Lease Questions - Ask Here

gene1980

Car Man,

Several of us are trying to figure out the Lexus lease numbers. Here's what I learned at the dealership today. I'm copying a message I sent to Borg over on the GX 470 board:

"Just got back from the dealer and here is what they quoted me on a GX470 with everything but rear entertainment system and tow hitch. MSRP = 52240 and there was no discussion of any discount. For a 39 month with 12k/year, the residual was 57% and the money factor was .00260. For 15k/year, the residual was 55% and the money factor was .0026. I think Car Man had given me 58% residual for 12k/year and money factor of .0023. They also quoted a refundable security deposit of $500 and acquisition fee of $600 paid at signing along with sales tax. They quoted a monthly payment of $796/month on the 12k/year and $816/month on the 15k/year.

Car Man, do these numbers look right to you ... could you confirm? I ran them and they came pretty close.

thanks,

gene

CarMan@Edmunds

Hello jhk_db. Here is the information that you are looking for. If you were to lease a 2003 Acura MDX Touring with Navigation through American Honda Finance Corp. this month for 36 months with 12,000 miles per, their base lease money factor and residual value should be .00220 and 59%, respectively. The numbers for an otherwise identical lease of a 2003 MDX Touring without Navigation should be .00220 and 61%, respectively. The 39 month lease money factors for these vehicles would be exactly the same as the 36 month factors, but the residual values would fall 1%.

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CarMan@Edmunds

Hey tvandy. Ford and General Motors both publish lease interest rates instead of lease money factors and I definitely can see how this can be confusing. In order to convert their lease rates into approximate lease money factors, you need to divide them by 2400. So for instance, a lease rate of 6.5% would be equivalent to a money factor of around .00271. Unfortunately if you take advantage of GM's supported lease rates and residual values for this truck, you can not use the $2,000 consumer cash that they have available on it. Normal consumer cash may not be used in conjunction with supported GMAC leases, only special lease cash that is specifically earmarked for that purpose may be used to reduce the capitalized cost of leased vehicles. I think that this answers your question, but if you have any others please don't hesitate to ask.

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CarMan@Edmunds

Hello Maxman. Let's take a look at the deal that you have been quoted. Let me begin by saying that the price that you were quoted on this car looks to be a little on the high side to me. Granted, quattro Audis are not going for invoice, especially not in the Northeast in the winter, but $2,700 over invoice is a pretty steep price, The difference between Edmunds.com True Market Value and dealer invoice for the 2003 Audi A6 2.7T is only $1,880 and I can definitely imagine people getting better deals on this car than that. If there are a couple of Audi dealers in your area, which I imagine there are, you may want to get a few competitive price quotes on this car. On a positive note, the dealer that you are working with is not attempting to mark up Audi Financial Services' base lease money factor for this car, so they are seem to be being very straightforward with you. According to my calculations, if you were to lease this car using the numbers that you provided me with in your post, your zero down, pre-tax monthly lease payment should be right around $636. Calculating this car's monthly lease payment using a selling price that is $800 lower than the one that you were quoted (right around Edmunds.com TMV) the zero down, pre-tax lease payment would fall to $613. So in summary, see if you can get them to lower the price a little bit, but other than that as long as the quotes that they gave you include tax they seem to be being very straightforward with you. Good luck and let us know how everything turns out.

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CarMan@Edmunds

I hate to say this, Pavan, the your dealer lied to you. BMW Financial Services' base lease acquisition fee is $525 for all leases, not only on European Delivery deals. Take a look at the leases that BMW advertises in major Sunday newspapers, like the New York Times. They break out their $525 base lease acquisition fee right in the details of their ads. Either way, the monthly lease payment that your dealer quoted you for this car seems to be very reasonable and that is the important part. So if you like the car, the deal looks right. Let us know how everything turns out.

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maxman222

Car_man,
Thanks, I test drove the car again this weekend along with the A6 3.0. The #'s on the A6 3.0 Quattro were Residual of .51 with MF of .00075 (1.8%) and the quote was right on the TMV for this vehicle. I guess they are 'incented' to move this car!
Also, to confuse matters I stopped by the BMW dealership on the way home and test drove the 525ia and the 530ia, what are the Residuals and MF's for 36 month / 15k/year on these vehicles in CT?

