You’re better off just buying it and claiming the tax credit yourself.
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Actually if you wanted to save on monthly and call it a “lease” while still claiming the tax credit for yourself, what if you financed it through a credit union that offered a payment saver option? Basically this looks like a balloon loan, and you get title, so you can claim whatever tax credits yourself?
PenFed Credit Union example:
I’m pretty sure they lowball the balloon payment at the end such that it’s way lower than whatever the car would be worth at the end of the term.
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I’m about to take delivery of a Model 3 standard range, and I’m planning to finance it with PenFed. I asked them about their “payment saver” loan and they told me that EVs are not eligible. I asked why and they had no explanation. I’d speculate that maybe they don’t feel confident in the predicted residuals?
Anyway, I still have a couple of days, so I’d be interested if there’s a different bank you’d recommend that does this type of loan.
But it will still be financing…at the end of the term if you don’t pay the ballon payment you get your credit dinged, right?
You’d be better off buying the car and selling it after 3 years. I believe you would have equity after 3 years in it
Yes - they are just deferring some of the total cost of the note until the end. Basically, if you paid the full amount of the loan all the way until the end you’d have whatever the vehicle is worth towards trading in for your next car vs. you have probably next to nothing in equity. You could lose a lot, because the balloon payment at the end could be more than it’s worth and then you have to figure out a way to get a loan or pay it…
I’m pretty conservative and like fixed costs, so my feeling is buy what you can afford. I do both leases and buys and see advantages to both. Wonder if some banks will take on Tesla leasing. I see the potential for them to make a killing doing that. They buy the car outright from Tesla and then lease it to you.
Just wanted to confirm: does the $504/month include the money factor? Im assuming it does, but just wanted to make sure.
I know taxes are not included in the $504/month
MF is most likely .00271, or 6.5% given Tesla usual sucky lease terms.
It does. I would look into financing and just sell it after 3 years.
Try Navy Federal Credit Union. They don’t offer the Payment Saver but their rate starts at 2.99%
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I’ve been a member at NFCU since 1983
Here are the details I received for a Standard Range Plus, in blue (+$1000) with FSD (+$5500). The details contain the MF, interest rate, residual etc.
I’m considering this because (a) if Tesla goes bankrupt I would rather not have a full-price car that it is difficult to get service for and (b) I’m guessing that in 3 years from now there will be significant improvements in sensors (LIDAR) and battery technology, so I might want to upgrade to a newer car.
The total payments would be $31,344 (if I did the math right) so it saves about $16,489 (including the $3750 tax credit) compared to buying the car outright (including all taxes), but I’m left with no car at the end. Hard to predict what a $45k Tesla Model 3 is worth in 3 years with 30,000 miles.
Any advice from the Lease Hackr experts?
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Just don’t lease it. Buying it now and selling it later make more sense.
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Doesn’t make any sense to lease
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A car company that goes bankrupt has to provide warranty service and spare parts for at least 10 years per US law, so warranty + parts shouldn’t be an issue. That said, someone will surely snag them up should they go under.
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Full Self Driving (FSD) is risky on a lease, IMO. Right now, the only usable benefits of this $5,000 option relate to lane changes (automatic lane changes when you use the turn signal on Autopilot, or automatic lane selection when you Navigate on Autopilot) and parking (self-parking and Summon).
No one knows how long “Automatic driving on city streets” will take before it rolls out. There are ostensibly some folks who paid for FSD and completed their 24 month lease without ever getting FSD as originally promised.
For SR+ cars, you’re better off buying IMO. The .002708 MF (6.5% APR) on the lease is crazy high. In Southern California, you can finance at 2.99% APR for 72 months from a credit union: http://bit.ly/TeslaLoans
My dad ordered a SR ($35,000 + $1,000 paint + $1,200 destination/doc) to replace his leased i3, and he intends on financing it. I’m pretty bullish about the actual resale value of the base Model 3. The highly-optioned versions? Less so.
(Also LH calculation bug fix for Tesla forthcoming!)
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Apple or Daimler would buy them before that happens.
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They won’t go bankrupt. Their CEO is a billionaire, and they have too many vehicles on the road for the federal government to let that happen.
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KBB is tracking the Model 3 to retain 70% of its value over three years. This lease is incredibly overpriced.
KBB’s rv model is not a reliable forecast model. It’s all about the dollar RVs and where they are set relative to other 3yo vehicles selling today. The option content will retain very little value so the best approach is to try and pinpoint where the stripped down 35-38k MSRP variety will go for at auction (and other remarketing channels) and then go up from there for higher option levels with significant discounting on option pricing (sub 30% for most added features would be realistic). Possibly lower since the technology is advancing so fast that obsolescence is a real risk for some features in 3 years.
Mode 3 has held its resale value remarkably well despite Tesla’s price drops, and I expect that to continue and be reflected in the used market. A used Tesla for under $30k will be in high demand.