nissan msds

Is it a good idea to take over someone's car lease? What are some things to consider?

I've transferred a few leases away from myself. I just get bored and like getting new cars, and have ended up transferring some VERY aggressive lease deals to people. (like my $97 a month BMW i3...) You need to do your homework to see if it is a good deal. It's great because you can potentially do a short stint with the car, with an exit plan. You can often times negotiate away the down payment on the lease as well, making it cheaper overall. I've seen some leases where the residual was artificially low as well, that made buying them out at the end much cheaper and I've seen situations (depending on how tax on leases is handled in your state) where you can save some serious $$ on sales tax too. First thing: Make sure it's better than you can get from a dealership, new. Take into account exactly how much the drive off is, including all fees, (LeaseMatic is a fantastic lease calculator) and compare what is available today. Have there been any updates to the cars? Additional options? Things you would miss on the new car? Often times, options and colors change. Seasonality and time relative to release usually affects lease prices too. Sometimes residuals change for better or worse, and money factors change quite often too (most companies every month). Don't go by ads, they are often times misleading from the perspective of not including all fees, or by showing a picture of a high end model only to find that the actual in stock vehicle is not matching or not available at all. Second thing: Make sure the original lessee can get completely out of the lease. There are all sorts of nastiness that can happen if, like many companies (Audi, Porsche, VW, Subaru, Infiniti/Nissan, Chrysler/Dodge/Fiat/Jeep, Mitsubishi) that do NOT allow the original lessee to be removed completely from liability. BMW, Mercedes, Lexus/Toyota, and Chevrolet allow a lease transfer to take place cleanly where the original Lessee is written completely out of the contract. This doesn't sound like a big deal but if you stop paying, you can completely hork their credit, as well as your own. I've heard of some real nastiness when a car got totaled and the new owners insurance didn't cover enough of the car to cover the lease balance. I've also heard of situations where, in order to save their credit, people have had to make payments in leases they no longer have possession of... or cases where original Lessees have taken cars back. It can be pretty ugly, so definitely make sure you either trust the original lessee like family or the transfer is really clean. Third thing: Check the condition of the car - anything that will be caught on lease turn in should be addressed prior to the transfer. Look carefully for accident damage, windshield cracks, large scratches or dents, curbed wheels, etc. Look for maintenance records and service history. Make sure the mileage is accurately reflected and gives you enough miles to enjoy the car. (BMW is really good about letting you buy miles, you can buy them for less prior to lease turn in - even a few days.) I've seen leased cars parked in the garage for months at a time because the original lessee went over the mileage allowed. One key thing - many manufacturers do Multiple Security Deposits (MSDs) that allow you to buy down the money factor - these make for GREAT leases but be aware there is no way to get the MSD back in the middle of the lease. If you are asked for an MSD payout, that may be legit, but make sure there are indeed MSDs on the lease. A friend took over a lease and didn't look at the paperwork, and paid MSDs to the original lessee... and there were none when he turned the car in and he got hosed out of a good chunk of $$$. Overall, there certainly are good leases to take over, but there are also a lot of bad ones. :) It definitely requires some homework.