Fair App - any good?

Anybody seen this app? http://fair.com

It looks like they are doing month to month leases on used cars? Interested to see what kind of numbers they offer. From the screenshots it looks like the vehicles are CPO (although they say they could have up to 70K miles on them). Although if I don’t have to be locked in for 2 or 3 years it seems tempting, and seriously changes what vehicles I would consider.

My holdup is they make you scan your drivers license to get started. Not sure I want to be the guinea pig on this one. I know there are a bunch of similar leasing apps out there. I didn’t have luck with Honckr (wanted my SSN), and figure this is going to be too good to be true as well, but figured I would ask the experts.

Thanks!

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Found this review this morning that breaks down how it works. It looks like its a real VC funded app that just launched from the ashes of Beepi.

Pretty interesting, but looks like you have a drive off of 3x your monthly payment. That makes the idea of monthly lease less realistic, because who is going to switch cars that often. From the numbers that article gave I think the hive mind of Leasehackr or one of the brokers can beat these numbers on CPO leases.

Although maybe its a viable alternative to short term leases on Swapalease/LeaseTrader considering those have fees associated too, and this seems more flexible.

If no one else volunteers in the next few days, i will probably sign up just to satisfy my curiousity.

Hi,
I leased a vehicle through fair.com last weekend and I really like the service they offered to lease the car. I would recommend this to anyone who is looking for short term lease or you don’t want to get tradition lease(2 or 3 year) commitment.

Happy to add more details but just wanted to let you know that fair.com is indeed a transformational idea to own a car without having to worry about down payments and long term commitments to one car.

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I did check out the app, the second time I tried loading it, it allowed me to close out the signup screen and view the prices on cars. They didn’t seem too bad, about what you would pay for monthly payments on a loan, but definitely not the crazy lease deals seen here on CPO leases.

Couple of questions for you.

What was the ‘startup’ price on your car? It looks to be about 3x the monthly. Did that include the first months payment? What other costs are there that they don’t tell you about up front?

The one other thing that I saw as a gotcha is that you are still responsible for any repairs that come up during your lease. Even tho it includes a warranty, the idea that I might have to pay out of pocket for something I had only been driving for a few months was a little scary. Especially when I can’t see the car first, or have a mechanic check it out prior to signing. Still, depending on what I come up with at the end of the year, I might go this route temporarily.

Hey All! I’m Shaan and I work at Fair.

@venkad – Excited to hear your experience :slight_smile:
@BigPapa – Please use promo code SHAANR100 to save $1,000 on the start payment (expires 10/31/2017).

  • The start payment does not include the monthly payment
  • Our warranty covers everything a warranty would normally cover, but does not cover normal wear & tear items like tires and brake pads. We do cover your oil changes.
  • Fair cars come with a 3 day no risk return policy (begins the day you sign for the car)
  • Awesome new explainer video to help illustrate the process: https://youtu.be/0Bm2ooPWrcE
  • Direct access to our awesome Concierge team! 1-800-584-5000

EDIT: Hey All! It’s Shaan. This post was written 2017 and a lot has changed!

Our most aggressive discount for Fair is $250 off Start Payment, which expires 9/30/18. This discount is not applicable to Rideshare Partner accounts.

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I Actually like thier Idea in leasing used cars for anyone, one of the reps came by to our dealer last week and showed us how it works, I signed up with them so they can lease the used cars I have in my Inventory, they buy it at a fair price from us, than lease them to the clients that isnt looking into a new car or lease for a year or less

I downloaded the app and live in CA which appears to be the only state who can utilize them…About 1200 vehicles on there right now, if I sort to the cheapest price I get a 2015 Chevy Spark LS with 35K+ miles…It estimates that it’s $1204 down and $142/mo (includes TTL) for 10K miles a year…It says it does include routine maintain, “Each Fair Vehicle comes with a maintenance plan that covers routine maintenance services such as engine oil and filter changes, tire rotations, multi-point inspections and topping off fluid levels”…Insurance is not included but you can buy a policy from them and bundle it into your monthly payment.

