Hello,
After graduating college last year and obtaining my first job in my new career field I stupidly traded in my paid-off fuel efficient sedan in exchange for a 3 year lease on a Honda CR-V (no money down).
Only a few months later after finding this blog did I realize the tragic mistake that I had made. I'm a year into the lease and I pay $285/mo.
I'd really love to get out of my lease early and buy a used car with cash. The problem is that the leasing company (Honda) charges an early termination fee as well as the difference of the cars value (19k) and payoff amount (21k).
At this point, I'm wondering if it would be worth it to bite the bullet and pay the $2,000+ now to exit the lease, or to stay in the lease for the next 24 months which would end up being $6,840. The only positive aspect in that scenario I can find is that maybe if the car's value at the lease end outweighs their buyout price, I might have some equity to use.
Any opnions would be appreciated!