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Lease Questions - Ask Here

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Comments

  • brianabriana Member Posts: 24
    In my last ditch effort to see if I can swing an H3, here are some numbers I got from a dealer. MSRP of $34,654. Selling price of $31,949 (GM in your driveway discount). Acquisition fee of $695, NJ 6% sales tax $627.71, registration fee of $349, tire tax $7.50, doc fee of $149, refundable security deposit of $525. All these add up to total inception fees of $2353.

    At 15K mi/year, 36 months, residual of 62%, and an 8.75% lease rate, my payment is $508. Besides the fact that I think all of the fees are on the high side, does this payment make sense to you? Just seems really high to me.

    I told the dealer this and she came back with a different bank's rate (not sure what the rate is) but it was $2500 inception, $489/mo. Still just seems high, wondering your thoughts. Thank you very much.
  • rjb6rjb6 Member Posts: 29
    Once you determine what you will be buying the car for, what are the variables you are able to negotiate during the lease process?

    I assume you can not negotiate the car's residual value, or how much you pay for millage overage charges?

    Please tell me what factors I should focus on when comparing / shopping.
  • hbomberhbomber Member Posts: 17
    Negotiate the selling price first and foremost. When they ask you what you want your payment to be, tell them let's negiotate the price first and you go find your little troll manager, crunch some numbers and get back to me.

    See what that say about the residual and MF, from what I understand, I'm not an expert is that it is set by the financial insitution through the dealer and you can always try an outside financial insitution.

    Research the internet constantly, you will find what you're looking for, here is a good start.
  • jaydeepbjaydeepb Member Posts: 5
    Hi,

    I'm currently on the last 2 months of my BMW lease and looking to get a new car. Do dealers
    offer a sort of buyout where I can lease a new car right now? I'm looking for an X3 3.0.
    What is the MF and Residual currently for a 36 month/12k lease?

    Thanks for the info.
    Jay
  • kflkfl Member Posts: 22
    Hi CarMan!!

    I had not thought about leasing, but purchasing. If I purchase certified used on a 2004 Lexus RX330 or 2003 RX300, I can get as low as 1.9% financing. If I go with the Murano (no certified program that I am aware of), I would go with a demo, 2004 or 2005. Subaru has no special financing, at least not yet. Have you heard of anything on the B9.

    ANY help in the decision making would REALLY appreciated. Of course, it would help if I could just make up my mind.

    Thanks.
    kfl
  • stormy111stormy111 Member Posts: 16
    Car_man:

    Thanks for the previous info on lowering residual by buying mileage up front. Honda will only do that for first 3k miles per year according to 2 dealerships. Anyway, your thoughts on this lease deal:

    Honda CR-V 2005 SE - $25565 MSRP with shipping - $24,800 cap cost
    CT Sales Tax @ 6%
    Convey Fee $199
    Reg Fee $155
    Roof rack, wheel locks, VIN etch, splash guards, pinstripe (it was already on) for $350

    Delivery due balance (includes first month lease pmt): $1,127.80
    Payments: $402.80 @ 35 payments (12k/yr)
    Residual (58%): $14,827.70 (we will buy at lease end)
    Money factor is 0.00255 (*ugh*) but both Honda dealers have been the same

    CR-V's seem to be tight in CT - only seen 6 SE's between 4 dealerships I went to.

    Thanks.
    Stormy111
  • dwynnedwynne Member Posts: 4,018
    Honda does not seem to have much trouble selling CR-Vs, so they don't have a great lease deal on them. Accords, Civics, and S2000s all have deals on them now.

    Check over at leasecompare.com - it looks like with A credit they will do the lease for 0.00232 - but with a little lower residual. Looks like they can do leases with up to 20k per year as well. They would buy the CR-V you found at your price then lease it to you.

    I know of dealers that will price the SE around $23,700 but none that are close to CT :-( If you are willing to travel some, the dealers in the Boston and NJ areas seem to be pretty aggressive on price. I don't know if there is enough savings to justify much travel, though.

