Lol you went into a showroom, spoke with a sales person live, and they told you they didn’t know what a money factor was? I guess that’s what people should expect when shopping Ford in the Midwest.
One thing you should remember about LH is the general way this site views car buying (or leasing) is much different than the way you are probably looking at things.
For example, most of LH shop for a deal/price and are much less concerned about the actual vehicle. That is why so many LH users will gladly take a “fart car” former loaner that is an odd spec or color. But for a low price, they’ll drive that car.
Another example, some new users to this site will post about how they want to get a GMC Yukon. And some seasoned LH users will start suggesting minivans and alternatives to drive the cost down. Carnival is cheaper… and cheaper wins on LH haha.
But you’re shopping for a car you actually may want to drive in a color/option-load that you want. Plus you’re shopping a car brand that historically has not leased well. It’s possible some Ford dealership is wanting to unload an Escape with a massive dealer contribution to blow it out. But you’ll have a hard time finding that dealership on your own in Ohio. So you’re destined to have LH users judge your deal negatively on this Ford Escape.
The LH group-think would have you abandon your quest for a Ford Escape, and instead turn your attention to EVs/brands/vehicles/farts that will get you a lower payment overall. @thevolvoguy keeps talking about how the Infiniti Q’s lease really well, maybe there’s line of sight for you getting a lease on one of those instead?