https://www.bankrate.com/banking/savings/financial-security-june-2019/ https://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/average-credit-card-debt-household/
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/01/23/most-americans-dont-have-the-savings-to-cover-a-1000-emergency.html
https://www.creditkarma.com/auto/i/car-loan-term/
https://www.synchronybank.com/blog/median-retirement-savings-by-age/
Strange that none of the 300 people you talked to this month are represented here.
How dare you barge into this thread and make some sense? 
Paying your debts back isn’t irresponsible, but it’s irresponsbile for you to tell someone to pay off their mortgage before leasing a new car and it can be irresponsible to pay back a mortgage early. There are a lot of more advantageous things that can be done with excess money than paying off a sub-4% mortgage earlier than the loan’s term. Like making sure that one has reliable transportation to get to work to make that monthly mortgage payment. Or, if we’re talking about a sizeable chunk of money, investing like previous posters mentioned. There’s such a thing as opportunity cost.
Genuinely no interest in getting into an internet pissing match. Just making it clear to anyone who may be reading this that leasing can work for those of us who don’t have the means to max out our retirement savings and pay for our houses in cash.
As someone who spends a lot of time driving, I see it as an extension of my home and the more creature comforts I have, the better.
In my case, I have the means to do so, and it’s something I value.
Yes, but what if you compare the cost of the lease to the cost of ownership of a red flyer wagon from 1973? Those things never need tires!
Like I said, there was hyperbole embedded in those statements to provoke some thought about priorities.
Not having a reliable vehicle for many/most is an insurmountable obstacle to reaching worthy financial goals, since most jobs require you to be physically present somewhere other than home.
All I am saying is, “Do the math and pick the smartest option for your financial situation,” and if you are making a luxury purchase, call it that. Don’t wag your finger at me and tell me you are saving money because a new BMW includes maintenance when you have already have a reliable vehicle in the driveway.
Or click here and add a word to your vocabulary!
I’m just going with the spirit of the tread…post whatever proves your point, ignore the rest.
Anyway, in case some missed it, my point was that if big post sale credits/rebates or lease only credits are in play then the scale can tip in lease favor…from a purely financially stand point.
Stop with the rational.
People in this thread are actually saying somebody with a 50k income should lease a 300/mo car (plus acquisition, dispo, insurance, etc) as a reasonable financial decision. Then using examples of 100/mo e-golfs to justify it. All because it’s nice to have a “fixed expense” avoiding costly maintenance and not owning a “depreciating asset”. I guess I don’t understand how leasing a depreciating asset over and over again during the steepest part of the depreciation curve makes sense
Is that Laurel’s dress?
I think it’s Yanni Gold.
That dress is clearly periwinkle and brown.
At the risk of further beating this horse, I’d venture to say this forum likely has a disproportionate population of income earners multiples above the US average. I haven’t seen anyone call yet call out the value of time which should also be considered.
Yes, I can do my own maintenance and yes I have done so in the past. However, my independent mechanic down the road can do it faster and at a cheaper labor rate. Doesn’t make sense for me to do it. Secondarily on this point, as cars get older, the probability of them breaking down also increases. Glad to see maintenance costs in OP analysis, but it’s missing time spent driving back and forth to mechanic for repairs. I hate taking time out of my day to do this. If you’re in a very used German car, you’re going to be driving to that mechanic a lot more.
Not to mention how would you get around while the car is in the shop. The small repairs shops don’t have loaners.
I wonder if @chevysalesgirl with her fresh new deal has a good candidate for a gas car of lease>buy example…i wonder what the sale price is…RV seems to be 64%.
“any color Equinox LS MSRP 27690
w/ non-gm lease. 7.75% tax. 24 month.
onepay.
4810 on 10k miles…”
Damn Mike that’s me, in line at Dunkin in my leased 3 series. Lmao.
I may be in the market for a new car and I had great curiosity about Leasing vs Buying and this forum was a great tool to learn. The one thing I learned is “It all depends how you use your car”
I know a lot of people have been asking about real life examples and here goes mine.
I purchased top of the line Acura TL Type S (V6) with all available bells and whistles in June 2008.
MSRP - $38,940
Total Price to Own (with Interest @ 5.99%) $41,000Monthly Cost $340.58
Cost per Mile $0.23
This cost will only go down as I keep the car longer. Also, kbb.com says “Good” condition Private Party value is $4K (which is not considered here). That will reduce monthly cost by another $29.
Apples to Apples Comparison Car - 2020 TLX Advance with V6 - Cannot find any lease deals with 12k miles lower than about $400/Month with $0 down
Now coming to the main debate over driving same car for 11+ years vs getting a new car every few years.
Key technological upgrades the new car has is the new safety features and AndroidAuto/Apple Carplay everything else is negligible.
Conclusion,
It all depends on the type of driver you are. if you put miles, lease is not for you.
If you do not drive over the normal (10K-12K) mile range and like having new features, Lease might work better for you.
As with any financial decision, it all depends on individual facts and circumstances.
Hope this helps.
Good analysis. So we are talking about $1k savings per year owning the car. I think for most people the 1k isn’t worth it. I certainly get substantial joy from getting a new car every 2-3 years so 1k is definitely worth it.