CarMan@Edmunds

Hi magpie64. Here is the information that you are looking for. If you were to lease a 2003 Dodge Durango SLT Plus 4WD through Chrysler Financial this month for 3 years with 12,000 miles per, their base lease money factor and residual value should be .00137 and a weak 42%, respectively. In an effort to help offset that low residual value, DaimlerChrysler is also offering $2,500 lease cash on the 2003 Durango that may be used on conjunction with their special lease money factors to lower your vehicle's capitalized cost. I believe that Chrysler Financial is also waiving their lease security deposit on Durango leases in your area this month. It is difficult to say if DaimlerChrysler will change their program on this truck by the time that you are in the market for one in March, but please feel free to check back with me then and I will let you know if anything has changed.

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CarMan@Edmunds

Hi rlambertinga. I am really not all that familiar with Leasecompare. Can consumers actually lease vehicles directly through them or do they just provide sample lease payments on models? The RAV4 is not a vehicle that Toyota typically provides lease support on, so I don't see anything wrong with leasing one through a bank other than SE Toyota Finance. However, if there are better deals than Toyota's out there dealers are usually aware of them and will run your lease through that bank instead. Keep the quote that you have received in mind and comparison shop it at a few Toyota dealers in your area to see if you can beat it.

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CarMan@Edmunds

Hello knockoff. I do not believe that Infiniti has published a lease program for the 2003 FX35 yet. However, when they do it is very safe to assume that they will not be providing any sort of lease support on it. Interestingly enough, Lexus actually did introduce supported lease money factors on the GX 470 in January. This is just speculation at this point until Infiniti publishes their lease program for the FX, but I am pretty certain that the Lexus GX 470 would be the less expensive model to lease at this time.

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troyy2k

On FreshAlloy, the lease rates and residuals were posted for all configurations of the FX35 and FX45. They can be found at the following link (provided by DFW Infiniti):

http://forums.freshalloy.com/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Cat=&Boa- rd=FX45&Number=67263718&page=0&view=collapsed&sb=- 5&o=&fpart=1

An FX35 AWD 48 month lease (12000 year) will have a residual value of 45% and a money factor of .00186.

pavan

Dear Car_Man,

Thanks for all the pointers. Looks like I might take this offer which has gotten slightly better since last time.

2800 down (incl security, first month, acq fee and doc fee - my down payment is only $650 excluding all other things I must pay for)

MSRP of 36195 (325Xi with 5sp, PP, SP, metallic, CWP and leatherette)
1200 down from dealer on MSRP
Residual of 60%
36/15000 lease
Tax rate is 7% in MN
MF is 195

I have a quote of 469/mo including taxes which looks good. I might take it.

Pavan

shabbycat

I was looking at one of the other finance boards and someone tried to explain how someone could have "equity" in a lease car. I didn't quite understand it. Could someone explain the circumstances where it would happen? My lease is up in October and I need to "trade up" to a minivan. We have quite a low lease payment right now on a Corolla because we put $5000 down on the lease. Well, I guess my main concern is that we not get taken advantage of when turning in our lease. Any tips? When speaking to the salespeople I *always* feel like I'm being taken advantage of

Thanks!

landru2

To have equity in a leased car, the car's value needs to be higher than the lease payoff amount. For example, if your lease payoff amount is $8,000 and somebody is willing to buy it for $10,000, you could sell it for the $10,000, payoff the lease company the $8,000 and pocket $2,000 in equity.

Also, just to clarify, your current payment and downpayment have no bearing on whether you will have equity at the end of your lease. These 2 factors do not change what the payoff (or buyout) amount is.

I would recommend that a few months before your lease is due you start researching what similar models are selling for in your area. If it looks like they are selling for a significant amount above your lease buyout amount then consider selling it privately to reap any equity. If they appear to be selling at or below your buyout amount then just turn it in at lease end and start fresh on the minivan.

shabbycat

it looks like we could get maybe a *little* more, but not sure if it's worth the hassle? Our lease paperwork says that to purchase the car at the end of the term would cost us $7,738.00. Are there any hidden costs that are not usually shown on the lease papers?

