relatively similar at $353 spent per year on average.
Georgia charged the most in taxes and fees. State residents gave just over $1,900 back to Uncle Sam, followed by about $1,800 in California. People in New York actually spent the least on gas.
But it’s also worth noting that a study by AAA showed suggests drivers spend much more than the Bankrate study shows. Last April, the group said average motorists spend about $9,100 to stay on the road, or roughly 61 cents per mile. Not surprisingly, that data also showed that SUVs are significantly more costly at about 77 cents per mile or $11,600 per year. AAA’s data is based on drivers covering 15,000 miles per year and accounts for gas, tires, insurance and repairs.
Photo courtesy of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Luke is an energetic automotive journalist who spends his time covering industry news and crawling the internet for the latest breaking story. When he isn't in the office, Luke can be found obsessively browsing used car listings, drinking scotch at his favorite bar and dreaming of what to drive next, though the list grows a lot faster than his bank account. He's always on <A title="@lukevandezande on Twitter" href="http://twitter.com/lukevandezande">Twitter</A> looking for a good car conversation. Find Luke on <A title="@lukevandezande on Twitter" href="http://twitter.com/lukevandezande">Twitter</A> and <A title="Luke on Google+" href="http://plus.google.com/112531385961538774338?rel=author">Google+</A>.
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bankrate is either mistaken or pushing an agenda (gotta be the latter). The whole free world knows the most expensive state for car ownership is NJ. Followed by California and/or NY. Parking is a premium so sometimes; you can buy just a parking spot for thousands of dollars.