    Dennis
  • conancconanc Member Posts: 14
    Carman,
    Still trying to decide between Saab and Honda. My head tells me to run with the Honda deal and lower monthly payment but as a former Saab owner, my heart tells me how much I love the quirkiness of Saabs. Selling price still seems a little high here to me from what I have been reading about the incentives offered through Saab. How does this look to you? Thank you!!

    Both are 0 down sign and drive programs:
    Saab 93 Linear:
    MSRP: 31,145
    Selling Price: 28,578
    12,000 miles & 24 months: $443.00; residual: .57; money factor: .00176

    12,000 miles & 36 months: $387.00; residual 47; money factor: .00125

    Saab 92-X Linear:
    MSRP: 26,135
    Selling Price: 24,303
    12,000 miles & 24 months: $398.00; residual: .58; money factor: .00167

    12,000 miles & 36 months:$ 367.00; residual: .48; money factor: .00184
  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    You're welcome gpearce. You are absolutely right, this car's lease program is not very good right now. If I was in the market for one, I personally would probably finance it through Volvo Finance at 2.9% for 5 years or through an independent bank and take advantage of the $1,850 dealer cash. Let's see what sort of monthly payment a 36 month lease of this car would yield. According to my calculations, if you were to lease a 2005 Volvo V50 T5 with an MSRP of $33,000 and a selling price of $30,940 through Volvo Finance right now for 39 months with 15,000 miles per year, your zero down, pre-tax monthly payment should be around $481.

    Car_man
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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Hi dino001. Edmunds.com has two very informative articles on how leasing works. I highly recommend them to every community member who has never leased before, or who doesn't completely understand how it works: 10 Steps to Leasing a New Car and Calculate Your Own Lease Payment.

    Car_man
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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Hello amk. $500 over dealer invoice is a good price for this truck. Let's calculate a lease payment on it for you and see what we come up with. According to my calculations, if you were to lease a 2005 Acura MDX (non-Touring and without navigation or the rear entertainment system) with an MSRP of $37,470 and a selling price of $34,350 through American Honda Finance Corp. right now for 36 months with 12,000 miles per year, your zero down, pre-tax monthly payment should be around $402. I used a lease money factor of .00178 and a residual value of 63% to arrive at this payment.

    Car_man
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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Welcome Rob. I think that you have made a good choice in cars. The Mazda3 provided good value for the money. You never mentioned how long you want to lease this car for or how many miles per year you need to be able to drive it, so for now I will assume that you are interested in a lease that is the same as Mazda's advertised lease for this model, a 3 year lease with 12,000 miles per. Mazda Credit's current base lease money factor and residual value for a 2005 Mazda3i Sedan with an automatic transmission leased for these parameters should be .00056 and 51%, respectively.

    Car_man
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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Thanks for the additional information, conanc. OK, let's work up a sample lease payment using Honda's actual lease program to compare to the one that you were quoted. According to my calculations, if you were to lease a 2005 Honda Accord LX 4-cylinder Sedan with an MSRP of $21,090 and a selling price of $18,587 through American Honda Finance Corp. right now for 36 months with 12,000 miles per year, your zero down, pre-tax monthly payment should be around only $216. This car's payment would be higher if you had your security deposit waived, probably around $219. If you had the security deposit waived and your acquisition fee rolled into your capitalized cost it would increase to around $235 before tax assuming that you don't like in a state that AHFC charges a higher acquisition fee in.

    Car_man
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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Thanks for the kind words, s60leaser. The lease payments that I calculate for community members here at Edmunds.com never include sales tax because the tax rates and the methods for calculating sales tax on leased vehicles vary from area to area. If I came up with a payment of around $395 on this vehicle that you are interested in, but you were quoted $450 including tax, this would account for some of the difference. If you tell one of the dealers that you are working with exactly how much you want to pay for this car, what its MSRP is, and that you know what Volvo Finance's published lease money factor and residual value are for it you should be able to find one that is willing to work with you.

