To Lease or Not to Lease?

I don't know about you, but I've often been challenged by the simple question of whether to lease or buy a car. As a successful entrepreneur, one of the significant questions we must continue to ask is "How Will I Make My Money Work Harder for Me?" I mean, who wants to throw money away on a car? And yet, on some level, we all know that the car we drive does say something about our personality and our success level.

On my last car upgrade, I asked my accountant, my wealth advisors, my business coach "What's best -- leasing or buying?" Everyone has a different suggestion. I recently ran across a simple "checklist" of questions to ask that really made the decision simple and thought I'd share it with you.

CONSIDERATIONS

- Prefer to own something of value after making payments for years (Better To Buy )

- Want to get a new vehicle every two or three years (Better To Lease)

- Don't want to worry about penalties if you change your mind about your terms (for example, early termination of lease) (Better to Buy)

- Hate the hassle of selling your old car every time you want to buy a new one (Better to Lease)

- Plan to put a lot of miles on your car (over 12,000 - 15,000 a year) (Better to Buy)

- Want to eventually be free of car payments (Better to Buy)

- Want to be able to "test drive" a car for a few years before ownership (Better to Lease)

- Want to drive away with a new car without down payment or trade in (depending on factors such as credit and auto dealer) (Better to Lease)

- Want lower monthly payments (using the same car for consideration) (Better to Lease)

- Want to be able to customize or modify vehicle (Better to Buy)

- Want a factory warranty that usually covers vehicle for as long as you have it (Better to Lease)

- Don't want to have to keep vehicle in showroom shape - maintenance is up to you
(Better to Buy)

Well, this sure cleared up my thought process on leasing vs. buying. Anything to add from your experience?