The Student Room Group

Leasing vs buying ?

im thinking about leasing a car as opposed to buying does anyone on here do this and if so what would you say are the pros and cons and do you think it's worthwhile ? Also how did leasing affect your insurance and did you take out gap insurance just incase ?
Original post by SC1991
im thinking about leasing a car as opposed to buying does anyone on here do this and if so what would you say are the pros and cons and do you think it's worthwhile ? Also how did leasing affect your insurance and did you take out gap insurance just incase ?


It depends, most people lease the newest cars and it's actually quite expensive,
you might as well buy a cheap car, like an Astra or smart car.
Work out those net present values and decide for yourself. Maybe create some stochastic models to work out the different possibilities and assign probabilities to each one.
leasing is where you cant afford a car but you want to purchase it such as a new 2016 car which means you can pay slowly however you are paying interest
buying is where you can afford a car but you have to pay for it all upfront which is costly but no monthly payments = ease
Original post by zainyyyyy
leasing is where you cant afford a car but you want to purchase it such as a new 2016 car which means you can pay slowly however you are paying interest

Pretty sure leasing is a long term rental rather than purchasing it over time...
no I'm sure you get to keep the car after you pay it all off however there are some rental options
Original post by TheMcSame
Pretty sure leasing is a long term rental rather than purchasing it over time...
Original post by zainyyyyy
no I'm sure you get to keep the car after you pay it all off however there are some rental options

I think you're confusing hire purchase with leasing.
There are a multitude of factors to take into account before you decide leasing is the way to go.

Firstly, is the car one that depreciates more than 50% over 3 years? If so then you will come out ahead through a leasing deal. This of course assumes that you MUST have a brand new car, most consumers buy such cars used rather than new.

Secondly, will you be doing a fairly certain amount of mileage per year? If it is under 9000 per year then it is worthwhile to lease, just remember it will cost you loads of money if you exceed that.

Thirdly, are you a fairly good driver? Any scuffs, dings or scratches to the car will cost you lots of money in repairs when you return that car. Like the 2nd reason, this will need to be settled in full when you return the car at the end of lease.

Finally, do you have a profitable business? If so then the leasing cost can offset your taxes.
Original post by Carthaginian
It depends, most people lease the newest cars and it's actually quite expensive,
you might as well buy a cheap car, like an Astra or smart car.


Not entirely true. Buying a cheap car might seem like you're saving a lot of money to start with, but older cars very often cost a lot to maintain, whereas a brand new car will cost very little.

For example, I used to own a Peugeot 206. Paid 500 for it. Then I spent money fixing faults that popped up and ran it into the ground for the next year, then it was no longer declared roadworthy at MOT and I sold it to a breakers for 60 quid. Overall, including insurance at about 1000 for the year, I spent well over 2 grand on keeping it running throughout the year NOT including petrol that I had it and got practically nothing back. If I'd chosen to repair the car to get it through the MOT, it would have cost upwards of £1000.
Sadly, for a young driver, £2000 a year is almost as cheap as it's gonna get when buying an old used car when everything is factored in. You could end up paying double that if you get a car that develops lots of faults, which you can never guarantee against when buying an older second hand car.

Now I'm leasing a Ford Fiesta Titanium, brand spanking new when I got it. I pay just over 200 a month all in - that includes tax, insurance and breakdown cover, and a maintenance package so I get repairs thrown in. Add that together, I'm paying a similar amount per year that I did to keep the old Peugeot running. I'm driving around in a brand new car, not a worry in the world about it breaking down and I know my repair needs are already covered should anything go wrong, and I know how much it's going to cost me so I can budget for it, no surprise lump sums to pay out when something goes wrong. I also don't have to worry about selling it at the end of the 3 year contract, I'll just give the car back and start a new contract on a brand new car. I'd also have the option to buy the car at the end and it'd only be worth a few grand by that time, plus I know who's had it and what's wrong with it, if anything. At this stage though I have 0 interest in buying a car, leasing keeps me stress-free and allows me to always be driving a car no older than 3 years.

Leasing is the vehicular version of contracts for mobile phones. In both cases, they didn't exactly take off when the idea was first introduced, but over the years more and more people are using these options because the cost isn't significantly more than the alternatives, plus you get a brand new model and it's generally covered if you pay extra for the cover option, which are actually usually cheap to add and pay for themselves if anything does go wrong.
Original post by Cumshot Caliph
Work out those net present values and decide for yourself. Maybe create some stochastic models to work out the different possibilities and assign probabilities to each one.


Pretty much as I was saying above, you have no idea what a used car is going to cost you when you buy it. You could get extremely lucky and experience little to no faults, or you could spend thousands in a single year just to maintain it. With a lease, at least you know what you're paying, and even if you don't get a maintenance package the car is highly unlikely to be in and out of the garage because it'll be brand new.

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