From everything i've calculated....It should be just about even, with maybe a couple hundred more for the lease. Given it was a lease I was able to negotiate a lower asking price. Typically people would get 4-6% off MSRP and I got 11% off. So its close but its not like i'm owing a huge amount more having leased…

Interesting....Thats good to know.

Gotcha, that was what i figured the case was. I'm stoked it worked out like that for you. I'm hopeful mine works out like I planned like that as well.

That is awesome. But you still had to pay sales tax I'm guessing when you bought the car? Regardless of if you went through the dealer or not for financing I can't see how you would be able to pay off the residual and not pay sales tax on the "sale". But maybe i'm missing something?

Also...I was able to negotiate a lower price on the car doing in on a lease than I would have been able too if I were to finance it. So all my calculations are even slightly better than what it most likely would have been had I financed.

I won't pay more for the car if I'm comparing it to what my finance options would have been. In either case i'm paying more for the car than if I bought it in cash...but that wasn't an option.

Because I was able to get the car for very little down, and an acceptable monthly payment that wouldn't make me go broke based on current income and expenses. And when its all said and done when everything is paid and whatnot if I end up having spent the same or damn near the same as I would have spent if i just…

Right. So its a case by case basis...hence why your "answer" of its typically a bad idea is misleading because there are plenty of instances where it is a fine choice.

Thats the point...is its going to be different for each person for each car, and leases will fluctuate based on the current market value as well. So its insanely hard to generalize a lease as good or bad, and thats all i was trying to say.

I'm currently leasing one. Rough numbers for me were this:

But thats not always the case. I'm currently in a lease that after hours and hours of research and talking with friends who are in leases or ending leases of the same car, and studying the used market for the car, I am confident that with my current lease, down payment, monthly payments, money factor, and residual, I…

Q: Am I (ncasolowork2) making generalizations on leases when each lease individually can vary so drastically that some leases can be good choices instead of buying and some be poor decisions?

Audi S4

Well in order to sell the car privately you have to first buy it from the dealer for the residual price, which they will charge sales tax on like any regular car purchase. So once you factor in that and you still have decent equity left and the market is good yest you should buy your car.

You can't make these statements because leases and their terms change so drastically from car to car its very hard to generalize that leasing is not a good idea or for that matter is a good idea. It has to be assessed on a case by case situation. Not a generalization.

It is true that if you drive under the allotted mileage you won't change the residual, but typically if you exceed the mileage at the end of the lease there is a charge per mile that you have to pay. If you are buying the car out at the end its obviously not an issue, and sometimes if you trade the car in for another…

Depends on the OEM. Some will offer lower monthly payments but higher residuals, others offer higher payments but lower residuals. I am leasing an Audi right now and know a few people who have leased the same car (couple years earlier) that are turning them in or coming to the end of the lease and having cars worth…

Not always the case. I am leasing an Audi S4 right now, and have every intention of buying the car out at the end. The reason I chose to lease instead of buy was 1) I didn't have to put as much down (only $2000 instead of 8-10 grand on financing a brand new car) 2) monthly payments were much lower 3) my money factor…

Yes I agree. I don't see your point. I wasn't saying that there is the same amount of loss in the gearbox on a tesla as there is on a internal combustion engine....I just said there was some.

Good to know. Thanks for clarifying.