Am I a sucker for leasing all of our family cars?

[Anonymous]

I drive a company car, my wife's new loaded Tahoe is only $600/m and our teen's car is only $150/m. For $750/m we get latest technology, never have to worry about maintenance, free onstar, satellite radio, roadside, loaners. It seems like a no brainer. We bought our oldest a used car but it was a pain in the arse to deal with tires, breaks, etc., so we've leased everything ever since.

[Anonymous]

Yes.

[Anonymous]

yes.

[Anonymous]

Yes.

[Anonymous]

We do the same thing. It works for us. I'm always the one giving rides to people who have their cars stuck in the shop for one issue or another. They can sink their money into a depreciating asset if they want. Car payments are a line item in our budget, and we'd rather pay a fixed amount each month than end up with high car repair bills unexpectedly. It may not make sense to others but it makes sense to us.

[Anonymous]

you never have to pay for maintenance?

[Anonymous]

It depends. If you would drive a car for ten years, then you should buy it. If, like my dh, you would get a new car every 3 years anyway, you're better off leasing. That's one area where he splurges as he loves cars. Other areas where other people spend a lot of money, he doesn't.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We do the same thing. It works for us. I'm always the one giving rides to people who have their cars stuck in the shop for one issue or another. They can sink their money into a depreciating asset if they want. Car payments are a line item in our budget, and we'd rather pay a fixed amount each month than end up with high car repair bills unexpectedly. It may not make sense to others but it makes sense to us.

Please, your lease payments will pay for a *lot* of ubers, and modern cars are so reliable that getting 10 years without major repair is pretty common.

[Anonymous]

You are playing quite a bit extra for convenience. Do you also rent your living quarters so you don't have to do any maintenance?

[Anonymous]

Don't you still have to pay for tires and brake jobs on leased cars? Those are the two decent-sized maintenance costs associated with owning a car.

If you add up the amount you're paying per car per month for the lease it's significantly higher than what you'd pay to buy the car even including repair costs.

[Anonymous]

Depends on the lease and your needs. Honestly it's a lot more complicated than the "no" chorus -- who read that the answer should always be "no" in some financial book 20 years ago--would say.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Don't you still have to pay for tires and brake jobs on leased cars? Those are the two decent-sized maintenance costs associated with owning a car.

If you add up the amount you're paying per car per month for the lease it's significantly higher than what you'd pay to buy the car even including repair costs.

You need new tires and "brake jobs" in a three-year old vehicle? Conceivably tires, but stop riding the breaks grandma.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Don't you still have to pay for tires and brake jobs on leased cars? Those are the two decent-sized maintenance costs associated with owning a car.

If you add up the amount you're paying per car per month for the lease it's significantly higher than what you'd pay to buy the car even including repair costs.

You need new tires and "brake jobs" in a three-year old vehicle? Conceivably tires, but stop riding the breaks grandma.

^ brakes

[Anonymous]

Yes. Fools rent, owners buy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We do the same thing. It works for us. I'm always the one giving rides to people who have their cars stuck in the shop for one issue or another. They can sink their money into a depreciating asset if they want. Car payments are a line item in our budget, and we'd rather pay a fixed amount each month than end up with high car repair bills unexpectedly. It may not make sense to others but it makes sense to us.

The implication of this statement is that you will end up better off, financially, with a lease than by purchasing a new car. That is just not true. There are valid reasons to lease a car - you want a new car every year, you can write off the lease and its easier, you temporarily need low payments, etc. - but deluding yourself that it's a savvy financial move is not one of them. It is unequivocally more economical to keep a car for 8-10 years than it is to lease it.