I'd hold out for more than that. I've heard they have tens of millions in oil money they are trying to transfer out of the country all the time.
How safe is the deposit?
- Thread starter CuriousSunbird
- Start date
ModelNforNerd
Active Member
cpa
Active Member
Or, you could look at it like this: Our $1,000 deposits are receivables on our personal books. Tesla has taken our money in good faith so that we can reserve a Model 3. This deposit, or receivable if you prefer, is payable to us upon demand (cancellation of our reservation.)
When our receivable is determined to be worthless by the courts because Tesla is out of business, this becomes a non-business bad debt. Non-business bad debts are treated as short-term capital losses for income tax purposes.
So, there is that.
When our receivable is determined to be worthless by the courts because Tesla is out of business, this becomes a non-business bad debt. Non-business bad debts are treated as short-term capital losses for income tax purposes.
So, there is that.
Wired him money?! How last century, I just gave him bank info so he could deposit the money his grandfather, the deposed general, is trying to get out of the country.
There's another way to look at this.
Back in 2011, you could pay a 5,000 deposit for a Model S which only existed on paper, or a 40,000 deposit for a Signature Model S which (if it ever came into existence) you would see a few weeks earlier than an ordinary Model S. In both cases no escrow, no bank guarantee.
I somewhat feel sorry for those who took the "Signature" route. They were fully risking all that money anyway, so they could just as well have put the difference of 35,000 into Tesla shares (which were trading around 20 USD at the time). 35,000 / 20 * 360 = 630,000. That's 595,000 profit, i.e. two Model X or S for free for husband and wife and six Model 3's to give away to the kids and their cousins
.
(but I do admit I always love seeing a Signature S, in that beautiful dark red)
Back in 2011, you could pay a 5,000 deposit for a Model S which only existed on paper, or a 40,000 deposit for a Signature Model S which (if it ever came into existence) you would see a few weeks earlier than an ordinary Model S. In both cases no escrow, no bank guarantee.
I somewhat feel sorry for those who took the "Signature" route. They were fully risking all that money anyway, so they could just as well have put the difference of 35,000 into Tesla shares (which were trading around 20 USD at the time). 35,000 / 20 * 360 = 630,000. That's 595,000 profit, i.e. two Model X or S for free for husband and wife and six Model 3's to give away to the kids and their cousins
.(but I do admit I always love seeing a Signature S, in that beautiful dark red)
JimmyAZ
Member
Maybe you shouldn't buy this car. I have friends who put down $5000 on the X over 2 years prior to ever seeing one in person. I can't believe this is even a question you'd be asking. He's a freaking billionaire for pete's sake.
It might be a better idea for you to wait and buy a lease return, saving even more money and not having to use a deposit. You wouldn't get your reserved car in the next couple years anyway based on the reservation list. I'm sure purchasing it this way would be much easier for anyone concerned about putting down a deposit.
It might be a better idea for you to wait and buy a lease return, saving even more money and not having to use a deposit. You wouldn't get your reserved car in the next couple years anyway based on the reservation list. I'm sure purchasing it this way would be much easier for anyone concerned about putting down a deposit.
Lloyd
Well-Known Member
Enginerd
Member
I agree, we're funding R&D (and production). Another example, recalling another thread, it seemed that most people are not going to put money down for full self driving until it actually works. However, I've decided I'm going to give them my FSD money up front. It will be my contribution to the successful implementation of FSD, by partially bankrolling development and rollout.
Model 3 reservation EAP FSD subzero | 2014 P85
(Turo rental only 1 week )2010 Prius | 2008 Civic EX-L manual | 2002 Odyssey EX-L
K-MTG
Sunshade Captain of TMC
omarsultan
Active Member
You are not actually funding R&D. Deposits are held in a separate account called "Customer Deposits" and carried as a liability on the books until you take delivery of the car, because the money is 100% refundable until your car goes into production. You can look up the info in the company's financial filings--as of the end of March, they had ~$600M in there. As others have said, the funds are not held in a escrow or trust.
CmdrThor
Active Member
While the deposits are a liability on the balance sheet until the vehicle enters production, that does not mean they keep the cash in a separate account. No where in the "Current assets" section of the balance sheet is there a line item for customer deposits. Just cash and cash equivalents, restricted cash, etc. And no customer deposits aren't considered "restricted cash" as that was only ~$90M as of last quarter and the customer deposits liability was $600M+ as you mentioned.
In the summary of cash flows you can see customer deposits is just another source of cash that is used to support the growth of the business.
If the company went bankrupt, there would not be a "customer deposits" bank account to refund everyone's deposits. Rather a bankruptcy court would decide how to distribute any assets amongst the liability obligations.
ModelNforNerd
Active Member
While I appreciate everyone's vast knowledge of US Corporate Bankruptcy Law, we're getting a little silly here. We're getting info on Sunday, and a final reveal sometime in the next 30-ish days.
Discussing what's (not ever) going to happen to our deposits is irrelevant at this point.
brianman
Burrito Founder
- Nov 10, 2011
- 17,515
- 2,980
That was arguably true for S and X, and definitely true for Roadster. For Model 3, I'm pretty sure the deposit is a method to weed out the first level of non-serious reservations so that the count isn't (effectively) infinity.
brianman
Burrito Founder
- Nov 10, 2011
- 17,515
- 2,980
My vague recollection is that for some states (Washington, for example) Model S deposits did have to be held in a separate account because of some state-specific requirements. I don't know if that's the case for the Model 3 deposits.
omarsultan
Active Member
Fair point and slopping wording on my part. My point was that deposits are tracked specifically and don't just get thrown into some large piggy back Tesla can then use to buy things.
When I read some of the comments in these forums I feel like I don't "belong" in a Tesla. 1k is a lot of money for me, and frankly I have been saving for down payment since I reserved last year. I really hope current Tesla owners who can afford to spend 60k+ on a vehicle won't treat me as a 2nd class citizen when they encounter me at a supercharger.
JeffK
Well-Known Member
If you drive an EV then you drive an EV. We won't treat you like a 2nd class citizen. Although, I will say be very mindful of what kind of monthly payment you'll get with whatever you end up financing. Some people suggest you want to shoot for 15% of your monthly net income otherwise you might be overextending yourself because you still have other bills. That said, you'll save a little bit from your monthly gas expenses, but you'll spend more on electricity.
I'd bet that that won't happen. From the posts and discussions here I get the impression that most posters are pretty nice people. A little direct at times, but still pretty nice. Except for that one guy ....
Who cares how d-bag owners treat you? Let them eat their cake. There are plenty of good Tesla folks both here and in the physical world. As a first day early morning reservation holder (not a current owner), I'm definitely banking on receiving the full $7500 tax credit to make the car work financially, and am hoping to have a low or no optioned 3 by the end of this year. If I have to sit back and watch more expensive orders get delivered and risk missing out on the full credit, I'll probably just cool it on trying to acquire a Tesla and buy the much more affordable, decently optioned Civic or Accord with proven reliability (that my wife thinks we should've already bought).
Unless they really desire a smaller car, I don't understand why people would choose a higher priced 3 over an any-priced 2015 or later Model S.
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