    Car_man
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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Hey jgbanker. Most banks allow dealers to mark-up the acquisition fees, aka bank fees, for leased vehicles and then kick back most or all of the increase. This sort of thing is completely legal and happens all the time, but can be avoided by doing research and finding out what the base acquisition fee is for the bank that you are leasing through. Chrysler Financial's base lease acquisition fee is definitely currently $550. If you are being charged any more than this, the fee is being marked-up.

    I will now calculate a sample lease payment on the truck that you are interested in for you. According to my calculations, if you were to lease a 2005 Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo 4WD with an MSRP of $34,670 and a capitalized cost of $31,279 through Chrysler Financial right now for 36 months with 12,000 miles per year, your zero down, pre-tax monthly payment should be around $461. The reason why your vehicle's payment is so high is because its selling price is a little on the high side. Taking the fact that DaimlerChrysler is providing $2,500 lease cash and a $1,000 bonus for consumers who trade in their current vehicle or turn in their leased vehicle on the '05 Grand Cherokee in June, you definitely should be able to negotiate a lower selling price.

    Car_man
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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Congratulations on your new car, jtoss15. The lease money factor and residual value that were used to calculate your car's lease payment are right on the money. I personally would have avoided making such a large capitalized cost reduction on this lease, though. Other than that, this looks like a reasonable deal. Enjoy your new car.

    Car_man
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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    CADub49er, adding navigation to this deal would not only change this vehicle's selling price, but its MSRP as well. I need to know what the new MSRP of the vehicle that you are interested in leasing is before I can calculate a sample payment on it for you.

    Car_man
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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Hi cartalk1. As long as you have not physically driven off in your new car, which you haven't, you should be able to easily get out of this deal. Having said this, getting your $500 deposit back is an entirely different batter. Was is supposedly refundable? Either way, if you are persistent there is a good chance that you will be able to get it back if you want to back out of this deal.

    Car_man
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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Welcome back, hartt. Here is the information that you are looking for. If you were to lease a 2005 Nissan Maxima SE through Nissan Motor Acceptance Corp. right now for 36 months (the 36 month term is definitely better than the 39 month term) with 15,000 miles per year, its base lease money factor and residual value should be .00065 and 52%, respectively. The numbers for an otherwise identical lease of a 2006 Honda Ridgeline RTS should be around .00245 and 61%. Toyota is not currently providing any sort of lease support that I am aware of on the new Avalon. As a result, if you were to lease one through Toyota Financial Services right now, you would have to use its standard lease money factor. The last time that I saw its base standard factor for Tier 1+ customers, it was around .00245. TFS' current 36 month, 15,000 miles per year residual value for the 2005 Avalon (non-Limited) should be 58%.

    Car_man
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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Greetings dscars. You never mentioned the selling price of the car that you are interested in leasing. This is an important number for you as a consumer to know for two reasons. First, the selling prices of leased vehicles can be negotiated, just as if you were paying cash for them. Without knowing the price of the car that you want to lease you don't know how good a price you are getting it for. The second reason is that one needs the selling price of a vehicle that they want to lease is that it is necessary to calculate its lease payment. I would be more than happy to work up a sample lease payment on the car that you are interested in for you if you let me know what its selling price is.

    Car_man
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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    You're in a good area of the country to lease this truck right now, safire574. The $2,500 lease cash that you are eligible for is only available in a small portion of the country, in the Detroit area and surrounding states. General Motors Acceptance Corp. publishes lease rates instead of money factors for the vehicles that it leases. One can convert its published lease rates into equivalent money factor equivalents by dividing them by 2400. I thought that GMAC's base lease rate for the 2005 GMC Yukon XL was only 6.0%, but this may vary by region. Using the lease rate that you were quoted (7.0%), a residual value of 53%, and MSRP of $48,800 and a selling price of $39,000, I estimate that this truck should have a zero down, pre-tax monthly payment of around $555. If a 6.0% lease rate was used to calculate this truck's payment, it would drop to around $528. It looks like the payment that you were quoted from this dealer is not as far off as you had thought.

