[H3wannabe]

I went with a lease. 3 pieces of advice:

1. Don't put any money down (1st payment and serucriry deposit only). A good reason for this was explained to me this way. "When you rent an apartment do you pay extra months in advance?" Of course not. Point being keep YOUR money in YOUR account not the dealer's.

2. Understand the "money factor." This basically is the finance charge that is being applied to the leased amount (yes, you do pay interest on leases).

3. Understand the residual. This is the amount that is left to pay off the vehicle after your lease. The higher the residual the lower your monthly payment and conversely the higher the buy-out on the backend. The price you pay for your vehicle minus the residual = the amount you lease + the money factor.

Leases are pretty simple, but most people don't take the time to understand them. DON'T focus on the monthly payment. Focus on the amounts listed above which your monthly is derived from. If you need to lower your monthly, remove options (lower your vehicle price) and recalculate.

I feel as though I got a pretty good deal:

Retail: $34,695 (lux, auto, tow)
With Supplier Discount: $31954.64
+ $45 emissions (NH)
+ $27 title fee

36 months
12,000 miles

Residual: 64% (nice!!!)
Money factor : 8.75% (not so nice!)

I gave them $1K down to place my order. They are giving me $508 back (so I am only giving them the 1st month's payment).

Monthly payment: $492 with no security deposit and no money down other than 1st months payment.

H3wannabe