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Leasing a car??

my parents and i have decided that when i get my liscense (yay!!) that we are going to lease a car instead of buying one...this way i can have a nice car that will last me a long time as opposed to buying like a junker for like 5 grand...anyways i have decided on a toyota yaris and its monthly payments of $246 and when i checked out the pricing under the lease it said around $16,000 i calculated it over 60 months and it works out to around 14,000..does this mean that i have to pay only $2000 at the end of the 60 month term or do i not get to keep my car after 60 months.....im a little confused at how the leasing system works...plz explain...and is doing this lease plan a good idea?

Public Comments

1. I hope someone else gives you an exact answer on how the payments work, but here is the general answer: car leases were invented for business people and people who are self-employed. When you lease a car for a business, there is usually a tax advantage compared to buying it. For regular folks, leasing is almost inevitable more expensive than buying, because the lease payments are not tax deductible. If I were you, I'd look into buying a not-too-old used car with a dealer warranty. It's likely to be a better deal.
2. If you lease a car, you will have limited mileage.(Leasing a car is dumb, unless u r a corporate exec and change cars yearly) You will have to pay the overage. I think that is a very unwise decision to lease a car for a first time driver. You know you are going to want to drive everywhere. I might guggest your first car to be a nice one, but used. You will get scratches and, heaven forbid, into a couple of fender benders,(i pray not) but you will get the driving experience. After about a year, then you can but a nice car to keep and you will have more experience. God luck at any rate