Moving to Canada - BMW x3 sDrive30i - Options to Explore

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1

Hi Everyone,

I am in a bit of a situation for which I need your guidance in regards to my Leased 2020 BMW X3 sDrive30i with 20k miles on it (total allowed was 36k miles on a 3-yr term). The 3-year term of the lease ends in Apr 2023.

I am moving to Toronto, Canada within the next month (March 2023) as I’ve got a job there and have 2 options under consideration:

Option 1: Return the vehicle back to BMW at the end of the term.
Option 2: Buy-out the vehicle and take it with me to Toronto, Canada.
Option 3: Let someone take over my lease in exchange for some $$$.

Let’s talk about Option 2 first:
This looks like a better deal to me given the high prices of the new cars (high interest rates as well) as well as the lengthy delay in getting a new car from the dealers (especially in Canada).
My car is currently registered in Cupertino, California. I would like to buy-out my vehicle from BMW, get the title under my name and then move the vehicle to Toronto and get it registered there. I am sure I would have to pay cash to buy-out the lease as lenders in US wouldn’t be willing to give out loan to someone who is not going to be a resident there anymore (I was in US on TN Visa).

I am currently in Toronto finalizing my move and would like to avoid going all the way back to California just to complete this whole process if it could be done electronically. I know buy-out could be done over the phone and sending in a cheque but NOT SURE how the whole DMV process in terms of change in TITLE/OWNERSHIP and paying taxes, would work.

Therefore, anyone with any experience, could you please help me with these questions:

What is the whole process given the above scenario (both in USA and CANADA)?
Cost involved in regards to TITLE change (USA)?
Cost involved in regards to registering vehicle (Canada)?
How much taxes do I need to pay AND if there is anyway to save on taxes (both USA and CANADA) ~ Toronto has 13% sales Tax).
Do I need to pay any costs (e.g., import duty/customs, taxes) at the border?

Now, going to Option 1: I think I have 2 options again (if not more).
Option 1(a). Simply return my vehicle.
Option 1(b). BUY the vehicle and resell it to the dealership (assuming the market value for my vehicle is more than the residual value of the car). Given the condition and mileage on the car, I think (and I haven’t done much research on this yet) my car would be worth more than the residual value. If it’s not the case, then this particular option is worthless for me.

Option 3: Let someone take over my BMW so they can purchase the vehicle at the end of the term at a residual value (which hopefully is much lower than the current market price of a USED BMW x3 sDrive30i). However, I would only entertain this option if I am gaining some cash in return.

Anyone with experience, I’d love to hear your thoughts/guidance. Would also appreciate, if you’d be able to share your thoughts on whether buying my particular vehicle makes sense at all?

Here is some information about my vehicle:

2020 BMW X3 sDrive30i
Jet Black w/Canberra Beige (Fineline Cove Matte Wood Trim)
Convenience Package
Driving Assistance Package
Parking Assistance Package
Ambient Lighting
Live Cockpit Pro (incl. Navigation)

Residual Value: $26,737.20
Current Mileage: 20,048 miles.
Monthly Payments: $445.79 (excl. Taxes)

BMW x3 sDrive30i|368x500

2

Option 1c) Take to the dealer and have them buy it and give you the equity. No buying on your side at all.

3 Likes
3

Highly advise option 1C

4

Same - also, OP, with one month left on your lease you can’t transfer it.

Also, the obvious thing is that you don’t want sDrive in TO (probably even with snows), and it’s worth less in Canada than an xDrive.

1 Like
5

My car is currently sitting in Buffalo at my cousin’s place. Should I try to take it to a buffalo dealership to see if they’d be willing to buy it? or should I take the car to somewhere in TEXAS and try to sell it there to the dealer for equity (if any) ?My sister is in Texas so that’s why I was wondering that given the temperature there, I’d get more bang for the buck for my sDrive. Thoughts?

6

You’re going to spend more money getting it to Texas than it’s worth. Have you gotten any appraisals to see if you even have any potential equity?

7

Not yet…since I am in Canada.

8

You can get appraisals online.

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Residual Value 26,737.00
Estimated Value Profit
Carvana 31,079.00 4,342.00
Carmax 31,600.00 4,863.00
Carfax 32,390.00 5,653.00
Cargurus 31,243.00 4,506.00
TrueCar 30,700.00 3,963.00
Average 31,402.40 4,665.40
2 Likes
10

Sell it and sell it NOW before the prices go down.

Carfax is probably fake.
Go to Carmax

1 Like
11

You can’t sell a leased BMW to Carmax. It has to be a BMW dealer or in a dealership network like AutoNation.

OP - did you use the zip code where the car is located or a zip in Texas?

12

Option 3 does not exist for you as lease needs to have 6 months remaining to be transferred.

13

Just take any profit and sell it in Buffalo. Importing is a hassle and you might have to pay duty, if you wait any longer Buffalo dealership will low ball if not already since it is not an xDrive.

14

You still have at least one payment on this car. Do you know BMW dealer buyout number at this moment?

15

Also to consider - resale value of your BMW down the line will be a hard pill to swallow for 2 reasons. Hesitant to buy imported cars, and MOST importantly imo, Canadians don’t get rear wheel drive sedans, let alone SUVs. I can only predict it will be a nightmare to deal with when you inevitably come to sell it. Just get rid of it now, and start with a clean slate up north.

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16

OP - This is a long shot and I’m not sure if this is a possibility but if you are truly based in Socal and are interested in extending your lease so the term is greater than 6 months, I would be willing to takeover the lease afterwards. I need a vehicle in the short term while I wait for the market to come down and hopefully get into a better long term deal.

17

Totally, I brought a car from Canada to California when I moved here, had a hard time selling it, everyone told me it was gray market and tried to low ball. Sure same thing will happen bringing a car up north.

3 Likes
18

So, I was able to get a new vehicle in Canada (which is why I went quiet for the past couple of days as I worked through the leasing of new vehicle). With that being said, I need to ask you experience folks what I should do with my BMW x3?

Some of you mentioned that I should just take it to the dealership and ask for equity rather than BUYING and then SELLING it.

I have the cash to buy out the vehicle though. Would it help to take the “money order” from the bank to the dealership and show them my intent on buying the vehicle OR should I simply walk to the branch and ask them if they’d be willing to buy my vehicle? What would you recommend?

Since my vehicle is in BUFFALO, I’d start from there as some of you have already suggested it would be worth less because of the weather there as well and people preferring xDrive? I’d have to go there and check if its worth getting rid of the car there or driving down to DALLAS might get me a better deal.

Based on today’s date, the total lease payoff is $27,998.48 (see below).

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The estimated value based on some online checks are the following:
image

I haven’t had any experience with any of these before, so I don’t even know how they work.
E.g., are these values from these companies before or after tax? Will all these companies require me to purchase the vehicle first and then sell it to them? If that is the case, then I’d have to factor in the cost of REGISTRING the vehicle under my name (which means paying SALES TAX ~10% on top of the residual value).

The car is in mint condition with only 20k miles on it. I would have kept it for myself but my family is growing so I needed a bigger car.

19

BMW forces you to buy it if you want to sell it to anyone but them.

The first 2 are real offers, the last 3 are ‘estimates’.

20

I would check to see if there are any dealers between Albany and Cleveland willing to ground the lease.

1 Like