    Car_man
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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Hi sportycar1. $625 per month is about double what you should pay to lease a 2005 Saab 9-3 Arc. If you are currently $6,000 upside down on your leased vehicle it would be in your best interest to wait until you are much less upside down, or better yet until the scheduled end of your lease to get something new.

    Car_man
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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Hello Jay. Since you are new to the world of leasing, you definitely should check out the following informative articles that are available here at Edmunds.com prior to visiting any dealers: 10 Steps to Leasing a New Car and Calculate Your Own Lease Payment.

    You never mentioned the selling price or MSRP of the car that you are interested in leasing. These are important number for you as a consumer to know for two reasons. First, the selling prices of leased vehicles can be negotiated, just as if you were paying cash for them. Without knowing this car's selling price in relation to its MSRP you don't know how much of a discount you are getting on it. The second reason is that one needs the selling price and MSRP, including the destination charge, of a vehicle to calculate its lease payment. I would be more than happy to work up a sample lease payment on the car that you are interested in for you if you let me know what these numbers are.

    Car_man
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  • dscarsdscars Member Posts: 3
    Car Man, here is the information you requested.
    MSRP 63284 Selling Price 60000 Residual 30000 approx
    Thanks for your help
  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    While you can go to the DMV or BMW, depending upon what your state calls it, to pay your own registration, etc... most consumers who lease vehicles have their dealers do the work for them. I know that I can't stand going to the DMV and would gladly pay a little extra for the convenience of having the dealer take care of this.

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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Hi rblnr. I haven't seen any posts from community members who have leased a Subaru Tribeca yet, but if you let me know the MSRP and selling price of the one that you are interested in leasing, I would be more than happy to give you my opinion on its price and calculate a sample lease payment on it using Subaru's actual lease program. You may be able to find out more informaiton on how much others are paying for this truck right now by visiting the following discussion: "Subaru B9 Tribeca (B9X)".

    Car_man
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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Hey briana. It looks to me as though the dealer that you are working with is marking up a couple of things in an effort to make some additional back-end profit on your deal. In your area right now, GMAC's base lease rate on the 2006 H3 is only 7.75%, not 8.75%. Furthermore, for New Jersey residents GMAC's lease acquisition fee is currently only $595, not the $695 that you were quoted. Let's calculate a sample lease payment on this truck using GMAC's actual lease program and see what we come up with. According to my calculations, if you were to lease a 2006 Hummer H3 with an MSRP of $34,654 and a selling price of $31,949 through GMAC right now for 36 months with 15,000 miles per year, your pre-tax monthly payment should be around $464, without a capitalized cost reduction.

    Car_man
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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Your assumptions are correct, rjb6. Vehicles' residual values and excess mileage charges are not negotiable. The two most important numbers to focus on when negotiating a lease are your vehicle's selling price and the lease money factor that is being used to calculate its monthly payment. The selling prices of leased vehicles can be negotiated, just as if you were paying cash. Shop around and get the best selling price that you can for the car or truck that you want and then have the dealer calculate a lease payment on it for you, making sure that they use its base lease money factor, aka buy rate. For more information on wort to look for when leasing and how it works, make sure to check out the following informative articles that are available here at Edmunds.com: 10 Steps to Leasing a New Car and Calculate Your Own Lease Payment.

    Car_man
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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Hi Jay. The only way that consumers can get out of the last remaining month or two of their current leases without having pay money is if they are leasing with a bank that is running an early lease termination program that will waive their remaining payments at no charge, like the one that DaimlerChrysler is running on Chrysler Group products at this time. I do not believe that BMW Financial Services is currently running an early lease termination program, as a result someone will have to make your vehicle's remaining two payments if you end your lease early. You may find a dealer that says it will make these remaining payments for you, but in reality the fact that they are doing so only hampers your ability to get the best possible deal on your new car or truck.

