Lease or Buy?

In going through the Auto Calculator website and answering the questions in the Buy or Lease Your Next Car section, it recommended that I buy my next car. After answering how many miles I put on my cars in a given year, it went directly to telling me that it would suit me better to buy. This did not change the way I previously thought about buying versus leasing. I know the kind of wear and tear my husband and I put on vehicles due to families being far away and him having to drive a long way to work. We would go over the limitations on a leased vehicle very quickly.

I did, however, go back through the Auto Calculator and answered the mileage question differently, just to see what suggestions would come up. It brought me to another page that asked a variety of questions, like how well I maintain my car, how I feel about monthly payments, what my credit rating is and how often do I want a new car. The answer was still the same. I am not surprised.

I will certainly follow the recommendation of the Auto Calculator because I believe that is what is best for me and my family’s current situation. We do a lot of traveling and we put a lot of miles on our vehicles. We have small children and need to worry about what might happen if they spill something or get a tear in the upholstery. We do too many things to be worried about limitations.

I think we I get older and closer to retirement age, I might think about leasing, just so my responsibility is less and I get a shiny new vehicle every few years. I am hoping by that point, I will have paid off my house and saved enough money that some monthly payments won’t matter and I’ll get to enjoy riding around in something new.