I will be picking up my MINI january 16th and would like to know what kind of payments people are paying for their leases, what kind of residuals, and money factors they are getting or got. I am looking at a 64% residual, with a .00310 money factor for 36 months with 10K miles a year (MINI COOPER S). Also, anyone tried a one-pay lease? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Happy New Years

 

I actually went in looking to maybe lease, and found that BMW offers a balloon loan to qualified customers that beats the snot out of a lease. You can PM me for details, but essentially, the showed me side by side the lease and the balloon. The lease required $900 down, the balloon $0. The lease was $10 a month cheaper. The balloon had a residual of $10k, vs $11,500. You do the math. I'll gladly pay less at signing, and less at the "end" so to speak. And I get full ownership rights. Trust me, after my leased Miata was totaled, the dread of going thru that again steered me away. Nothing like letting the bank talk to the insurance company on the worth of your car.

R

 

Never been a believer in a lease as I like to own my cars. Besides, how can one hold back to 15K miles / year when the MC is meant to motor?

Went for the traditional loan through MINIUSA, got 4.99%. Better than even my CU.

 

:smile: For each type of lease, what is the mileage maximum?

:smile: Also, if you intend to buy it and go over that limit, do you have to pay the mileage penalty?

 

I leased once... ONLY ONCE.... ended up being "nickeled and dimed" for every little thing they could find... tires... one small ding... plus mileage overage (I even purchased additional mileage at the beginning of the lease and still went over). I vote for buying... when you buy it's yours and you can add what ever equipment/accessories you want. Good luck... Peace, Paul

 

Leasing isn't for everyone but I'm on my 4th lease and have had no problems in the past. Make sure if you lease that you give the dealer NO money. Most people are under the impression that you have to put money down, pay "cap cost reduction", pay a 'Security deposit", etc. etc. That's just a load of bull. I'm leasing my MINI right now with no money given to the dealer at all. Also, make sure of the milage you normally drive in a year. My typical milage is 12k to 13k a year so I got 15k on my lease and if you worry about wrecking your car and having to come up with money to pay for it then get gap insurance and you won't have to sweat it. Just make sure you research ALL of your options before commiting to just one.

_________________
-----------
Member #47 2002 Dark Silver Mini S white roof and mirrors with Premium and Sport pkgs. He has come and his name is MINI ME (Check my GRILL!!! Grrr Baby)-->MINI ME

 

minimotorin,

Thanks for the heads up on this. I was wondering how this was negotiated with your four leases? Every lease I've seen advertised on TV and in the newspapers all require monies up front.

 

>>Thanks for the heads up on this. I was wondering how this was negotiated with your four leases? Every lease I've seen advertised on TV and in the newspapers all require monies up front.

Yea, the last two leases I've done have come from my local Credit Union. I had to open up an account with them (meaning I put $5 dollars in a savings account) to become a member. They ask how much you want to spend on your car, you tell them and get credit approval for that amount. They then tell you the Interest rate they are offering, the residual amounts and all the other numbers. If you like their terms they cut you a check that can be written up to the maximum amount you requested (In my case $25,000). You can then go to the dealer and work out a price for the car as a cash sale. Usually this would give you some barganing room but of course with the MINI there was no haggleing on the price.

Make sure you check your local banks and credit unions for thier forms of leases, it will give you a few more options to choose from, and the more you have the better the deal you will get.

_________________
-----------
Member #47 2002 Dark Silver Mini S white roof and mirrors with Premium and Sport pkgs. He has come and his name is MINI ME (Check my GRILL!!! Grrr Baby)-->MINI ME

 

>>Make sure you check your local banks and credit unions for thier forms of leases, it will give you a few more options to choose from, and the more you have the better the deal you will get.

Very interesting indead. Thanks for the 411 on this.

 

>>Never been a believer in a lease as I like to own my cars. Besides, how can one hold back to 15K miles / year when the MC is meant to motor?
>>
>>Went for the traditional loan through MINIUSA, got 4.99%. Better than even my CU.
>>
>>
what was the term for that interest rate 36,48,60 months?

 

I think I am going to buy my mini but for anyone interested in leasing I discovered something interesting..

(these numbers were calculated with a BMW 330XI NOT a MINI )
BMW has a program called Multiple Security Deposits where you put down up to 10 monthly payments up front. This will be refunded at the end of your lease. Using the numbers I negotiated, I can put down $6,000 in MSD's. This will reduce my monthly payment by $78. (78 x 36 = $2,808) That's $2,808 off the price of your lease. To put this in comparison, you are earning a GUARANTEED rate of return of 15.6%. (2,808 return / 3 years is $936 per year / 6,000 investment = 15.6%) That is because BMW does not tie this program to interest rates, so with rates incredibly low now and not looking to rise anytime soon, this is a wonderful investment.

so in other words you put up 4000 dollars that gets returned at the end of the lease and it lowers your lease factor from somewhere around .00310 to about .00205 which results in you actually making interest on the 4K that you put up at the beggining of the lease.

 

What was the term for that interest rate 36,48,60 months?
----------
MINI told me the 4.99% was good for 36 thru 60 months, not the usual arrangement, i.e lower months => higher rates. However, still a good deal - took it.

 

A money factor of .00310 is not that great...
.00310 * 2400 = 7.44%

You should be able to do better.

 

>>A money factor of .00310 is not that great...
>>.00310 * 2400 = 7.44%
>>
>>You should be able to do better.