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  • joeb38joeb38 Member Posts: 5
    This forum may be the single most valuable spot on the Web for a car buyer!
    I have a firm offer as follows on a 2005 A-6 3.2 with Convenience Pkg, Premium Pkg. Cold Weather Pkg. and satellite 17 in wheels without Nav.

    36 month lease
    MSRP: $47,970
    Cap Cost/ selling price $44,545
    12K miles per year
    0 down payment
    Money Factor .00110
    Bank Fee 800
    Security Deposit $600
    Taxes due on lease $1878 (Long Island NY 8.5%) not included in monthly payment.

    Above was quoted to me as 582 per month and 3913 due at signing for first months made up of first months paymt $582, bank fee 800, 1878 tax, regist fee 67 refundable security deposit of $600.

    Is this good enough to pull the trigger on?

    Thanks as always
  • joeb38joeb38 Member Posts: 5
    I left out the residual on my previous post. It is 53%. Thanks

    This forum may be the single most valuable spot on the Web for a car buyer!
    I have a firm offer as follows on a 2005 A-6 3.2 with Convenience Pkg, Premium Pkg. Cold Weather Pkg. and satellite 17 in wheels without Nav.

    36 month lease
    MSRP: $47,970
    Cap Cost/ selling price $44,545
    12K miles per year
    0 down payment
    Money Factor .00110
    Bank Fee 800
    Security Deposit $600
    Taxes due on lease $1878 (Long Island NY 8.5%) not included in monthly payment.

    Above was quoted to me as 582 per month and 3913 due at signing for first months made up of first months paymt $582, bank fee 800, 1878 tax, regist fee 67 refundable security deposit of $600.

    Is this good enough to pull the trigger on?

    Thanks as always
  • brianabriana Member Posts: 24
    Hey CarMan, thanks for the info. I think I've finally talked myself out of the H3, too high of a payment for not enough car.

    I did however put a refundable security deposit on a 2005.5 Audi A4 3.2 quattro, premium, cold weather, and lighting packages, 3 years, 15K mi/year, MSRP is $39,870. I didn't ask about the money factor or residual as it seems they're giving me a pretty decent deal....$1000 total out of pocket, $540/month. In a previous post you told me the MF is currently .00135 and residual is 54%. In your opinion, is the offer I was given good or could I do better (I'm in NJ btw, 6% tax)? I actually emailed 2 other Audi dealers, told them my deal, and asked if they could beat it. One got back to me pretty fast and said yes, but I haven't talked to them yet as it was just before the close on Saturday. I need to get back to the original dealer by tomorrow, Monday. I'm just not sure if I could do better as they are currently taking orders for the 2006 A4 and might be looking to move the 2005.5 model. Thanks for all your help, I might finally be done asking you questions for another 3 years!
  • darthkendarthken Member Posts: 30
    Hi all,

    Getting ready to "trade in" my Honda CRV whose lease is about to expire - i.e. trade it to a dealer as part of buying a new car. Just noticed on the lease contract (not AHFC) that the buyout price will be Residual Value + Tax + "Purchase Option Fee of $250".

    Has anyone ever heard of such a fee? I will call them and ask them to waive it, since in theory they don't want the car back. But I'd be curious to know if this is a common fee or a quirk of this company (Bank One). Note: this is not a Vehicle Return Fee (charged if you do not purchase at the end of the lease) - that is listed separately as $350.

    Thanks!
    Ken
  • dwynnedwynne Member Posts: 4,018
    This is common in 3rd party lease contracts. They charge you a fee if you turn it in and they charge you if you buy it. It was in the contract you signed :-)

    Have the dealer get a buyout price from the lease bank and compare that to what they are allowing for the trade. With a popular truck like the CR-V then you may be able to carry from positive equity into your next deal. If not, then just pay the fee and turn the truck end at the end of the lease then negotiate your next ride without the hassle of the trade in.

