Can I trade a car I own in on a lease? ?

Question

I own a car outright... SUV, probably worth about 10K. Will a dealer let me trade that in against the price of a lease on a new car? Let's say the total lease premium is 15k... then I'd be responsible for the other 5K. (Assuming they gave me 10K.)

Obviously, I can sell the SUV outright for cash and do it that way. But, I wondered if I might be able to get a dealer to work out incentives with me with a trade-in?

Answer 1

A: Yes, you can do a trade-in on another vehicle; leasing is simply a financing method.

B: Sell the trade privately; the dealer will give you bare minimum for it and you'll get more by selling it privately.

C: Check KBB.com (Kelly Blue Book) for the private sale or tradein value of your current vehicle.

D: Don't take the first offer whichever way you work your deal at the dealership.  Remember that they are out to get the most money out of you that they can................Good luck!!

Answer 2

You can, but I wouldn't do it the way you are saying!

The whole point of leases was to keep a comfortable monthly payment with little out of pocket expense. The $10k equity you have now would be zero at the end of lease since you turned the vehicle in.

Leases are perfect for people who never have a paid off car and like a new vehicle every few years.

You will hear from people who say to never lease, they are wrong. You should never do the 0% for 6 year financing that is sometimes offered. My neighbor is 2 years into his 0% loan, and is at least $5000 in the hole if he tried to sell it. So anyone who argues that you will never own a leased vehicle should take note.

Bottom line: use your $10k as a downpayment on a purchase, or find a lease you are comfortable with, with nothing down, sell yours and bank the money

Answer 3

Yes, the 10K you get for the trade would be used as a down payment on the lease. However, one of the benefits of leasing is that no down payment is required.

In fact, making a large down payment is a disadvantage, especially if your car is ever totaled or stolen. You put most if not all of your down payment at risk in that situation. But most leases come with automatic GAP insurance, so the lease company take the risk, not you. So it doesn't make sense to risk your own money, when the lease company is already willing to accept the risk. There's more details on this at:

http://www.leaseguide.com/index2.htm

If you sell your SUV, put the money in the bank and use it to make monthly lease payments, while it's drawing some interest.