FinanceStartup style

How leasing a car can be useful to your business

When you discover that you will need to invest in a car for your job, you may quickly find yourself overwhelmed by the range of options available. However, we aren’t just talking about different manufacturers and models – we’re also referring to how you may get behind the wheel in the first place.

Indeed, you may decide not to strictly acquire your car at all. Car leasing is especially strongly associated with the United States – where it accounts for about a quarter of cars in private use, according to The Telegraph – but it is also coming to be appreciated as an option in many other countries.

When one is trying to find a car for business use, in particular, leasing can make a lot of sense. Here are the reasons why.

Is leasing seriously a better option than buying?

There are many reasons to believe so. Not only is the down payment for a vehicle lease typically low or non-existent, but the monthly payments are lower than those for the loan that you may need to take out to buy a car outright, so it can certainly make a great deal of financial sense. Business owners are even able to claim their leased vehicle as a tax deduction.

Buying a car for business may be tempting, given the opportunity to choose the exact manufacturer and model that you desire, but it’s hardly as if this also isn’t the case with vehicle leasing these days.

Just look at a company like Leasewell, which to give just one example, offers a VW Amarok lease that grants you affordable access to a high-performing, but also practical pickup with plenty of load space.

Buying can bring a wide range of inconveniences

If you’re the kind of person who likes to feel that your business vehicle is truly ‘yours’, there’s no question that buying a car outright can be a very attractive option.

However, if you buy new, you will have to take the hit of the high depreciation that often occurs in the initial year or two of ownership, while the first monthly payments when financing a car purchase can also be higher than is typically the case with leasing. Leasing also, of course, enables you to avoid the depreciation issue altogether.

Then, there’s the far-from-minor issue of maintenance costs, which are low when leasing but tend to increase over time when you actually own a car. Those repair bills can be very high, which isn’t exactly ideal when you might prefer to plough your money into your business.

But wouldn’t it be better to just own a car?

While some people may not like the idea of leasing a car and not having anything at the end of the lease period, if you commit to a lease period of three years, would you really be likely to keep a car that you purchased for longer than that anyway?

Leasing gives you great flexibility when you need to drive a car for business purposes, as when the lease contract comes to an end, you can simply select a brand new car to lease, thereby benefitting from a vehicle that offers the very best possible performance, refinement and fuel economy.

Plus, with leasing enabling you to get behind the wheel of a car that may be out of your price range if you were trying to buy, you can make the best possible impression on colleagues and potential clients with your vehicle as soon as you roll into the car park. What could be better than that?

 

Phillip Hofmann

Managing Director of The Startup Magazine.