    Dennis
  • jitters503jitters503 Member Posts: 10
    Hey what should I know about leasing a G35 coupe, automatic, premium pkg., navigation, rear spoiler?

    Also, I have a leased jetta with 30 months left... is it possible to turn that lease over to someone or do u think Infiniti would take it?
  • dwynnedwynne Member Posts: 4,018
    Thanks again for the info.

    Let me make sure I have this right, you first said:

    If you were to lease a 2005 Mazda RX-8 with an automatic transmission through Mazda's captive finance company right now for 3 years with 15,000 miles per, its base lease money factor and residual value should be .00148 and 46%, respectively

    then said

    The numbers for a 2 year, 15,000 miles per lease of a 2005 Mazda RX-8 are currently .00107 and 55%, respectively. Mazda's 12,000 miles per year residual values are 2% higher than its 15,000 miles per year residuals. The residual values for RX-8s with manual transmissions are 2% higher than the resids for models with auto. trans.

    So if I am reading this right, a manual tranny RX-8 should be for a 12k miles per year lease:

    0.00148 and 50% for 36 months

    OR

    0.00107 and 59% for 24 months?

    The dealer is quoting 0.00112 and 59% for 24 months and I have seen other folks post 0.00122 with no security deposit. So maybe MAC does like AHFS and will waive the security deposit for an additional 0.0001 on the MF?

    Best deal so far for a manual RX-8 with the right equipment is $28,015 (this is counting MAC rebates, other rebates, and discount off invoice) on a car with MSRP of $33,685.

    Using the dealer supplied 0.00122 and 59% I get $392.84 for 24/24k, using your 0.00107 I get $390.44 for 24/24k. So even if the dealer is jacking up the MF it matters little.

    Using your 0.00148 and 50% I get $376.74 for 36/36k.

    Sound right to you? Do you know if MAC waives security for 0.0001 higher MF? It is $425 acquisition fee for MAC leases?

    Thanks much!
    Dennis
  • joker382joker382 Member Posts: 6
    Carman, is this a good deal? A 2005 Accord Coupe EXL. Lease price 279 a month for 36 months wth 12K a year. MSRP is 25,600 and the resid. is 13,600. I think the money factor was .00122 (not 100% postive) Now in order to get that monthly payment it was 2421 due at signing for first month, bank aqu. fee of 1095, ny state tax (I think it was 898) and registration fees. Only extra was the plate fees that I pay when I get there. Thats also including a trade in worth 2200. So does that sound like a good deal?
  • rblnrrblnr Member Posts: 124
    Thanks car man,

    Here are those #s:

    MSRP: 39,278
    selling price: 37,359

    and to remind, this yielded 489.14/mo., 12K miles, 36 mo. lease. -- 39 mo. lease is 459.00

    Would be great to have your opinion, have visited the forum you suggest and no info. there. I am, btw., trying to negotiate down the selling price.
  • cadub49ercadub49er Member Posts: 42
    Hi Car_Man - Can you estimate the payment using 15K miles/36 months/48months and the GMC Employee price of $31,650 on same vehicle. The $2500 does or does not apply here? The MSRP would be the GMC Employee price? Otherwise the actual price would have been $39,215 based on the options. Want to put zero down and only the necessary drive off

    GMC site shows a residual of $22508 but that is based on the higher price. Running figures on the GMC Smart Lease program does not seem so "smart" when I am plugging in numbers there. What is the difference between this and the SmartBuy program?

    Thanks.....I will make sure Edmunds takes care of you for all the work you do
    CADub49er
  • grayaudisgrayaudis Member Posts: 2
    Hi Car Man! Does this lease offer seem like a good deal?

