DocCat

OK-

I own a '96 Subaru Impreza AWD in perfect condition with only 43k miles on it. I will trade this in...

I typically drive only 10-12k miles per year.

I tend to keep my vehicles in perfect condition.

I do tend to enjoy "owning" things.

...on the other hand, I hate blowing 31K on a car...

what makes more sense for someone like me?

sboje

If you would keep the car for 4 or more years, I'd recommend purchasing. If 3 years or less, leasing can really make sense. The worst thing you can do is lease for 3 years, and then buy the car. The interest you pay when you do this (especially if you choose a 5 yer loan) is ridiculous. If you would like an example to illustrate the point, please let me know. Of course, this is from a financial point of view only.

If the TL-S is towards the top of the line of what you can afford, I recommend putting some extra cash away each month when you lease. I say this because at the end of the lease, you have no down payment for the next lease/purchase (if you bought, you had equity in a trade for down payment/fees).

Xorg

Oh I completely disagree with that!

In fact, in my case, leasing and then buying will save me money - on both my TLS and my Saab 9-3! It all depends on what the rates are, the lease rate on my Saab is 1.9%, and I'm going to end up paying around $28,000 for a $31,500 car. The lease rate on my TLS is 6.72%, the cheapest financing I could find was 6.99%.

I can also write off most of the lease and the auto expenses since I use the car for business purposes.

<FONT COLOR="#800080" SIZE="1" FACE="Verdana, Arial">[This message has been edited by Xorg on June 16, 2001 @ ]</font>

sboje

I'm talking in general. Obviously if a car has such weak demand that the manufacturer has to offer 1.9% financing, and a residual that is below market value, things will work out differently.

I agree that self employment alters the equation.

Xorg

It's not even self employment - if you use your car for business purposes aside from driving to and from work (in my case, visiting clients), you can write off a percentage of the mileage and maintenance expenses.