However there are ways of leasing a vehicle for a short term, with no down payment or hefty up front fees.

You can take over someone else’s lease!

That’s right, there are people all over the country that are stuck in a lease that they can no longer afford or want to get out of. These people want to get rid of the monthly payments that are holding them down, and they can do so by signing over their lease to you!

You might have seen lease takeovers in the classifieds or on websites like craigslist.org, but there are a few great websites that can connect you with a large list of lease owners who would like to get out of their lease.

One such site is called LeaseTrader.com.

Lease Trader handles all of the hard parts of finding a lease to takeover. You can browse vehicles by make, model or category and find the right fit.

So how do you get started finding a lease?

It’s pretty easy actually:

• Go to LeaseTrader.com
• Register for a free account
• Sign up for their buyers program
• Find a vehicle you’re interested in
• Contact the seller
• Transfer the lease

But there’s gotta be a cost to all of this right?

There are a few costs that you need to be aware of when going into this process.

First up, you’ll need to pay LeaseTrader.com a nominal fee to join their “buyers program”. Compared to other lease trading sites out there, LeaseTrader.com doesn’t charge much (under 50 bucks). Next, you’ll need to pay a fee for the transfer of the lease. This is a one time $150 payment that gets all of the paperwork moving. Then you have your normal registration fee with the DMV and any bank transfer fees that are applicable… That’s it!

So for about $250-$400 you can get setup with an almost new car, no downpayment, and a limited term lease.

To find out more or to sign up with Lease Trader, Click Here.

For starters, what exactly is a hybrid car?

Essentially, it is nothing but a fuel efficient automobile with dual motors, an electric motor and a gasoline powered alternative. It also sports a specially engineered system that captures brake energy and transfers it towards the battery to keep it charged at all times.

So why go hybrid?

It’s a combination of two vehicular concepts, so why not go to one of the two? Why not drive a purely gasoline or electric powered car? If you think about it through principle, having two motors makes your system more vulnerable to a breakdown. The same concept exists in any other sort of transportation vehicle—the more motors or engines, the less reliable they can collectively be.

Two Motors

In reality, having two motors presents both pros and cons. For one, electric motors don’t take up any energy when they idle; in fact they simply turn off and therefore use less gas when the speed is low. Gas motors are more effective at high speeds and therefore deliver a more powerful drive—but during stop and go or low speed travel, the electric motor will suffice without costing you money and the environment smog. When you reach higher speeds, usually past 40 mpg, the gas motor will begin to kick in and allow car owners to travel quickly on the freeway.

Additionally, when using the gas motor, your electric motor will have time to charge. One problem with strictly electric power is that many owners find themselves stranded with a dead battery and no outlet. With a hybrid, the dual motors allow this problem to be virtually nonexistent. The gas motor will automatically kick in whenever the battery gets low and charge the battery simultaneously. This means a hybrid never needs to be plugged into a restrictive outlet, but be aware—just because you can’t run out of electric power doesn’t mean you can’t run out of gas. Keep on top of your gas meter just as you would any other vehicle, but if you do get stuck—it’s a lot easier to haul a gas can over than to get your electric car back to your outlet, so the hybrid does offer that distinct advantage over a straight electric solution.

But all this cutting edge and newly innovated technology can be quite expensive to the consumer. It has two motors and the necessary battery is rather hefty and complex, as is the convenient but pricey regeneration system that charges the battery during bra ke periods.

Seeing as all these systems must coexist in a rather complicated technical homeostasis, they are controlled by rather intricate computers. These computers are remarkably dependable, but like any other computer, it does suffer from a few fallbacks. This means to own a hybrid, you will have to spend quite a bit of time in the shop, and quite a lot of money paying for repairs.

Fuel-Efficiency

Compared to any other practical everyday car type, hybrids are indisputably the most gasoline efficient. On average, the can reach an alleged 48 to 60 miles per gallon, which is around 20%-35% better than some gasoline powered cars. This means that there are vehicles, like the Honda Civic, that are gasoline powered by get 36 mpg. The strange this is that these gasoline efficient standards cost from $14-$17 thousand where hybrids can set you back up to $25,000. With this in play, buying a hybrid becomes less of a “necessity” or even ideal to many people.

