I hope you’re all doing well! I’ve stumbled upon a lease deal for the Buick Encore GX 2024 and was hoping to get your expert opinions before jumping in. The offer I received just before the year-end is as follows:
Down Payment: $3,000
Monthly Payment: $255
Lease Term: 39 months
Mileage Allowance: 12,000 miles per year
My main concern is the overall affordability of the deal. I’m really only concerned about the monthly price and don’t want to go over $255 per month. Additionally, I’d prefer not to put down more than $3,000.
I’m open to any make or model as long as it meets these criteria. Do you think these numbers are reasonable for a Buick Encore GX 2024, or should I try to negotiate for better terms? Your insights and tips on how to secure a deal within my budget would be highly appreciated!
There seem to be some misconceptions around what leasing is and who benefits from leasing.
The people who benefited most from leasing were those who were going to drive BMWs, Mercedes, etc anyway and found leasing as a way to lower their TCO (total cost of ownership).
They could do so because they had the cash to put down MSD, had loyalty from prior ownership, or had corp/fleet from working at a select list of companies, knew about OL codes and had bought CCA membership, etc etc.
Leasing also benefited people who wanted … let’s call them toys for lack of a better word and again had the financial security to easily afford the overlapping monthly payments and insurance coverage on those extra cars. People who could pick up a Camaro V8 on a whim, an extra Mini to toss around, maybe even a Jaguar F-type.
What does a budget mean? Keeping a cap on expenses not just now but in the long run? Finding ways to build savings? That’s not what leasing does. A budget does not mean making auto payments every month forever and never having equity. Or having no protection against the volatility of payments.
Thank you very much! I’m in need of a second car and am aiming for the most economical A-B option. I prefer a new car as I’m not interested in the potential issues that can come with used ones, and I also lack the time for an exhaustive search through used car listings. Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!
This doesn’t strike me as anywhere near an economical option. You’re at $350+ effective. On track to spend $26k every 72 months and have nothing to show for it.
Most economical would be a car that’s easy to find, really reliable and really cheap to maintain: ford panther platform. Shoud be easy to find one in Texas. Much easier than the start-to-finish of a new car transaction. Like this or this.
Most economical for a new car would be the 0-0.9% APR for 60 month promotions such as the Mazda CX5 and Hyundai Tucson.
