Independent Car lease companies

To lease, you have two possible choices: either lease through a dealers
finance source or through an independent lease company.
A conventional dealer has a captive finance source, which can be the car
manufacturers financial company, such as BMW Financial Services, Honda
Motor Credit or General Motors Acceptance Corporation (GMAC), or a major
national bank such as Chase Manhattan.
Independent lease companies are no financial obligation to any single
one manufacturer financing source, but work with dealers anywhere in the
country.

So which one is better?

Conventional dealers provide better lease-deals on limited-time promotions.
Factory-subsidized cars that have subvented money factors and residuals are
very attractive lease deals and can be very hard to beat anywhere else.

Independent lease companies can offer you unbiased and professional advice
on vehicle selection regardless of make and model. This is because they are
not tied to a single manufacturer or financing source, unlike conventional
dealers who have to sell specific models. They can also be more flexible
regarding negotiating lease terms like residual value and mileage.
Ultimately, if you prefer a more personal and customer-oriented
relationship with your leasing agent, then you will do well with an
independent leasing company.

How to spot a good car lease

Leasing has been lauded as your cheapest ticket to keep up with the
industrys hottest vehicles and trends. The jury, however, is still out
on leasing: with the industry long on hype and short on detail, it is
difficult to distinguish between a genuinely good deal and a downright
up-selling exercise.

So how do you spot a good deal?

First, you need to find out if there are any down payments on the lease. A
down payment refers to the lump sum amount that you pay upfront, either in
cash, non-cash credit or trading allowance, to reduce your monthly payment.
You should think twice before putting money down on a lease: not only are
you getting a rough deal, as youre essentially forfeiting the general rule
of leasing: not putting any cash upfront, but the money is not recoupable
at the end of your lease. There is another big disadvantage: in the event
of your car getting damaged or stolen, you insurance and the gap cost will
not cover the loss.

Mileage Limit

Most leasing companies allow you a limit of 45,000 free miles over the
length of a 3-year lease. This may seem like a good deal at first sight,
but when you consider it only comes to 15,000 miles over a 12 month period
its not difficult to foresee why it might be difficult to stay within this
limit. Even people working from home have little trouble putting 15,000
miles on their cars.
If you exceed the mileage limit, the penalty for each excess mile can be as
high as 20 cents. This can add up quickly over the length of your lease: an
additional 4,000 miles a year over the length of a 3-years lease contract,
will end up costing you an extra $2,400 in excess mileage charges!
Be realistic about your mileage needs, especially if you have to regularly
commute over long-distances, before you sign the contract. Consider padding
the miles that you expect to use since it is less expensive to contract for
the extra before you sign than it is to pay the extra charges at end of
your lease.

Sales Tax

Sales tax is usually capitalized and added to the monthly payments.
However, some dealers choose not to include it in their calculations to
drive the advertised lease payments even lower. What they do instead is
state in the small print that the monthly payment excludes sales tax.
Make sure you carefully read the fine print for any extra, hidden costs not
included in the advertised monthly payment. Unscrupulous fees that
typically slip through the cracks include sales tax, registration and title
fees.

How to get out of a lease before your contract expires

When your lease is up, you can simply turn in the keys and lease another
car or buy a new one. But how about getting out before the lease ends?
Maybe you cant afford the sky-high payments on that silky Jaguar JX V6
model anymore or youve just had a baby and you need a larger and more
spacious vehicle?
Unfortunately getting out of a lease is not as easy as getting in! A
leasing contract is difficult and expensive to terminate early. Simply
turning in the keys and walking away from a lease can result in stiff
penalties. You credit could be ruined and you could even get sued for
breach of contract.

Its not all doom and gloom though. Actually, there is a number of
options available to you.
You can sell the car yourself and pay off the bank. This can be cost
effective if the market value of the car is close to the buy-out number.
Do not hesitate to exercise this option even at a loss if it happens to be
lower than the termination fee.
Your best option, though, is to transfer your lease for someone who would
assume it and take it off your hands. There is a whole set of potential
buyers looking for short-term leases without all the hassle and extra
costs. Check with family and friends or use the services of lease-
assumption websites, like swapalease.com, to list your car. Make sure you
check the credit worthiness of the new lessee and provide the car in good
condition.

How to calculate your lease payment

Understanding how to calculate your monthly lease payment makes it easier
for you to make an informed decision. Yet, most of us shy away from the
complicated math on our lease contract, leaving it up to the dealer to
do the payment formula.