CarMan@Edmunds

Hey Gene. The residual value and the $600 acquisition fee that you were quoted for this truck are right on the money, but this dealership appears to be marking up the lease money factor quite a bit in an effort to add additional profit to your deal. Lexus Financial Services' base lease money factor for a 39 month lease of the 2003 GX 470 should currently be around .00200 for Tier I customers. If they are going to charge you full MSRP for the truck then you should not let them make additional money on your deal by marking up the lease factor.

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CarMan@Edmunds

Hey maxman222. Yeah, Audi's lease money factors on the 2003 A6 Avant 3.0L are indeed very attractive right now. Here is the info for the new cars that you are considering. If you were to lease a 2003 BMW 525i through BMW Financial Services this month for 3 years with 15,000 miles per, their base lease money factor and residual value should be .00150 and 60%, respectively. Interestingly enough, the numbers for an otherwise identical lease of a 2003 530i should be exactly the same.

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CarMan@Edmunds

Thanks for the info, troyy2k.

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CarMan@Edmunds

You're welcome, Pavan. I am glad that I was able to help you out.

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CarMan@Edmunds

Hi shabbycat. I wouldn't necessarily call this situation "equity" since the bank that one is leasing a vehicle through is technically its owner, but it is indeed very possible for a vehicle that a consumer is leasing to be worth more than it would cost them to purchase at the end of their term. When one's purchase option price is lower than the real world value of a car or truck, they can purchase it from the bank that they are leasing it through and either sell it on their own or trade it in on a new vehicle and make money. Of course, one has to be very certain that their vehicle is worth more than it costs them to buy it or they risk actually going through all of this trouble and losing money.

Unfortunately making a large down payment on a leased vehicle does nothing to establish any equity in it. Down payments on leases only serve to reduce the amount of interest that the lessee will pay over the length of the lease. A car's lease-end purchase price will be exactly the same whether one has made a $5,000 down payment on it or no down payment at all. So the fact that you made such a large down payment when you leased your Corolla will not make it any less expensive to buy when your lease is up. This is one of the reasons why I advise consumers not to put money down on leases.

In order to figure out if your car is worth more than your purchase option price, call the bank that you are leasing it through and ask them exactly how much money it will cost you to buy your car. Keep in mind that they may be willing to negotiate on this price a little bit. Once you have this figure compare it to what it is worth on the open market, by looking up its True Market Value here at Edmunds.com. If there is a large enough difference between these two values, in your favor of course, then you may want to consider trying to buy your Corolla and trade it in or sell it on your own. Of course, more often than not consumers purchase prices are not nearly low enough to justify purchasing their leased vehicles and they just turn them in and walk away.

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tomwannabmw

First off, thanks for the forum and the information. Based on what I have learned, I should be able to swing my dream 330Ci with SP, leather, and roof for the following payment.

Cap Cost (already negotiated this at dealer)=$38150

Residual=62% per info previously posted

Money Factor=.00150 per info posted

MSRP=$39,395

38,150 - (39,395 X .62)= 13,725 (total depreciation)

13,275/36 = 381 (monthly depreciation)

(38150 + (39,395 X .62)) .00150 = 94 (monthly interest)

Total pre-tax payment=381 + 94= $475

Is this correct? If so I am thrilled.
What should I expect in terms of "Upfront fees"?

Thanks again!!!

mistercar1

hi-i'm new here-please tell what you think are the best terms for a car lease that i will be using primarily for my business-i'm a small business owner-i commute alot-don't want to pay much upfront-nor monthly-have no intention of buying it at end-can the residual cost be increased by negotiating to decrease monthly payment?--please enlighten me on anything you think might help---appreciate your help - thanks

CarMan@Edmunds

Welcome aboard, tomwannabmw. Let's take a look at the lease that you have calculated. The money factor and residual value that you have picked up from previous posts are still correct. I just calculated a sample lease payment and it came out to $475 per month for a 3 year 12,000 miles per lease of this car, so you did an excellent job with you calculations as well. As far as the money that will be due at lease signing goes, you will have to pay your vehicle's first month's payment, a security deposit of $500, and BMW FS' acquisition fee of $525 for a total of $1,500. Enjoy your new ride!

