Highly recommend All-Clad HA1 pans. You get all the goodness of cast iron (heat retention/distribution, non-stick), with none of the maintenance. Bought a set in 2019 and cooked through all of pandemic. No scratches so far and have yet to find anything that would stick

Your family member needs to get his financial **** together. Forget about all the numbers you shared - the big problem is his credit score. He will get eaten alive by the interest rate - and needs to minimize the loan size as much as possible.

My choice for a reliable high mile commuter in a $4-6k range would be a 2010+ Nissan Sentra/Versa. That little engine is bulletproof, as long as you stay away from CVT transmissions.

Once he gets his credit history on track, should be no problem buying a new/gently used vehicle of his choice.

Be careful accepting a counter-offer, the company now knows you’ve been looking and may prioritize making backup plans for your role. Also if the entry level position pays the same as the senior position, you may find it easier to get promoted/get a raise in the new job. In general less responsibility with more pay is a good place to be in!