Quote:
Originally Posted by kingofthedemo
Leasing a car is a really, really, poor financial decision, think about it, you are going to pay $39,000+ to essentially rent a car for three years. After the three years is up you have lost all of that money and you have no investment gained, no asset of your own, you would be so much better off just paying for a used m3 with cash (you can pick one up for $39k), that way you will actually have something that you own.
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I disagree, some cars are better to lease than others. Making a blanket statement about leasing (or buying) isn't fair for those who are asking for advice here.
A car is a depreciating asset, no matter how you obtain it (lease, buy, etc). Even if he bought the car today, after 3 years the car would be worth roughly the same amount as if he leased it (simplified comparison, I know).
The benefit of a lease is that the residual value at least end is set today, whereas when you buy it, the market dictates the value. Imagine if gas shot up to $10/gallon in 3 years from now. The market for V8/gas-guzzling cars will be much smaller, and the value of the car might be artificially lower than what it would be at lower gas prices. A lease protects you from that market value "gap". In exchange, you pay a slightly higher interest rate to the leasing company.
His MF is equivalent to roughly 4.2% APR, which isn't great, but also isn't bad for a lease.
In today's world of near free money, it makes no sense to pay for any car in cash. You are better off doing 100% financing or simply leasing with as close to $0 up front as possible. For some, leasing is the only affordable way of driving a brand new car, compared to 100% financing over a 36 or 60 month term.