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CarMan@Edmunds

Hi mistercar1. There are tons of cars out there, could you help us narrow down our search by telling us what you will be using this car for. Will you need room to carry anything or are you just looking for a basic commuter vehicle. If you are just looking for basic transportation, yesterday Honda introduced a great special lease program on the Civic. You should be able to negotiate a very attractive lease on one right now. Interestingly enough, Toyota just introduced some enhanced incentives on the Corolla and Matrix yesterday as well. Do any of these cars interest you? If not, then perhaps you could share a little more information with us on your likes and needs so we can give you some more ideas. Talk to you soon.

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tomwannabmw

It is very empowering to understand all the nitty gritty details before the hardcore negotiations begin. I will let the board know how my leasing experience here in Phoenix turns out. I have been drooling over the E46 for four years now and with the new 2004's coming out, I feel like I can scoop up an '03 at a bargain given the money factor and residual you clued me in on.

Kind regards,
Tom

lemur3

I have a 1999 Saab 9-3 Convertible leased through Chase Auto Finance for 48 months in March 99 at 12,000 mi/year. The lease is almost up and I have 70,000 mi on the car. The over mileage charge is .15 /mi. I am also concerned about wear and tear as there is a small scratch mark in the leather of the passenger seat, fraying occurring on the soft top and the hood has numerous pit marks from gravel. Also several dings in the doors.

My problem is that the buy out is $21K! Even if I offer to purchase at $11,500 which I consider to be market value is this even sane to do? I was in an accident a couple of years ago and the insurance repaired the car. Will this count against me in damages too?
I have no idea if I should turn this car in or buy it out to avoid penalties! Help!

hicaira

Car_man, Just wanted to say a very big thank-you for all the help in getting the best lease rates for a 530. Took a bit of work, but finally got the dealer to stop marking up the aquisition fees and money factors. Ended up with a cap-cost of about $1200 over invoice too, so the whole deal was quite fair (as the month drew to a close they became much more flexible). It would not have been possible though if I was not armed with the facts.

One of the attributes of my deal is that, since I ordered the car and it will not arrive until April, the money factor is locked from upward movement, but can be adjusted down if BMWFS reduces their money factor prior to delivery.

In other words, I'll be checking in for Feb, March and April money factors just to keep then honest!

Thanks again, you're the best.

HiC

innerloop

So you owe $3300 on excess mileage, that's unfortunate, but ultimately it sounds like your best option.

The leasing company almost certainly will not charge you for wear and tear on the seats or even a small tear, its a 4-year old car and they have to accept normal wear-and-tear. Even small door dings or paint scratches are usually permissible as long as they are not large. So disregard the fraying and pit marks.

Even if you could pay a fair market value for the car, which would take a lot of work, do you want a 4-year-old Saab that's been in an accident? Probably not. It seems much smarter to pay the $3k, walk away, and lease a new car at today's remarkably good lease/finance rates and over the next couple years you'll probably save yourself that $3k in lower payments.

If you lease again, choose a shorter term (3 years) and be realistic about your mileage up-front, its always easier to pay for the extra mileage one month at a time than it is to pay in a lump sum like you must now. If you had originally leased the Saab for 3 years/15k mileages, you would only owe about $1k right now.

agillman

Carman,

Can you please provide residuals and money factors for a Eddie Bauer Expedition 2WD for a 3, 4, and 5 year lease? I am interested in a 12,000 mile per year lease and I am located in the Southern California area.

Thank you.

haplology

Can I get MF and residuals for the following cars with a 48 month lease and 15K per year.

2003 Audi 1.8T CVT Auto
2003 Mercedes E320 Auto or E500 Auto

This is for Southern California.

Thanks!

tomwannabmw

Hey Car Man!