    The car is a brand new Audi A4 2005.5 arriving in July, 2005: $420 per month on a 24 month closed end lease with a 15K per year mileage allowance - with a 67% Residual Factor, the Residual being $23664.40 at lease end - on a vehicle purchase price, or Cap Cost, of $33530 - with an MSRP of $35320. $3400 Lease Inception Cash is due at signing (which includes a $400 security deposit; a Cap Reduction of $1516; the first month lease payment of $420; $129 tax on Cap Cost; and a $289 License Fee). There is a $575 Bank Acquisition Fee and an Audi Buy Down of $500 charged to me to reduce the Money Factor from 0.00135 down to 0.00072. My questions are: Is it standard practice to charge a "buy down" fee on Money Factor? Is that normally a separate, additional fee from the Bank Acquisition Fee? They are placing the $500 Audi Money Factor Buy Down within the Lease Inception Cash and the $575 Bank Acquistion Fee within the Cap Cost of $33530. Is this standard practice? If so, is it worth is for me to purchase the additional Buy Down and lower the Money Factor from 0.00135 to 0.00072?

    Thanks!!!
  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Ahhh, I see what you mean kfl. Purchasing a used Lexus RX 330 / RX 300 is definitely a viable alternative to leasing a new Nissan Murano or Subaru Tribeca, especially after taking the special financing rate that Lexus is offering on CPO vehicles right now into account. Other than a lease program, which is not really that special, Subaru is not currently offering any sort of incentives on the Tribeca. While I can't sell you which vehicle to choose, I can set your mind at ease by telling you that you really can't go wrong with any of the choices that you mentioned. I think that I personally would be leaning towards leasing a new Nissan Murano over leasing a Tribeca or purchasing a CPO RX 330 in case you are interested.

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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    You're welcome Stormy111. You are right, Honda's lease money factor on the 2005 CR-V is not very attractive right now. The .00255 factor that you were quoted is right in line with American Honda Finance Corp.'s base standard lease money factor for consumers who have their security deposit waived though. As far as your truck's selling price goes, I am not personally all that familiar with what the market is like for the 2005 Honda CR-V right now in your area, but you may be able to get a better idea by speaking with other community members who have recently purchased similar trucks over in the following discussion: "Honda CR-V: Prices Paid & Buying Experience".

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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Hey conanc. As I am sure you are aware, Saab is owned by General Motors. As a result, Saabs are eligible for the special GM Employee Purchase Price foe Everyone program that is being run right now. You should be able to buy any Saab that you want at the employee purchase price and automatically have any cash incentives that are available deducted from it. Something is not right about the selling prices that you were quoted for these vehicles. In addition to the employee purchase price, Saab is providing $3,500 cash on leases of the 2005 9-3 Linear Sedan and $2,500 lease cash on leases of the 2005 9-2X Linear. Make sure that these cash incentives are deducted from the capitalized costs of both of these cars before your lease payment is calculated. At least the lease money factors that you were quoted are right in line with Saab Financial Services' current money factors for these models.

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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Thanks for the additional information, dscars. Let's work up a sample lease payment and see what we come up with. According to my calculations, if you were to lease a 2005 Lexus LS 430 (non-Custom Luxury / non-Ultra Luxury and without navigation) with an MSRP of $63,284 and a selling price of $60,000 through Lexus Financial Services right now for 48 months with 12,000 miles per year, your zero down, pre-tax monthly payment should be around $734. This will vary a little depending upon what credit tier you qualify for and whether you have your car's security deposit waived or not.

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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Welcome joeb38. I am glad that you enjoy this discussion so much. The lease money factor that you were quoted is right in line with Audi Financial Services' published factor for this model and term. The selling price of the car that you are interested in looks good as well. You have to pay a high acquisition fee, $800, but this is exactly what AFS charges all consumers who lease vehicles through it in New York. I just calculated a lease payment on this car using the informaiton that you provided in your post and came up with the exact same payment that you were quoted. This deal looks good to me. If you like the car I don't see any reason not to pull the trigger.

