Leasing a Car

[Omnipotent]

My car finally bit the big one I was looking into leasing a car, anyone have any tips or pointers of really reliable cars that a 21 y/o who travels a lot can lease? Not really sure what a Lease entails, only you can't drive passed a certain amount of miles, and other simple things tbh. Google doesn't seem to be answering what a lease can offer.

[Melena]

May need to check with the dealership as to what details pertain to there leases. I know the mileage restrictions suck. Friend who leased a car for 3 years had to keep it under 36000 miles for the three years otherwise he would get raped for the miles. That was a few years ago though so it may not be as bad. During the lease as well you will probably be required to maintain all aspects of the car, which may mean dealer mandated oil changes and tune ups at the dealership.

How much money do you have to spend? Factor in a 2-3k down payment + 200 a month, you've spent about 10k on that car for 3 years of use.

[Ksandra]

what is the reason you want a lease vs. buying?

I just finished off on a lease, and while at the time financially, it was a good decision, it's not something I want to do again in the future.


As you said they limit you on your mileage (mine was 10,000 per year). and after the lease ends you can either purchase it or turn it in. They will tell you, you can gain equity on the car, this is extremely rare so don't expect it. Purchasing after a lease makes you end up paying about 2k-3k more than you would have if you had bought it.

Only advantage is extremely low monthly payments.

[Omnipotent]

Well, my parents don't want to spend alot of money, they just remodeled our house so cash is low. They originally had me at around >4k for a used beater/college car. I was looking at Saab's and Jetta's etc. My dad then told me he doesn't want a non american car cause it is expensive to fix, and he wants to be able to still send it to our local garage for repairs. A lease is a temporary fix atm, a year one since it's normally cheap and a way to get me to where I need to go while in college. We are looking to spend >250 a month, with a small downpayment if possible.

[Melena]

Well the whole non american's more expensive to fix is really not true. Any mechanic worth his pay is going to be good at any brand. If your looking at low down + monthly i'd just look at a certified used over a lease.

[Viq]

Like Melena said, check out certified used cars. A used Corolla meets all of your criteria (it's not American, but good luck finding a mechanic that doesn't work on Toyotas), and best of all it wouldn't be a lease.

[Ksandra]

Well, my parents don't want to spend alot of money, they just remodeled our house so cash is low. They originally had me at around >4k for a used beater/college car. I was looking at Saab's and Jetta's etc. My dad then told me he doesn't want a non american car cause it is expensive to fix, and he wants to be able to still send it to our local garage for repairs. A lease is a temporary fix atm, a year one since it's normally cheap and a way to get me to where I need to go while in college. We are looking to spend >250 a month, with a small downpayment if possible.

ya then you might have to get a lease, just make sure you stay under that mileage.

You could get a CPO car as melena said just don't be too picky. Best thing is it's a great time to get any kind of car since it's the end of the year.

Go around and see what deals companies had to offer. Big thing is to haggle as best you can.

If you want a car for $250 a month you are looking to find a car about $12,500 to purchase. Leasing gives you a lot more options though.

I'd suggest if you don't care about the car and do want to lease find the cheapest deal you can so you don't end up loosing too much.

Nissan for example last month had a deal where you could lease an ultima for $100 per month for 36 months. which is pretty fucking awesome (deal is now $200 though :/). I'm sure you can find something similar though since it's the end of the year.

[SephYuyX]

Buy uesd. Cruise around your local suburbs and you will find amazing deals. If you can get a loan from bank or someone, and pay them back montlhly instead of a dealership, you will save many a buckets of tit milk.

[kyod]

Leasing, for most people, is a bad financial decision. You end up with nothing at the end of the lease except lost money. At least with buying you can recoup some of your investment.

Additionally, leasing requires really good credit. Don't have the credit to back it up, you won't get a lease.

[Soa]

I considered leasing a new car recently (due to low monthly payments), but after a bit of research I realized that buying a 2-3 year old used car is a much better investment. Leasing also has the drawback of limited mileage and whatever other crap the dealer can stick you with, such as requiring factory maintenance with them according to their schedule, which can get very expensive.