The difference is considered to be in fuel costs, where your standard gasoline powered car will cause quite heavy annual bills. But after a decade with a hybrid, it is predicted that only $2,300 will really be saved in the long run—this number is smaller than the price difference between hybrids and fuel-efficient gasoline powered vehicles.

The fuel efficiency is often attributed to improved aero dynamics such as weigh reduction and smaller gas powered engines. By principle, any vehicle would improve mileage greatly just by sporting a smaller sized engine. This is not done with most consumer cars due to the widespread desire for power and speed in most of today’s vehicles.

Most drivers find these mileage claims are actually a tad skewed—sometimes up to 10%. If you take a look at the manufacturer’s miles per gallon claims, they are measured under specifications that would yield similar results from any type of car, with slow speeds and no quick stops.

A Lean, Green Driving Machine

On the other hand, it’s not just fuel economy that hybrids promote; their ecological benefits are also considerably encouraging. Despite the marginal nature of the fuel economy improvements, the smaller number of emissions is undeniable. For instance, big cities with high traffic jams and plenty of low speed travel would benefit greatly from a widespread application of hybrid devices that cut down on pollution and emissions when a vehicle travels under 40 mph.

Global Application

Globally, the United States is not ahead of the hybrid game, but instead the Japanese seem to be setting the standard. Honda and Toyota have already taken the market by storm with the Insight and Prius. It is easy to see that US automakers like Ford have fallen behind, having to license over 20 different technologies from the Japanese just to throw together the Mercury Mariner. In the United States, SUVs and trucks are still commonplace, and Ford has tried to make the best of both worlds with a hybrid version of the Escape.

Many analysts claim that these GM hybrids are nothing but weak efforts and not serious attempts to join the hybrid market. They are often tied in with the Corporate Average Fuel Economy regulations, showing that American hybrids are nothing but corporate devices. Because regulations demand automakers possess a fleet with an average of 27.5 mpg, automakers are using hybrids as a way of offsetting their minimally efficient SUV’s and trucks, many of which only get up to 20 miles per gallon.

In Sum…

So at the end of the day, the decision is up to you. Maybe you find hybrid vehicles to cost prohibitive, or maybe the new, innovative, and ecologically friendly technology strikes a chord with you. Either way, personal preference is still in play. The technology is not yet developed to the point where prices can compete with gasoline powered models, but it is undeniably fuel efficient and emission reducing. The concept is fascinating, but right now there is an inherent price gap between gasoline and hybrid powered vehicles. So you know the pros and cons make your decision wisely!

Unfortunately, not many people are prudent enough to research on these kinds of things and end up with less than good car lease deals.

If you already have or are planning on getting a car lease, then it is important to know how the residual value of a car affects your lease.

A car lease residual value is one of the most important, if not the most important factor in leasing a car.

But what are residual values?

In simple terms, it is the estimated value of your leased car vehicle at the end of the lease period.

Some of the factors that affect residuals are the annual mileage of a car, length of lease, model of the vehicle, its resale history, future supply and demand variables, gas prices, and even expected future economic conditions.

Lease residuals can be set by several different people. The dealer, the bank, the manufacturer, etc. are all able to effect the expected residual value of your car. It is important to note that auto lease residuals are always a set percentage of the MSRP or the Manufacturer’s Suggested Retail Price.

Avoid bank leases with over inflated rates to keep your payments low. If you want to know exactly how much the residual is on your car, you can grab a lease kit which contains a residual value calculator available online.

So how do residual values effect your lease?

The higher the expected residual value of the car, the lower your payments will be on your lease.

Look at it this way, if you’re leasing a car for $30,000 for two years, and it’s expected that the car will be worth $20,000 after two years then during your lease term you will need to pay $10,000 plus taxes and fees.