Actually, its not that difficult! Once you understand all the figures
involved in calculating your monthly payments, everything else falls into
place. These key figures are:

MSRP (short for Manufacturers Suggested Retail Price): This is the list
price of the vehicle or the window sticker price.
Money Factor: This determines the interest rate on your lease. Insist on
your dealer to disclose this rate before entering into a lease.
Lease Term: The number of months the dealer rents the vehicle.
Residual Value: The value of the vehicle at the end of the lease. Again,
you can get this figure from the dealer.

Now, let us calculate a sample lease payment based on a vehicle with an
MSRP (sticker price) value of $25,000 and a money factor of 0.0034 (this is
usually quoted as 3.4%). The scheduled-lease is over 3 years and the
estimated residual percentage is 55%.

The first step is to calculate the residual value of the car. You multiply
the MSRP by the residual percentage:

$20,000 X .55 = $11,000.

The car will be worth $13,750 at the end of the lease, so you’ll be using:

$20,000 $11,000 = $9,000

This amount of $9,000 will be used over a 36 month lease period giving us a
monthly payment of:

$9,000 / 36 = $250.

This is the first part of the monthly payment, called the monthly
depreciation charge.
The second part of the monthly payment, called the money factor payment,
factors the interest charge. It is calculated by adding the MSRP figure to
the residual value and multiplying this by the money factor:

($20,000 + $11,000) * 0.0034 = $105.4

Finally, we get the approximate monthly payment by adding the two figures
together:

$250 + $105.4 = $355.4

To recapitulate, the sample formula looks like this:

1- Monthly Depreciation Charge:

MSRP X Depreciation Percentage = Residual Value
MSRP Residual Value = Depreciation over lease term
Depreciation over lease term / lease term (number of months in the lease) =
monthly depreciation charge

2- Monthly factor money charge

(MSRP + Residual value) X Money factor = money factor payment

3- Sample Monthly Payment:

depreciation charge + money factor payment = monthly payment

Keep in mind that this is a simplified calculation that does not take into
account taxes, fees, rebates or any other incentives. The calculation gives
you a ballpark figure or a rough idea of what your lease payments for the
vehicle in question should be.

How to avoid extra costs at the end of your lease

$250 to dispose of your vehicle, $1000 for extra miles you put on the clock
and $200 to replace the light bulb and the worn tyreslease agents
constantly nickel-and-dime consumers when their lease runs out.
Heres a rundown of what can trigger those fees, and some steps to take in
self-defense.
Disposition fee: leasing companies charge you if you choose not to buy the
vehicle at the end of your lease. This fee is set as compensation for the
expenses of selling, or otherwise disposing of the vehicle. It typically
includes administrative charges; the dealers cost to prepare the car for
resale and any other penalties. Make sure this fee is stated clearly in the
contract and is agreeable by you before signing on the dotted line. At
lease-end, you are left in no position to negotiate as the dealer can apply
your refundable security deposit towards this fee.

Excess mileage charges: Almost all leasing companies will charge a premium
for each mile over the agreed upon mileage stated in your contract. This
penalty can be as high as 25 cents per mile and can add up quickly. To
avoid the risk of running thousands of dollars in excess mileage penalties
at the end of your lease, always check the per mile charges in your
contract and be realistic about your mileage before you sign any contract.
If you think the limit is unrealistic given your commutation needs, then
negotiate with the dealer to get a higher mileage or contract for
additional miles.

Excess tear-and-wear charges: Another potential cost at the end of the
lease is any incidental damage done to the car during the lease. This is
deemed any excessive damage done to the normal tear and wear of the vehicle.
Notice the use of the terms deemed, excessive and normal. There is no
standard formula to define whats excessive and normal and its up to
the leasing company to assess or deem the damage and determine what
they are going to charge. This leaves you at the mercy of unscrupulous
leasing agents who set stringent tear-and-wear standards. Make sure you
read the description of these standards, understand them and agree to them.
If your leased vehicle is damaged prior to the end of the lease, you may
find it cheaper to repair the damage yourself than pay the excessive charges
of the leasing agent. In the event of a dispute over the charges at the end
of your lease, get an independent third party to do a professional appraisal
detailing the amount required to repair any damaged parts or the amount by
which tear-and-wear reduces the value of the vehicle.

Go green and save on your lease

Hybrid vehicles popularity has sharply grown from a couple of thousands
in early 2000 to close to 300, 000 by the end of 2005. The trend is
rapidly catching with the auto-leasing industry with generous tax credits
and incentives on offer if you go green.