Clearly expensive and you do have to wonder about the turn in procedure…At turn in, if you have some scratches or something, will you get an “unfair” bill?

Hey @eschoslide

Please keep in mind that we are offering $1,000 off the start payment this month (promo code SHAANR100) and you can return the car anytime (with a 5 day heads up).

Totally understand your concern about returning the vehicle and getting an ‘unfair’ bill. I think we are extremely fair in the return process, though. Minor dings, dents, and glass chips (not cracks) are normal and not considered to be excess wear. However, excess wear would include dents > 3" in diameter or where the metal is perforated as well as torn bumpers, cracked glass etc. We do offer optional excess wear and tear protection at checkout, though.

Please feel free to speak to our concierge team with any more questions! 1-800-584-5000

Not for nothing, but in soon to be 2018 it’s absolutely inexcusable for something like this to launch as iOS only. Android has how much market share? And I’d venture that the average Android user is more likely to be more savvy about this stuff than the average iOS user.

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Yea, but eliminating those who use Android keeps the Riff Raff out. Drink the kool-aid already, and come aboard the cool train!

Lol… I’m way too invested at this point in Google play products and paid apps, music, etc. Plus with Sprint and T-mobile being looser than Hyundai with their equipment leases, I wouldn’t be so sure about the riff raff avoiding the iPhone.

@ElectricEliminator I completely agree. I for one only have Android phones now after having a mediocre experience with iPhones. I can’t even get the app if I wanted. But then, I found out it only works in CA anyway. It seems like they have decent deals, better than most people would be able to get themselves. Of course, us Hackr’s might be able to do better, but I find that most of the great deals I find here are basically impossible to get. You have to wait for the stars to align and for a dealer to whore out the car at the same time programs are good.

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Exactly, that’s what I’m hopefully waiting for now at the moment. Honcker, all of those kind of apps are nice and all, but they can’t replace real negotiations in the current dealer system.

@XBeatzX & @ElectricEliminator Android is in the roadmap! I wish it was here sooner, too (dat Pixel 2 doe).

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I wish this company the best of luck, but believe the prices are too high especially when you consider these are not new cars and could have tens of thousands of miles…I’m unsure if the power window stops working if it’s on the customer (I believe it is), but if you’re leasing a car with 50K, odds just increase of something going wrong and requiring dealership visits…When leasing a new car, you get a bumper to bumper warranty…

Will you be expanding to seattle? if so what is the eta?

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My assessment as well was that for a given car, the FairApp lease prices were too high. My guess is that leasing new would cost less so where is the incentive to lease used. Still if you just need a car for a few months (e.g… waiting for your Model 3…) the FairApp approach may work.

Regarding the lack of Android support, I concur that they better get their act together. Someone likely to be interested in used cars would more likely have an Android phone as they cost less.

Yes, I also concur with Android…What I missed is the dealership aspect, I originally thought they were Fair’s inventory, they’re not, you could even search by dealership…

So I found this car:


Short of it is, its being sold for $20,888 for a 2013 ES 350 with 53,143 miles…That doesn’t include TTL but as far as I can tell, this dealer allows negotiations and it really wouldn’t be too difficult to get the car out the door pretty close to $20,888…Fair wants $1204 down and $370/mo inclusive of tax…So after 3 years you’re paying $14,524…There is a guarantee Fair offers (it does have exclusions/fine print) but where are you going to find another 2013 ES 350 to lease?

Hey @EchoSide we do include a warranty that would cover power windows!

We also include routine maintenance (eg oil changes) and roadside assistance.

(Disclaimer – I work for Fair!)

BTW Fair is reducing start payments by $1000 until Oct 31st! Just use promo code SHAANR100 in the app.

(You’re still responsible for taxes, fees and registration, as well as making monthly payments. But that’s just fair, right?)