I went to a BMW dealer here in Phoenix to get a copy of the lease contract to read. I also asked one of the salesman about the residuals and money factor on the 330 Ci lease. He confirmed the 62% residual, but stated that the 0.0015 money factor was the "buy" price and that 0.0019 is the "sell" price that he could offer me. Also stated the same nonsense for the acquisition fee ($525 "buy", $725 "sell"). He also said a $198.50 "Dealer Documentation Fee" would apply in up-front charges. Finally he mentioned a $350 "termination fee" at the end of the lease, even though the document reads "Closed end" at the top.

I ultimately plan to phone all the area dealers to politely let them know that I will be happy to lease a car from them without all the add-on charges. Today was a fact-finding foray to see what kind of junk they would throw my way. Mission accomplished, I guess.

Is there anything to any of that stuff?

stargazer0791

Car Man,

BMW X5 36 month lease (10k/yr)
Residual?
Money Factor?

Thanks!

squirreljam

Need some info about leasing and the whole F&I game. I'm looking at trading a purchased car in on a newer leased car due to way employer reimburses for business vehicles. So:

If you are "right side up" (never seen that usage; everyone always talks about Upside Down, never the other way around...), but don't want to apply all that equity to cap cost reduction on a new lease, will dealer give you cash / check?

I'm able (fortunately) to take advantage of a "supplier purchase" program so cap cost is pre-set @ about invoice. Can I still negotiate other #'s? E.G., moneyfactor, residual, trade, miles/year, $ down

Car_Man, any thoughts as to what MF NMAC (Nissan) would give on 2003 Altima, 2.5 SL trim? How about residual percentage? This will help figure #'s in advance.

LBNL, anything else I should know / avoid? Think I've done homework, but still worried...

Thanks to all! I'm amazed at the knowledge on these boards.

-Squirrel

innerloop

The termination fee is standard, all leases have them, has nothing to do with closed-end. I believe that's legit. Maybe it can be negotiated down, but I've never tried.

By dealer doc fee, does he mean the DMV paperwork? I think its normal to charge something for that, generally, but not sure what an appropriate charge is in your area.

I would make the guy a firm offer at the "buy" rate and let him take a profit on the sales price instead, I doubt they'd turn it down. Esp. since the 330Ci is being replaced very shortly by a newer model, they should be damn motivated to move them.

There's probably also a deposit up-front. Some dealers will drop the deposit and increase the MF somewhat, maybe that's what he's doing here, offering 0.0019 and no deposit? Normally BMW deposites are monthly rounded up to the nearest $100 I believe. Unless you're a repeat-customer, then they waive it.

tomwannabmw

I got a firm offer of the .0015 MF from a dealer in California. The "sell" MF of .0019 was nothing more than extra dealer profit, and he told me so. They will waive the security deposit if you add .00015 to the original .0015 MF. I ran the numbers and will probably do this. The Cali dealer also dismissed the extra "dealer doc fee" of $198.50 very quickly. The BMW dealers in Phoenix seem quite rigid on overcharging their customers with these fees. Fine, I need to visit a buddy in LA anyway.

What are your thoughts on popping for the '03 with the 04's about to be released? I am going for the '03 because I easily negotiated $1750 (for the 330 coupe) and $1200 (for the 330 sedan) over invoice. This is substantially under Edmund's TMV even with a small "advertising fee" added on. I perceive that this nice a deal will not be available on the '04 coupes for a few months after their April or May release. Plus there might be production delays. Also the MF is so low now for the '03's, and this might not be the case for the '04's.

Other than the addition of the manual six, the changes for the '04 seem very minimal to me. I ain't woried about resale, other than the high Residual for the lease, because I will be wanting the newest thang BMW has on the lot in 36 months. The '04's will not hold their value any better because of the new design for the 3'eres that will be out in a late 05-06.

Does anybody have the numbers for what the MF and RV will be for the '04's?

Kind regards,
Tom

njcarguy

Car_man,

I would like to know what the 24 & 36 month residucal value and money factors are for both the 2003 CTS and DeVille DTS with 12K miles/year for Feb.

I live in NJ if that makes a difference.

Thanks in advance Car_man....you give us the knowledge to take on the F&I guy at the dealerships and walk away with a fair lease deal...Keep up the great work!

