The idea that buying something with a higher price tag might cost you less than something cheaper is completely counter-intuitive, but in the world of cars, it can actually be true. We are talking about your everyday domestic vehicle. Unless you are lucky enough to win the lottery, the chances of you owning a Formula One car like the ones you see during your F1 Paddock Club Italy experience at https://edgeglobalevents.com/f1-paddock-club/f1-paddock-club-italy/ is highly unlikely. But you can still come close to driving the car of your ‘realistic’ dreams.
Beating depreciation
The biggest cost of any car is depreciation ‒ the amount of money it loses between when it is bought and when it is sold. If you are considering car leasing, this cost is borne by the leasing company. The key thing is that the company uses depreciation as a factor when calculating the monthly charge to lease the car over the period of the contract.
Here’s the clever bit: some cars depreciate more slowly than others. Prestige marques such as Audi, BMW, Jaguar, and Mercedes lose much less value over the first few years of their lives than other makes. Canny shoppers can use this to their advantage, as it means the cost of leasing a premium model may well be less than the cost of a more mainstream offering.
What is more, the monthly cost of leasing a car is usually lower than the repayment for a car loan for a vehicle of equivalent value.
It pays to lease
There are other advantages to car leasing. You don’t have to come up with a large deposit to get a car and if at the end of the contract you decide to just walk away, you can hand back the keys with nothing more to pay.
Lease payments will usually include road tax and can include maintenance; therefore, you keep control of your motoring costs. There are no surprises because the cost of the lease remains the same throughout its period, which is typically two or three years. It is little wonder that leasing is increasingly popular not just in the UK but also around the world.
What is the catch?
Really there isn’t one. Most leases restrict the amount of annual mileage you are allowed to do and there will be penalties if you exceed this; however, this is only a problem if your lifestyle undergoes a significant change. Provided you can reasonably predict how you will be using the car, there shouldn’t be an issue. You don’t own the car, of course, but who needs a depreciating asset?
