As my name implies, I am a tired car shopper, been looking for a bit. I’ll try to keep it short.
1st car bought after college, kept for 18 years, started looking when it died. Research lead me to leasing after learning that most cars even the $40K+ ones depreciate about 50% in the 1st 3 years.
My only sticking point is that I currently have to drive 40miles/day to work, I do WFH some days.
I see lots of deals but mileage is 10K for the luxury (BMW, Volvo) and the 12K Toyota are for the trucks…non-favorable mpg.
I’m in the Chicagoland area (btw I am shocked that Chicago isn’t a hot leasing market). I have been following the threads for out-of-state brokers(Toyotas) but I need every bit of my 12K miles so driving back from NY/NJ/PA is something to consider.
Toyota Avalon Limited with Cognac interior was my car of choice but I am learning that they don’t lease well(Sept quote from Edmunds : RV = 41% for 36/15K).
I am open to different makes but I am particular to a non-black interior. Started looking at SUVs due to higher RV to accomodate higher miles…but then lower mpg is a concern.
Is Leasing a good option if I need 15K miles per year?
And honestly with as complicated and gadget/gizmo ridden as new cars are getting I’m not sure I’ll ever own a car that isn’t a weekend toy or of older vintage again after getting bit with out of warranty (out of pocket) repairs a few times.
I say this as someone who averages over 20K/year. We balance this out as the Mrs only drives 6-7K/yr. (We’re also temporarily leasing 3 different cars.)
Think it this way; For most captives, it’s an extra 3% reduction of RV to go from 10 to 15K miles/year. So on a $40k car, it’s $1,200 or $34 more per month. No brainer in my mind since you are likely paying $300+ for 10K and you are getting 50% more.
Above 15K miles per month is questionable especially as the RV are non-standard for some captives and can drop considerably.
To find the right car, just watch the board including broker deals since most have high RVs or huge discounts. You should be able to find something that meets your needs especially if you are willing to travel.
Otherwise check out Swapalease as you may be able to find cars with 1,500+/miles remaining per month.
I don’t necessarily hate car shopping, its that I can’t seem to find what I want. I don’t think my requirements are too lofty , I just dislike the standard black and gray interior that comes in most base models.
To me its simply, (1) beige/tan/almond/“whatever the make call its” interior, (2) leather seats, (3) moonroof, (4) a couple of safety features. That seems to put me at the highest trim for most makes or makes it hard to find.
I’m also in the Chicagoland area. Leased my BMW X5 with 15k miles and M340i with 12k miles recently and got pretty favorable lease deals on both. Chicago may not be a hot leasing market in comparison to the northeast/southwest, but for the midwest you can actually find pretty good deals if you’re willing to work for it.
A. I thought about that, but I think I’m leaning away from the buy & hold mindset. I work for a consulting company so there is a chance that I could be back to traveling for work if I get an out-of-state client (got a local client)
B. I’m willing to lease something else besides the Avalon…but the more I shop around, the more cars I like lol. I mentioned the Avalon to give a view of what I like.
Not sure what your budget or size options are, but you can get everything you listed in a lower trim Volvo S60 which lease great and there are plenty of brokers that will bring one to you.
I think that’s a smaller car than the Avalon, and …smaller than the Camry. right?
Mid to Full size sedan is preferred and I’m looking at the SUVs/crossovers now. I loved the XC90 , the Blond Interior, panoramic roof, all safety features…but I don’t really need a 3-row SUV. For a good deal, I’ll take it though but I don’t know what a good deal on those would be.
Price point : I was going to go up to $500, 6 years for a new purchase but would prefer to stay closer to $400 for a lease.
Thanks fellow Chicagoan. I’m wiling to wait and work for it but unfortunately I’ve hit my threshold on the amount of money wasted on renting cars (car has been dead for a while).
I think I’m going to work with a broker…just need to narrow down my list.
Thanks Britten440, so wherever I see a deal at 10K miles, just add 3% of MRSP / # of months. Great!
So Swapalease is a good place to get lease transfers? I checked out our forum for this but not a lot of options. I did see a ES350 on Swapalease that is close by but I wasn’t sure. Leasing, lease transfer are all new concepts to me, very eye-opening to say the least.
Some with more local knowledge can chime in, but aren’t there additional taxes that Chicago levies on car leases, which make it significantly less enticing financially?
There’s an 8% “use tax” levied on top of the Illinois state tax, but that use tax only applies if you live within the city limits of Chicago. Those living in the suburbs of Chicago are not subject to that use (aka bullshit) tax.
There’s a growing epidemic of failing push-button starts that leave drivers stranded, in park, and unable to even move or tow. Untested tech rushed to market will not end well.
, I just dislike the standard black and gray interior that comes in most base models.
, the Blond Interior, panoramic roof, all safety features…but I don’t really need a 3-row SUV. For a good deal, I’ll take it though but I don’t know what a good deal on those would be.