NJCarguy

tomwannabmw

Car Man, do you have any info on the MF, RV, and MSRP for the 04's? Thanks again!!

jpatrick4

Hi Car_man,
This message board has always been soooo helpful.
It's now time for the Wife to get a new car. Looking for Money Factors and Residual Values on both a 2003 Ford Focus ZX5 Stantard, and 2003 Ford Focus Sedan SE with Ford Credit Tier 1 in zip code 14072. We're looking to go with the "New" Red Carpet Option. The dealer said "It's better than" the standard RCL.
Thanks, Patrick

cubby4

Greetings and salutations,

I went to a local Saab dealer to discuss the national offer on a 9-3 Linear 36 month lease($999 due at lease/includes $205 down, $0 security, $495 acq fee, $299 1st, tax title & license extra). I was told none existed in our state (WI) and was presented with a lease offer in the $399-425 range for same car w/the "launch package"(infotainment center, On-star, 6 disc cd, moonroof, alloys) I balked at this and as I was leaving was presented with a generous offer. At least I thought so. After reading many posts here, I think I should learn more about FMV, MF and residuals.

The new offer is: $300/mo, $1300 down, includes 1st, and balance towards the down, 10K miles, 48 mo.

While I think this seems like an aggressive offer, what should I know about FMV, MF, and residuals? BTW, I would like to get 12K miles on a 36 mo lease.

Thanks!

squirreljam

Car_Man and other wisepeople of the board:

Still puzzled by many details of leasing, though I feel pretty good overall. Okay, can someone please answer these?

-When using an advertised lease on a specific model (eg, Altima 2.5 S), can that MF and RV% be used on another trim line (eg, 2.5 SL)? Fine print allows for options, but I don't know about this.

-Also with one of these adv. leases, can you take advantage of a supplier purchase program for the cap cost, not the cost in the lease offer?

Many thanks in advance,
Squirrel

CarMan@Edmunds

You're welcome, Tom. I am glad that I was able to help you out.

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CarMan@Edmunds

Hi lemur3. As long as you had the damage that was done to your vehicle in the accident repaired properly you definitely will not be liable for an excess wear and tear charges because of it.

As far as all of the excess mileage that you have on your car goes, if I was in your situation, I definitely would place a call to the bank that you are leasing it through and see if they would be willing to lower their purchase price for it. You may have to work your way up the corporate ladder a few rungs before you find anyone who has the authority to work with you though. Of course, there certainly is no guarantee that they will be willing to lower your lease-end purchase price but it definitely is worth a shot. If not, then you may just be better off paying your $3,xxx in excess mileage fees and walking away from your car. I am sorry that there is not a less expensive solution to your problem. Think of it this way, had you leased your car with 15,000 miles per year or purchased excess mileage at the beginning of your lease you still would have had to pay for these miles, it just wouldn't have come with the shock of having to pay it all at one time.

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CarMan@Edmunds

That's great news, HiC. Congratulations on your new car! I am sure that you will be anxiously awaiting its arrival. Definitely stop back and check with me to see if their have been any significant changes to this car's lease program.

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CarMan@Edmunds

Hello agillman. I would be more than happy to help you out. Before I post the information that you are looking for though please keep in mind that Ford's lease program for certain models often varies by region. I will post what I believe is the most commonly available lease parameters for the truck that you are interested in because I do not know the exactly what they are running on it in your neck of the woods. In most areas, if you were to lease a 2003 Ford Expedition Eddie Bauer 2WD through Ford Motor Credit this month for 3 years with 12,000 miles per year, their base lease rate and residual value should be 6.25% and 52%, respectively. Their 4 year numbers for an otherwise identical lease should be 7.00% and 45%, respectively. I do not believe that Ford Motor Credit offers 5 year leases on vehicles so I can't provide you with any information on that length of lease.

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anonymousposts

Ford does do 60 month leases .. they have a few advertised in the paper this weekend.