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  • rroyce10rroyce10 Member Posts: 9,332
    ...... If it's on the contract, then that's what you owe .. it's pretty standard stuff with Bank One ....

    Also .. since the dealer has nothing to do with the lease, you need to be getting the pay-off from the bank, not the dealer .......

    Terry.
  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    No problem briana. You never mentioned the selling price of the A4 that you are interested in leasing. This is an important number for you as a consumer to know for two reasons. First, the selling prices of leased vehicles can be negotiated, just as if you were paying cash for them. Without knowing the price of the car that you want to lease you don't know how good a price you are getting it for. The second reason is that one needs the selling price of a vehicle that they want to lease is that it is necessary to calculate its lease payment. I would be more than happy to work up a sample lease payment on the car that you are interested in for you if you let me know what its selling price is.

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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Hi Ken. A number of banks charge purchase option fees to consumers who want to purchase their leased vehicles at the end of their term. Similarly, many banks charge lease disposition fees to consumers who just return their vehicles at lease-end. Some banks, mainly manufacturers' captive finance companies, will waive their lease-end fees for consumers who lease another new vehicle through them. I would be surprised if you were able to get this fee waived, especially since it is Bank One is an independent banks and it is unlikely that you will be leasing your next vehicle through them.

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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    Hi jitters503. I am sorry to say that it is usually fairly expensive to get out of leases well before their scheduled end dates. In order to do so, you need to purchase the vehicle that you are currently leasing from the bank that you are leasing it through. It often turns out that it costs more to do so than your vehicle is worth on the open market. Furthermore, many banks expect consumers who end their leases early to still make all, or at least the depreciation portion of their remaining lease payments. As you can see, this can get very expensive.

    You can determine approximately how much it will cost you to get out of your current lease by comparing its purchase price to its value on the open market at this time. You should place a call to the bank that you are leasing your vehicle through to find out its exact price. Once you know exactly how much money it is going to cost you to buy your leased vehicle you need to compare it to its current value on the open market. You can find out approximately what your vehicle is worth by looking up its Edmunds.com True Market Value in the Used Vehicle Pricing section of this site. You also may want to stop by the following discussion: sysop, "Real-World Trade-In Values" #, 15 Dec 2000 2:07 am. One of our most knowledgeable community members, Terry, frequents that discussion and he is often kind enough to give community members who give him an accurate description of their vehicles with his opinion on their value. Don't forget to check to see if you are still on the hook for your remaining lease payments. The difference between your leased vehicle's current value and how much it will cost you to buy it plus any remaining lease payments that you are obligated to pay will equal the cost of getting out of your lease right now. You may find that you are better off waiting until you are closer to the scheduled end of your lease to get another new vehicle.

    You can look into finding someone to assume your lease, but unless you got a very good deal or you subsidize your current lease out of your own pocket, you may have a hard time finding someone to take over your current lease especially with such a long time remaining on it.

    I would be more than happy to give you an idea of what Infiniti's current lease program on the G35 Coupe is like. However, in order for me to do so I need you to tell me how long you want to lease it for and how many miles per year you need to be able to drive it. I also can calculate a sample lease payment on the car that you are interested in for you if you would like. In order for me to do so I need you to tell me its full MSRP and selling price.

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  • CarMan@EdmundsCarMan@Edmunds Member Posts: 38,514
    You're welcome dwynne. The only difference between Mazda's lease program for the RX-8 with an automatic transmission and an RX-8 with a manual transmission is the manual's residuals are 2% higher. These vehicles' money factors should be exactly the same, .00107 for a 2 year lease and .00148 for a 3 year lease in June. I would not be surprised if Mazda Credit waived its security deposit requirement in exchange for an increase of .00010 in vehicles' money factors. I just calculated sample payments on the car that you are interested in using the numbers that you provided in your post and I also came up with $390.44 for a 2 year, 12,000 miles per lease and $376.74 for a 3 year, 12K lease. I believe that Mazda Credit's acquisition fee is currently $475.

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