Once you’ve retired, experts say it makes less sense to lease a car than to buy it outright.
Here are their reasons:
1.) While lease payments may be lower than purchase payments, buying costs you less over the long run. That’s because after you pay off your car (typically in 5 years), you can drive payment free for as long as you care to continue owning the vehicle.
2.) You don’t have to worry about mileage. Typically, when we retire, travel is one of the activities that tends to increase. With a leased vehicle, you pay penalties for driving more than 12,000 to 15,000 a tear.
3.) Should your lease vehicle be involved in an accident that totals the vehicle, you may be liable for an “early termination fee.” You may be able to avoid such a fee by purchasing gap insurance, but that insurance also creates an additional expense you don’t have with a purchased vehicle
4.) Typically, your regular insurance may be higher as well as the leasing agency requires you to carry a higher accident liability than you might purchase if you are buying the car. This is because the lease vehicle is still legally the property of the lease company. If it’s involved in an accident, lawyers for the other party usually go after the lease company, figuring they have “deeper pockets” than the driver. To protect themselves, lease companies require you to carry higher liability insurance.
However, if you’re the type that likes driving a fancier car than you may be able to purchase or if you like having a new vehicle every 3 years or so, then leasing might still be the way to go no matter your age!