CarMan@Edmunds

Hey haplology. Happy Groundhog's Day. Unfortunately it looks as though we're in for 6 more weeks of winter. Of course, this really doesn't apply to you over in sunny California, Grrrrrr . OK, let's take a look at the cars that you are interested in. If you were to lease a 2003 Audi A4 1.8T Sedan without quattro through Audi Financial Services this month for 4 years with 15,000 miles per, their base lease money factor should be .00195. I am not sure of this car's exact residual value, but I will post it for you here as soon as I can. If you were to lease a 2003 Mercedes-Benz E320 Sedan through Mercedes-Benz Credit Corp. this month for 4 years with 15,000 miles per, their base lease money factor and residual value should be .00300 and 57%, respectively. The numbers for an otherwise identical lease of a 2003 Mercedes-Benz E500 Sedan should be .00300 and 56%.

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CarMan@Edmunds

Hey tomwannabmw. Dealers certainly do have the right to mark up banks' base lease money factors in order to add additional profit to deals. However, most dealerships will not do so to knowledgeable consumers who know what banks' base lease money factors are. There are plenty of dealers out there. Just tell the person that you are working with that if they will not lease you this car using BMW FS' base money factors you will shop around until you find one who will. If you stand firm, I am sure that they will change their tune very quickly. The same goes for the lease acquisition fee for this car. This dealership isn't exactly being very straightforward with you. I personally would be very turned off by this and would be inclined to shop around a little bit if I was in your situation.

As far as the Documentation Fee goes, most dealerships charge consumers some sort of similar fee. It basically is just added profit, but if you feel as though the total price that you are paying for the car that you are interested in (including this fee) is good, then it doesn't really matter how they break it down. The lease termination fee, or disposition fee as it is sometimes known, is a legitimate charge that many banks assess their lessees with. BMW Financial Services' lease disposition fee is currently $350, so this fee is completely legit.

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CarMan@Edmunds

Hello xmonger. Here is the information that you are looking for. If you were to lease a 2003 BMW X5 3.0 through BMW Financial Services this month for 3 years with 10,000 miles per, their base lease money factor and residual value should be .00235 and 63%, respectively. Good luck in your shopping, and please let me know if you have any other questions.

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bretfraz

Ya know what's goin on with Darkfudge.

What's the MF and residuals for his '03 Civic LX 2 door? I dont know if its an auto or manual or if it has side air bags.

Thanks.

CarMan@Edmunds

Hi squirreljam. Very interesting user ID . Yes, most dealers will indeed cut checks to consumers who trade in vehicles, but do not want to apply their trade in allowance to their new vehicle's purchase price. Having the dealer cut you a check for your trade is actually a very good idea in your situation. I am a big proponent of leasing vehicles with as little money down as possible. Of course, you always have the option of selling your current vehicle privately, but I certainly understand that many people do not enjoy the hassle that is associated with doing so.

As far as the negotiations for your next vehicle go, as you stated in your post vehicles' purchased through supplier purchase programs are usually at a set price so you don't really have to worry about the price of the vehicle that you want. Dealers can mark up certain aspects of leases, like the lease money factor and acquisition fee, in order to add additional profit to deals. However, I believe that in most instances dealers many not mark up these items when writing up employee or supplier leases. Just to be on the safe side, I would be more than happy to give you an idea of what the lease money factor, residual value, and acquisition fee for the Nissan Altima that you are interested in should be like. However, first I am going to need you to tell me exactly what model you are getting, i.e. 2.5 S, 3.5 SE V6, etc..., the length of time that you want to lease it for, and the number of miles per year that you will need to be able to drive without having to pay a lease-end penalty. Once I have this additional information I should be able to help you out. Nissan's current lease program is scheduled to expire tomorrow, so if you want info on their February program check back with me towards the end of the week. I should have an idea of what their new program is like by then.

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CarMan@Edmunds

Hi NJCarguy. Thanks for the kind words. Here is the info that you are looking for. If you were to lease a 2003 Cadillac CTS through General Motors Acceptance Corp. this month for 2 years with 12,000 miles per, their base lease rate and residual value should be 4.95% and 63%, respectively. The 3 year numbers for an otherwise identical lease should currently be 4.95% and 54%. As far as the 2003 Cadillac DeVille goes, its 2 year, 12k numbers should be 3.50% and 60%. Its 3 year numbers should be 3.50% and 53%.

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