Buy or lease? Lease or buy? Choices! Choices! The idea of owning is positively mouthwatering, but being able to trade in for a new car every few years has equal appeal. Gosh, whatever is one to do? Do not fret. Laid out here, especially for you because you’re my favorite, are the pros and cons of leasing a car and buying a car (or financing, meaning a car loan).

Financing

The Shiny New Coat of Paint

• MINE! Do what you want with it! Bedazzle it! Cover it completely with bumper stickers! Throw baseballs at it! Crush it with a wrecking ball! You own that sucker, or at least, are going to own it. Do whatever you want with it. Keep in mind that if you are in the middle of financing and you haven’t paid it off yet, you still have money to pay to your lender before it is completely yours. If you fall behind on payments, they can and will take back your car.
• You don’t have to be controlling to love price control. If you sell your car, you get to set the price for your car. Now whether someone buys it or not is up to other people, but you can get money back for the investment you made. If you keep it in good shape, you can get a decent price for your car and still make out pretty well.
• You just have to keep it running. The payments stop when you pay off the car. So, you could have years with having to pay for nothing more than maintenance and auto insurance, things you would have to pay for leasing anyway.

The Rust on the Bumper

• It isn’t yours ‘til the fat lady sings. When you are financing a car, you have to pay it off to keep the car. Surprise! Buying a car is a commitment, almost like getting one super expensive pet. You need to make sure you can afford the car as well as afford to take care of the car. You don’t want to get a Benz when you can only really afford to roll in a Corolla.
• The longer you keep it, the more maintenance there is. Your car is a thing. It gets old. When your car gets older, you’ll have problems. You’ll have to buy parts and pay mechanics to fix things, unless you just have one awesome car…or know a person handy with a wrench. However, the better shape you keep your car in over the years, the more likely your car is going to last longer.
• The price drops the moment you drive out of the parking lot. If you buy a new car, the price drops drastically because…it’s not new anymore. In a matter of seconds, you have gone from new to used. Also, while some cars retain value better than others, a general rule is that the older your car gets, the less it’s worth.

Leasing

The Shiny New Coat of Paint

• Getting a new car makes my life. Who doesn’t like a nice new car? There might be a few cases where you develop an ever-growing fondness for your mechanical beauty, but in the end, it is just a hunk of metal with other bits and pieces. (Sorry.) Getting a new car every few years can keep you from having to deal with the hassles of owning an increasingly aging car, and you aren’t married to your car. So, if you want to own a sports car for a few years and then switch out to a mini-van, have at it!
• That sucker is probably still going to be in one piece. Leases usually last for 24-48 months, so as long as nothing happens on your end, your probably won’t have to pay out for anything other than typical maintenance fees like oil changes. For one thing, the cars tend to be new, so they aren’t going to be as likely to fall to pieces on you. For another, cars have bumper-to-bumper warranties for a certain amount of years, and leased cars are again usually new.
• Low payments are simply awesome. You aren’t actually going to buy the car, at this particular moment at least. Therefore, you are only paying for the amount of money that your lender is losing in letting you borrow that car. (Don’t feel bad for him. He’s gettin’ his money.) Also, you have a very low down payment, if you have one at all.
• Selling cars is a drag. Once your lease is done, you can just give your car back. Abracadabra! There is no need to worry about reselling your car, so no ads in the paper or awkward haggling with your next-door neighbor. Plus, for the most part, if the car is worth less than you and the dealer originally agreed upon, it’s his loss not yours!
• Driving the car around the block just wasn’t enough. Maybe in driving the car around the block at the dealership, you thought you might need a little more time to decide whether you want the car or not. You know, drive it home. Take it to the bar. See how you feel about it. Hey, sometimes these things take time. Sometimes that car love has slow onset in capturing your heart. With leasing, you can keep it for a few years, and there’s the option to buy it at the end if you still want it.

The Rust on the Bumper

• It’s not yours. You can’t do anything you want with it. You don’t get that pride from knowing that the car is yours, and you bought it. You could just be throwing your money away on something you are not going to get to keep, and because you don’t own it, there are limitations on what you can do with your car.
• The payments never stop. If you never stop leasing, you will never stop paying car payments.  There will always be a price to be paid. After a while, it can start to feel like a life sentence.
• These people do not know the meaning of the word accessorize. If you are one of those people who want to add a little bling to your ride, you’re out of luck. No flames painted on the side. No installing one sweet stereo. Not even a bumper sticker. You’ll have to fish up some magnetic ones and hope that some juvenile delinquent doesn’t steal them. If you alter the car from when you return it, your leaser will charge you.
• Discrimination against messy people runs rampant. If you are the kind of person that spills a blue raspberry slushy in their car or has other people that tend to spill brightly colored beverages in your car, you might want to think hard on this one. For obvious reasons, car dealers want the car in nice condition when you bring it back. They want to resell it, and who would take a dirty car over a clean car, even if the slushy stain did look like Abraham Lincoln?
• They could hang you with those mileage limits. Lenders limit financing to about 12,000-15,000 miles per year. If you go over that, they will charge you per mile. So, if you put a hurtin’ on the mileage every year, you might want to reconsider leasing or at least consider how much extra you will be paying in extra mileage.

It’s all you. You have to decide what works for you. If you want to keep a car forever and ever, it might be better to finance. If you are looking for a new car every few years, leasing might be better. Do what you do. Go snap up the right car for you.