<prompt> Human: I am torn between three scenarios and I am looking for PFs advice on what to do. My VW is eligible for a buy-back from VW as part of the diesel scandal. I owe 7k on the car loan 3.7 and they will give me 30k minus the loan balance when I turn in the car to them. So, I would walk away with 23k, but the next used car I will get is about 20k. The second part of this is that I am saving for a down payment on a house and this would be an incredible bump to put toward that savings pot. Should I: 1 Keep the VW and ride it out the the end of the buy-back period next summer; 2 Sell back the VW and buy a used car straight-out, or 3 Sell back the VW, get a used car on a loan, and save the cash for a house down payment? Thanks,  <response>: Im not sure what youre asking. You want to sell back the car in any event, probably later if you get the same guaranteed price for it meaning you dont have any depreciation on it while you keep it, since that seems like way more than the car is actually worth. But that does depend a bit on your monthly payment, since that would also stop when you sell back the car. Your payments would mostly be going to reducing your loan balance in any event, so you have close to zero cost for this car after you take that into account. At that point you can decide what you want to do about the replacement car. If you wanted to maximize the benefit for the house down payment, you wouldnt buy a 20K used car, but something less expensive. 