I want to lease a car. what are my best options with a 590-615 credit score?

Question

I currently have car financed through wachovia- I owe 13400 and I have paid my on time every month. My car needs some repair work-$2000- That is too much for me. My credit score is 599-605-618.I have a couple of charge offs from college about 6 years ago. All of my recent credit the last 3 years is very good. I have no credit card debt. My only bills are my rent 450- my student loans 300 and my current car payment of 453. What kind of cars can I lease? What interest rate can I expect? I really want to lease because I want to be able to get a new car every 3 years. I know I want 15000 miles a year. I like the Honda Accord, Toyota Camry, 330 BMW. What cars are best to lease? Please help - I am overwhelmed and very nervous because this will be my first time leasing.

Answer 1

In today's market due to the credit crunch, I'll be honest and tell you that you'll have a hard time finding any of the major lenders to lease you a vehicle.

Depending on where you live, you can find a leasing agency that will take you. There are third-party leasing companies that will tailor a lease to your needs.

You also need to make sure that you're not upside-down on your trade. If you owe $13,400 on it, do you have any idea what it's worth? Leases are harder to negotiate with negative equity.

Also, you need to ask yourself: "Why do I want to lease?" -- If it's because you want to drive a BMW, you're in it for the wrong reason. It's not for everyone, and you definitely need to weigh the pros/cons.

Answer 2

Looking at the math, what you are looking to do does not make sense.

1. With a 600 score you are not going to be approved for a standard lease and if you are approved the payments would be high.

2. You will have to pay first month lease on first day of contract, security deposit, taxes and other fees. This will be probably near $2,000.  

3. Are you upside down?  You probably are, especially if the car needs repairs, so the dealer will make you pay that amount. Another 2-3k?  

4. You might be better off to fix the car and try to get the loan paid off, then your score would go up. Then you could consider a lease.

5. While leasing is easy, it does cost more.  A lot of folks buy a new car every 3-4 years and just trade in the old one.

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Answer 3

Leasing requires a slightly better credit rating than standard financing due to the higher risk the bank takes on the loan.  You score is low but not in the toilet.

BMW vehicles lease very well when you consider the payment versus the MSRP of the vehicle.  BMW, Toyota, Ford and GM are probably the most helpful for people who have credit issues and want to lease.

The credit scores you mention (3 of them) are all from different credit bureaus and differnt banks use different bureaus.  Those are the four banks I would try to lease with in your situation.

hope this helps and good luck...