diver110

phatz

Are you able to use the lease payment as an expense?

diver110

Sadly, no.

skiahh

Well, if you're leasing, I presume you're looking at a new car or newer car. Those are covered by warranty, so buying or leasing, the maintenance costs - other than routine - aren't really an issue, are they?

diver110

In my case, it is as opposed to buying used. Less out of pocket up front, but perhaps more in the long run, but with less risk. Trying to figure this out.

chsu74

I find the sweet spot value on buying high end cars is at 3 years oldish. 50% off MSRP CPOed. You can have extended warranty just as long as factory warranty with a good look at the car's history for potential issues. Avoid cars that goes back to the dealer often on carfax as an example. Porsche and Mercedes CPO coverage is almost as good as factory.

BenCD

Those with money, high income earners, can afford to lease/rent an expensive vehicle-no problem. Pay more every month, no worries about problems or issues, or even maintenance.

The mfgr's and dealers love lessee's as they will need another vehicle when the lease is up and the money-cycle continues.

If I had the $$$, I'd lease, no question about it. New vehicle every 2-3 years, $400-900 monthly payment=no problem as my weekly/bi-weekly paycheck won't even notice it is gone, but alas, that ain't me.

When I get old and retire, with a pension/RSDI, I may lease, but for now, I'm a buyer and will pay for repairs as they come.

m0ther

Absent taking advantage of shifting the car to OpEx, if you're using a lease so that you can afford a more expensive car, the answer is likely to look at less expensive cars. [Agree with chsu74 there, let someone else pay for the big initial depreciation hit in that case.] The "monthly payment not sticker price" routine is a sales tactic to separate the financially less-than-literate from their money.

BTW The cost of a lease includes the expected depreciation on the vehicle, so you'll pay for that either way.

IMHO ymmv, my $0.02...

TheUnscented

I dunno. At this point in my career leasing a high end vehicle well within my budget and running the payment through my business is justifiable. So is having my business purchase the vehicle and taking advantage of the Section 179 deduction. Furthermore, all repair costs & maintenance are paid for by my business (which I own entirely). That said, I still get a deep satisfaction to turning wrenches myself and doing my own maintenance when possible. I figure that between my cars that I personal drive (not incl the Mrs.) I'll consume about 24k/year.

Last month I decided to throw my local P dealer a bone and have them change the plugs on my CPO CTT while I had them trouble shoot a couple of issues (leaking turbo discovered by me while doing maintenance and a rear hatch close problem). They solved neither of those problems but were successful in extracting $660 from my wallet to change eight pre-gapped spark plugs. Shame on my for not asking the cost prior. The CTT calls for spark plug changes Q 30k miles.So in a lease, will you be able to do $400 oil changes and other maintenance yourself? You'll need to figure that into your calculus.

Smart business use insurance, warranties, maintenance contracts and typically buy or lease new to reduce risk and eliminate the unknowns---but nobody accuses me of being very smart.

BallJack

There probably is no wrong or right answer to your question. I'm guessing that leasing will cost more but the discussion should not end there.

I used to enjoy working on my cars before and really felt good getting a great deal on really nice 3 year old cars. Like chsu74 mentioned, that is the sweet spot. You get a relatively new car for a big discount.

Things change however. Now I just want to drive everyday and not worry about anything with the car. Also I get bored sooner now with my cars and get the itch to change again after a couple of years. I'm a big fan of technology. Almost every year there is a new technology update and I want the latest technology in my cars. I am done upgrading/replacing my car's head unit (for example) so I can get the latest tech. Barely one year into my current lease and I already want to order the new Cayenne coming out this fall. I wonder if my dealer will let me swap to a new one.

Leasing makes more sense for me now (for my daily driver). That's not to say that leasing costs less than buying and reselling after a couple of years - doing the same scenario. I didn't do the math and I don't want to be bothered by the whole reselling effort of my old car. I am okay if leasing costs more. That's the price I'm willing to pay for convenience and my peace of mind.

User 52121

So an old friend of mine leased everything that was high-end - but through his business. He over-paid the lease payments every month... then when it came time to turn the car in, he got a refund check. Nice way to get some money back without the IRS taking their cut.

fourthirteen

This. Used car with remaining factory warranty or, in Porshe's case, a CPO with as-good-as factory warranty is the way i like to go.

TXCOMT

Oh, yeah...CPO all the way! Before we traded our '11 base for a '14 S at the local P dealer, I never put much thought into getting a CPO car, but I'm certainly glad I did now! Our S, the wife's DD, has been back to the shop a couple of times for things that should've been done during the CPO certification process...still, the dealer made it right with no costs out of pocket, so color me happy. I've now become a true believer in the P CPO.

TXCOMT

skiahh

And now (as of 12/1/2017) that the CPO is unlimited miles, it's even more appealing!

User 52121