Beginning in 2006, businesses and taxpayers who lease, or purchase, an
environmentally-friendly and fuel-efficient vehicle will be eligible to
claim federal income tax credits worth thousands of dollars. Individual
states also offer generous incentives, including hybrid state tax credits,
new High-Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lanes access and discounted thruway tolls
for alternative-fuelled vehicles.
And thats not all you can save from going green! You can now save on your
parking fees at a number of universities and some auto-insurance companies
are offering insurance discounts for hybrid-vehicle owners nationwide.

If you want to take advantage of these incentives and contribute to energy
conservation then visit HybridCenter.org and complete a personal profile
about your driving needs and habits. You will get in-depth advice on hybrid
models that would make economic sense to you and local, state and federal
incentives available where you live.

Fees involved in leasing

Mention auto-leasing and most people will automatically assume a low-
monthly payment. There is actually more than what meets the eye, and a
number of fees are involved at various stages of the lease process.

At the beginning of the lease, you have to pay a refundable security
deposit, typically equivalent to one monthly payment, to safeguard against
non-payment and any incidental damage done to the car at the end of the
lease. You are also required to pay an administrative charge, called
acquisition fee. Other fees include licenses, registration, title and any
state or local taxes.

During your lease, and you expected to honour your monthly payment
obligations. Any failure to do so will result in late-payment charges.
You have to pay any traffic tickets, emission and safety inspections and
ongoing maintenance costs. Ending your lease early will result in
substantial early termination charges.

At the end of the lease, expect to pay any excess mileage costs, charged
at 10 to 20 p a mile. Any incidental damage done to the car, and deemed to
be above normal, will result in excess tear-and-wear charges. Finally, if
you choose not to purchase the vehicle, then you have to pay a disposition
fee.

The Ins and Outs of Europe Car Rental

Europe, a continent filled with so much culture and history. A lot of people actually flock to Europe year after year to visit its sights and experience its rich culture. The modern yet still quite laid-back lifestyle that Europeans have been known for has always fascinated tourists, from being true-blue sophisticates who are very much adept to fashion, literature, history, culture and the arts, this is why a lot of people have been drawn to Europes simple yet elegant charm time and time again. Of course, traveling around Europe will be really much of a hassle if you dont have the proper transportation to quickly and conveniently take you from one spectacular tourist destination to another. The most probable solution to this dilemma is a car, ever ready, youre sure to get to where you want to go at your leisure. Europe car rental however may be quite tricky to some. Lets face it, a lot of the countries in the European continent isnt really comprised of English-speaking people and if they do speak a little English, its still highly likely that you wont be able to understand what he/she is saying, it really is best, especially when it comes to Europe car rental, to book everything in advance. Even before your plane lands in the airport tarmac, make all the necessary arrangements that you need to have.

To help you get started on your Europe car rental quest, try to coordinate it with your trip. Which country/countries are you actually going to? Which one/ones will actually really need for you to rent a car (please be reminded that there are some European cities where its more favorable to walk instead of taking mass/private transportations)? How much will you actually need to spare for your Europe car rental fees? Is it worth it? Also, try to map out the places that youre already planning to visit, calculate the distances that youll need to travel from one place to the next and if itll really be a lot easier (and cheaper) for you to rent a car than take mass transport then by all means, go check out the various Europe car rental agencies available in your area. You need to have everything fixed and taken care of before you embark on your great European adventure.
There are a lot of available Europe car rental agencies who are willing to lend you their services at really affordable prices well to some extent. From small, typical European cars to luxury cars and RVs, youre bound to get the vehicle of your choice since there are numerous Europe car rental agencies in the market.

Try to start your search for the ultimate Europe car rental agency by asking your travel agent on which Europe car rental agencies he/she can recommend. Also, if you have friends or relatives whove been to Europe, try asking them on which Europe car rental agency they prefer and if it really is a lot more convenient (and worth it) to rent around car for your grand European vacation. Also, help educate your self more with regards to Europe car rental by browsing through the internet. Surely, the internet really is best-known for easy-access research and it really is quite definite that youll land your self on a reputable Europe car rental service that will hopefully be able to cater to your needs, wants and budget. Plus, all the necessary transactions can even be done through the internet. So the hassles of trying to find a good enough Europe car rental specialist and booking their services, will clearly be not something that you have to go through anymore.

How to Get the Discount Out of a Discount Car Rental

Discount car rentals are so hard to come by, and in recent times, discount car rentals simply mean you pay less for something less, and lets face it, sometimes when you pay less for a car rental, you end up with something that looks more like a farmers truck than a car. Its hard to come up with a budget friendly rental, so how do you get a discount car rental these days? Well here are a few tips to boost the value of your money, car rental wise.

