Whether it’s a Ferrari 488 or a Buick Lucerne, everyone has a dream car. Mine happened to be a 2008 Honda S2000, and I actually now own one. Was it worth buying? In my case, yes, because the S2000 is an affordable and reliable sports car that is cheap to maintain and insure. However, if you’re dream car is a Ferrari or something of equal value, then your dream car being “worth it” is purely subjective. In any case, here are three tips for buying your dream car.

Be specific on which dream car you want

It’s important to have goals, dreams, and aspirations in order to keep a healthy forward momentum in life. I’ll spare you the “law of attraction” rant, but just keep in mind that the name of the game to have a clear picture of what you want in your head. Got it? Great! Now go put it on a vision board or your computer desktop and then tell your friends and your poor dog about it day in and day out. With the right attitude, a healthy sum of money, and possibly even really good credit, you too may someday have that dream car sitting in your driveway.

But before all of that, be specific on what you want. For example, I wanted a 2008 Laguna Blue S2000, and after only six months of looking for one and a miraculous loan from a credit union (considering the car was nine years old when I bought it), I had secured the car of my dreams.

So if you want a black on black 2009 Audi R8 with a manual transmission and carbon side blades, so be it. Just know what you want, write it down, and make sure you get that exact car. Because after all, it’s your dream car, and you only want to do this process once.

Make sure that you can afford it

Whether you have been saving up your whole life and now have a huge sum of money to drop on your highly-coveted dream car or you need to take out a loan to cover some of it, just make sure that you can afford to do so. Although it’s your dream car, it’s not a good idea to go broke buying it. You most likely have other priorities that need more attention and truthfully, it’s just a car, and a car is a product like anything else. After all, you wouldn’t want to go broke buying a fancy T.V., right?

Always make sure to get a pre-purchase inspection

We always recommend getting a pre-purchase inspection for ANY used car that you buy and it’s even more important if you’re buying your dream car. Especially if your dream car happens to be an exotic car. A typical pre-purchase inspection could cost around $150 to $250, which is pennies compared to that high-dollar piece of machinery that you plan to buy and it could save you thousands of dollars in repairs later on.

There are plenty of ASE-certified mobile pre-purchase inspectors nationwide that will inspect the car for you and give you a detailed report and pictures so that you know exactly what you’re buying. You won’t regret getting a pre-purchase inspection done, in fact, you may regret it more if you don’t.

Remember to do it right the first time

Considering you’re planning on buying your ultimate dream car, the most important part is to do it right the first time. Be clear on the car that you want and don’t stray from any of the specific criteria. Get your financial situation in order before pulling the trigger and make sure to get a pre-purchase inspection done. It’s like buying a regular car but more meaningful, so do everything you can to make it the best experience possible, even if your dream car is a Buick Lucerne.