Lease or Buy -- WWYD?

[aquabone1109]

I have zero desire to ever have any kind of car payment ever. So I drive my paid for cars (all four of them lol) until they literally die on me. Then I buy a new one with cash. No payments. I hate payments.

So if your car breaks down and not repairable, you have about $30k laying around for a new car?

 

[morgan98]

So if your car breaks down and not repairable, you have about $30k laying around for a new car?

I am not this poster, but this is not that unheard of. Everyone has different financial circumstances and some people absolutely have that much saved for a new vehicle.

 

[aquabone1109]

I am not this poster, but this is not that unheard of. Everyone has different financial circumstances and some people absolutely have that much saved for a new vehicle.

True but personally I would rather lease a car than dump that much money into a new car knowing the minute you drive off the lot it depreciates $2-3k. Would rather invest that money into something that I know won't depreciate.....ie retirement acct or hoem repair.

 

[nkereina]

There are obviously strong opinions on leasing versus buying. IMO, there are pros and cons to both options. I think you need to look at it from a bigger picture than solely an economical standpoint because the pros and cons extend beyond what's the best value.

That being said, I have owned vehicles, but DH and I both currently lease ours. Nothing wrong with owning one, but leasing works good for us at the present. Maybe down the line, we will want to buy again. Who knows. For us, we have budgeted our monthly payments and are comfortable with them. We live in a snowy climate, so we are able to get 4 wheel drive SUVs that we likely would not be able to afford the payments on if we financed/bought one. The mileage factor are not a concern for us. In the past, we have had bad luck with older vehicles and surprise expensive repairs, so we like the fact that we do not have to deal with that with a lease. Both of our vehicles are GM cars, so we also get free oil changes with our lease which is just a nice perk.

Another option I've heard before is people buy/finance the car, and after 3-4 years, they trade it in and buy/finance another one. This lets you dump the car before you need to start putting money into it, but you still have the leverage of being the owner of the vehicle with the flexibility to do what you want with it. The con is that, unless you get a 36-48 month loan term or put a lot down, you will likely still have a car payment each month. I've never looked into this option myself so not sure what other cons may come with this.

Good luck!