1.A good way to essentially, get a discount car rental is to, once you return the car, fill the tank with the cheapest no-name gas you could find, not for revenge or anything, but because car rental companies, require customers to fill the gas tank before returning it, and it you dont theyll fill it for you with the company pump but at a higher price, now we dont want that, so be sure to fill your tank before you return the car.

2.To get the discount off of discount car rental, make early reservations, some car rental companies give discounts or free upgrades for customers who reserve their cars early.

3.When youre planning to use your rental car for more than five days, or longer, ask the rental car company if you can get discount car rentals for a weekly rate, most companies offer discounts for the sixth and seventh day for weekly rentals.

4.Ask your travel agency if you could get discount car rentals if you acquire packages like fly-stay-drive or fly-drive. Most travel agencies as well as hotels offer these programs at a discounted price, whats good about this is that you get a discount and you shoot two to three birds with one stone.

5.When you go to a car rental company, ask them if you could get a discount car rental in exchange for your frequent flyer miles, this is good for those miles that are about to expire, so instead of throwing them away youd get one last use for them.

6.One way to get a discount car rental or maybe just the best deal for your money is to look for sites or rental car firms that accepts a pre-determined budget. This is when you indicate the money youre willing to spend for the car rental, most rental car companies will give you the program that has the biggest discount car rental and the best deal for you, of course it pays to know if the company has a history of fraud, in this day and age, you cant really trust people that much with your money, check out the car before you reserve.

7.Ask the rental company for discount car rentals when you frequently rent a car at their firm, theyre most likely to give discounts or free upgrades if you always rent with them.

8.Get discount car rentals by reserving your car through the internet. Most rental firms have internet only discounts that can save you a lot of money, look up the rental firm that has the greatest discount for the same value.

9.To get a discount car rental upgrade, try going to pick up your car just as the shop is opening, therell be a shortage in the economy cars, and youll probably get a free upgrade when they cant give you the car you reserved.

Budget Bass: Discount Car Stereo

Dying to satisfy that craving for that boom bass but cant make the budget? Cant sleep cuz of that new Clarion head unit? Look no further, you just need to find that discount car stereo to fulfill your car audio needs.

Well, there are probably only two instances where a need for a discount car stereo will come in. These two instances always entail lack of a financial comfort zone (thats why we call them discount car stereos).

First instance, you dont have an audio system in your car, and you would like to install one. Following the premise we have above, youre most probably a car owner who doesnt have enough cash to spend on a new, top of the line system.

What to do: How do you get a discount car stereo? One way is to go to a car stereo sale. Still, you have to deal with store prices, theyre cheap, but not that cheap. Another is to scour the classifieds and buy and sell for second-hand items. These are real discount car stereos, but you have to have a sharp eye to recognize which is a good deal and which is a swindle. Ask the seller how many years he had it, in what car. Inspect the car where it is installed. If its still installed on the car, give it a go. If its just a head unit, or a speaker that isnt installed, just be careful. Research the model of the discount car stereo youre planning to buy, also find reviews.

Second instance: You already have a car stereo system installed, but you would like to upgrade it. Again, most probably youre just searching for a discount car stereo/discount car stereo system not far from what you have. Maybe something with higher wattage, or a head unit which can play mp3s? And again, try searching at sales. Take advantage of classifieds, buy and sells, second hands, and also swaps. Chances are, if youre a car audio enthusiast, someone in your circle currently has a better system than yours and maybe willing to sell it to you. No need for standard pricing here. Or if others have equivalent items which they might be willing to swap, like a head unit for an amplifier, or a nice set of tweeters for a cd changer (i highly doubt it) or your pedigreed pitbull for the whole shebang! Youll get more discount car stereos if you have a circle of friends/people who share the same interest.

Other tips which might help: Another way to get a discount car stereo is to SUBSTITUTE. Like cars, Japanese made units are often cheaper than German/European/American made units. Also, look at the basics. What is it that you need, as in the most BASIC FEATURES? Do you really need that mesmerizing LED display, or can you do without it? Goes for speakers too. If youre not going to enter a car audio competition and you just want to hear good treble and bass levels without making your speakers croak, maybe you can do away with a couple of 3way/4 way speakers. A big subwoofer will definitely need an amplifier, and those are already 2 things to buy.

Discount car stereos are always a good deal, you just have to know where to get one.