[Omniyoji]

So then what's the benefit of going the lease route? Seems to me it's only for people with moola that want the latest model every x years and only use it to go to work ?_?

[jmc]

So then what's the benefit of going the lease route? Seems to me it's only for people with moola that want the latest model every x years and only use it to go to work ?_?

Thats pretty much it.

A lease just is not worth it at all, why spend 10k over the course of 3 years (where you cannot do anything you want to the car, unless dealer authorizes it) when you can spend 15k over the course of 5 years and actually be able to keep it at the end?


*edit*

Well, at the end of the lease you do have the option to buy the car for whatever they offer it at. Sometimes its the same price as if you were to just purchase it new to begin with.

[Melena]

that's exactly it. That and to sucker the un-informed.

[SephYuyX]

So then what's the benefit of going the lease route? Seems to me it's only for people with moola that want the latest model every x years and only use it to go to work ?_?

Thats pretty much it. It's an endless money drain in a suckers game preying off of those who cant get qualified easily, and like the draw of low montly costs.
Buying used cars off of a lot (meaning not from a dealership) will always be the best option.

[Ksandra]

Oh I'd like to point out too that you have to be careful if you get a least to look at their insurance requirements. You can end up paying more because lease contracts will require you to put some things on your insurance that you wouldn't normally have.

ie. on my lease my insurance was like $110 a month because of it, vs. now $70 a month for buying my car cause I could lower a lot of shit.

Granted if it's stuff you normally want anyways it won't be an issue, but it is something to look for as you might end up spending more than you planned.


Also, don't be retarded and not follow the insurance rules ontop of that. If you get into a car accident and the company finds out, they will consider you breached the countract and you're fucked.

[Correction]

Leasing is for people who don't like to haggle, these are the same people who pay sticker price for new cars. It is not a way to save money by any stretch of the imagination. $250/month is a $15k car split across a 5 year loan.

[Ksandra]

Leasing is for people who don't like to haggle, these are the same people who pay sticker price for new cars. It is not a way to save money by any stretch of the imagination. $250/month is a $15k car split across a 5 year loan.

you can haggle on a lease though, but ya I'd imagine most people don't.

[Osede]

Well, my parents don't want to spend alot of money, they just remodeled our house so cash is low. They originally had me at around >4k for a used beater/college car. I was looking at Saab's and Jetta's etc. My dad then told me he doesn't want a non american car cause it is expensive to fix, and he wants to be able to still send it to our local garage for repairs. A lease is a temporary fix atm, a year one since it's normally cheap and a way to get me to where I need to go while in college. We are looking to spend >250 a month, with a small downpayment if possible.

Tell your parents that the real american car is toyota, which every parts are made in and made by american labor. While the chevy, ford and etc use the cheap mexican labor for their manufacturing >.>
And also, you may find that you need more repair in those brand when compare to some japanese brand... e.g. the dodge interpid i had right now just having too many problems, which i will only fix some of them, and i will not drive it for any long distance.

[Ddz]

Leasing is only smart if you don't mind having a car payment always (some people like leasing; they get a new car every 3-4 years + no hassle with paying for maintenance/repairs). With the great deals and APRs on financing cars today (if you have decent credit) you might as well just buy new. I did. I have a 10 year warranty and it costs me $233/mo + $80/mo for insurance. For me, this is great considering reliable transportation gives me peace of mind when I visit my family that lives 4 hrs away.

Edit: I have leased two cars before (both Volkswagens; both for 36 months each). I'm not exactly sure on the formula they use for the total lease cost. It's something like value of the car minus depreciation something something something. The cars had lost so much value by the time I turned the lease in, that purchasing seemed like a terrible decision. If you plan on keeping and taking care of a car, buy one and pay it off. I would suggest putting down as much of a down payment as you possibly can. Buying used is ok, but make damn sure you get a buyer's inspection done and that the car has had all its maintenance etc.

[Cooleko]

Good aquantance of mine leased a 2010 Elantra for 2k down, $150 a month, everything is included (free oil changes, tune ups). 24k miles for a 2 year lease. His credit was nearly perfrect though. YMMV