I completely agree. The MINI dealer must be making a large spread. When my father was purchasing his porsche with a bit of dealing the money factor went from an outrageous .0035 to a fair .00275 When you are borrowing that much money it can raise and lower your payment drastically.

Do you happen to know what the dealers "cost" of the money is? Is it somewhere in the mid to high .002s?

 

iam in north central wisconsin..and thinking of leasing a new S, with all options, and wondering what lease payment to expect. I puton about 20,000 a year, I have owned volvos forever so this is a new experience for me. Do you have any idea? 3-5 yr lease..thnx..

 

>> For each type of lease, what is the mileage maximum?
>>
>> Also, if you intend to buy it and go over that limit, do you have to pay the mileage penalty?
>>
>> who wrote this, it is under my name, but I didnt' write this..once the mileage gets too high, it is best to buy the car..and milage penalities are high...so, be upfront with the mileage, unless to do plan to purchase the car during the lease or when the lease is up.

 

Depending on your credit and discipline, there another option: Credit Cards. I did two cash advances (one for 1.9% for a short term, and one for 4.9% for the life of the balance), but note, they were promotional, so no advance fee was paid. So I am at about 3.1% for a (planned) 24 month period. That presumes some steep monthly payments, which I can swing right now, so the total interest will be far less than a loan over the same period, since the interest amount is not calculated over a fixed term (that is, I am not front loaded with interest; when I make large payment now, the principal decreases a much faster rate, thus lowering the amount the interest is calculated on). I expect the real rate to get closer to 2.2-5% when done. If I bothered, I could probably reduce it even further by shifting sums around when I get the 0% balance transfer offers. But the paperwork is a hassle. I recognize this only works for people with a pretty substantial credit line, but if ya got it, it is not unthinkable to finance reasonably large purchases with revolving credit, given the absurd offers some companies make once your credit rating gets to a certain level (and prior purchases help, since they are betting that you will fail to be diligent).

 

im about to lease my first mini tonite, i dunno, i plan on buying in the end, but right now 180$ a month is just a little oppsed to 311 beans a month both for 48 months 15k is for the conservative motorer. but i can't wait to own it

 

I am leasing my mini when I get it (hopefully in a week). I put 3K down,included first payment,taxes, titling, security deposit waived. I am going to pay 290 a month for 3 years 12K per year. 23K was the price of the car. Does this sound alright

 

I would check with some on-line people first and then see if the dealer can beat the price, make sure you are comparing apples to apples when negotiating, i.e. same money doen, same term length, same mileage. My current best for a car that costs 24,050 (mini cooper s) is tax and first payment down (8% tax in NY) therefore about $1567 total down, security waived, and 323.90 a month for 48 months - I can buy the car at the end for 13,468 (56% residual) plus a $395 dispo fee. Still waiting on some other quotes - the 'lease factor' or interest rate (lease factor * 2400) seems to be the best number to drive down and make your lease cheaper - %4.5-4.99 is a good rate these days.

Try leaseadvice.com, pricedealers.com, aolleasing.com etc. , online.

Edmunds has a lease calculator that can be useful to check if they are adding hidden costs into your lease, a very common practice - "bank fees", etc. - I had one dealer try to add in $60.00 a month for 'bank fees'!

Try: http://www.edmunds.com/advice/leasin...5/article.html

Also at lease turn - in often there are fees for turrning the car on OR buying it - be careful as this is a fee you will have to pay at the end and it's often in fine print! Also a little known fact is that the bank will often negotiate the 'fixed' lease buyout at the end of the lease - my last lease of an audi a4 quattro avant had a residual value of $17,850. Retail on KBB is $21,000, but since the bank would have to wholesale the car they offered it to me at $14,950 AND arranged financing at %4.99 for 60 months. Turned around and sold the car for $19,500..turned out to be MUCH cheaper than a buy. Now the mini might be worht some money at lease end so they might be less likely to negotiate - but then you can juyst buy it at the residual value.

Also on a buy - peoplefirst.com gave me a rate of %4.99 for 60 months......

Can't wait to get my BGG MCS with everything but nav and park - to be built 1/24/03 - ordered 12/28/02.....

 

I've been looking at leases on MINI's at leasecompare.com .. what do you think of the leases there? They seem to be considerably less per month than the leases offered at MINI's site, but I'd like a second opinion on them.

 

Try comparing the numbers between MINI Select and a lease. Don't forget that, if you do lease, very little up front money should be required. If there is, the idea of a lease is defeated and you should proceed with traditional financing or MINI Select. Just some thoughts.....

 

>>I've been looking at leases on MINI's at leasecompare.com .. what do you think >>of the leases there? They seem to be considerably less per month than the >>leases offered at MINI's site, but I'd like a second opinion on them.

I've been looking at leases on http://www.leasecompare.com for a while now also. Keep in mind that the payments displayed on LeaseCompare do not include Sales Tax. For a more accurate understanding of how and where Tax gets figured in and it's impact, try the link on Edmunds.com mentioned earlier in this thread.

Good luck!

 

Just an update on my lease - racerpete@aol.com has given me by far the best deal - beats leasecompare.com by a long shot - I would get a quote from him at least.....

 

I got 4.5% on a 60 month buy from Chase Manhatten Bank. (Chase Auto Finance) It does require a good Beacon score, however. Something 725 or higher. I could have leased for the same, zero down.

Bluesmaster