However if that same car is expected to be worth only $10,000 after your lease term then you’re actually paying $20,000 plus taxes and fees, and your payments will have more than doubled.

Trying to find a vehicle with a high residual value is great if you want low lease payments, but it’s also has a flip side. If you get really attached to your car and you want to keep it after your 2 year lease term, then a high residual value will leave you with a lot more to pay when it comes time to buy the car.

How the heck can I find a vehicle with a high residual value?

There are a number of ways of finding a car with a higher residual value.

Residual Value of the brand.
This is really important and can effect your lease payments quite a bit. Some brands hold their value better than others. In this case, you can do a lot of research online at sites like Edmonds.com to find used car prices and compare them to new car prices. This should give you a good indicator of how much your car will be worth after your lease.

Terms of the lease.
Lease terms will effect the residual value of your car by quite a bit. If you have a low mileage lease, the residual value of your car will stay higher than if you had a standard mileage lease. You should always shop around to find various lease terms as they will effect your payments.

Who is assigning the residual value.
The party that assigns the residual value to the vehicle will effect the residual value as well. A manufacturer’s residual value is almost always higher because they can generally afford to lose a bit of money on the back end of the deal just to get the business.

The most important part

Finding a good car lease takes research and education. You can often find that two different dealers will offer different residual values on the same car.

Which one do you choose?

If you’re looking to buy the car after your lease then you want the lowest residual value. But if you’re not intending on purchasing the car after your lease, then you want the highest residual value because it will end up saving you on monthly payments.

Have an experience with a car lease? Let us know in the comments below.

Lots of people agree that car leasing is the more attractive option when you need to get a new car… but are they wrong?

There are certainly advantages to car leasing – but only if you don’t get sucked into a car dealer scam in the process… and the truth is: a lot of people get a crummy deal.

Leasing regulation does not require as much disclosure as buying a vehicle. This has opened the door for a lot of shady car dealers to work on your pocketbook and take you for all that you’ve got.

Take a good look at the common car leasing scams and make sure you protect yourself.

Ridiculously low interest rates:

Some dealers quote a lower interest rate than what you’ll actually be paying. They do this by either purposefully quoting the “money factor” as the interest rate or calculating the loan without amortizing some closing fees, like the security deposit, into the loan lease.

Take the money factor for example: this is typically expressed as a four decimal digit, something like 0.004. Some dealers quote this as a 4% interest rate when in fact you need to multiply it by 24 to get a rough idea of the interest rate on your loan.

In this example, the interest rate is a much higher at 9.6% than the “quoted” rate of 4%. Make sure you crunch the numbers and understand the formula they use to calculate their interest rate. Look out for any fees not factored into the calculation.

If you’re not satisfied, never enter into a lease agreement.

Terminate your lease early for a low penalty

This is a long standing car dealer scam when it comes to leasing. You ask your dealer how much you will pay if you want to terminate your lease and he tells you: “You can pay only a small early termination administrative fee of $250″…. he/she is misleading you.

What he is quoting is only the small administrative penalty of early termination. In fact, there is a much stiffer penalty called an early termination fee and this runs into thousands of dollars that comes on top of the other administrative early termination fee.

Do not confuse the early termination administrative penalty with the termination fee. Read the small print carefully and know just how much you will get charged should you terminate your lease before its scheduled end.

Pay for an extended warranty you don’t need

Here’s the scam: the dealer slips an extended-warranty into the deal, but it’s already part of your lease! So essentially you’re paying for two warranties, and I don’t have to tell you that that’s a rip off. Another angle is he might even try to sell you on a 36-month warranty when you’re only leasing the car for a 24-month term.

You warranty is already factored into the lease, so don’t get sold on extended warranties by a slick salesman.

This is one of the best car tips I can give you about car warranties: avoid extended warranties provided by the dealer… shop around and find the best price on your car warranty. You’d be surprised what you can find online.

“Zero dollar security deposit”

Any dealer who advertises a $0 security deposit is leaving out some of the details. A security deposit is always factored in the lease under the provision for disposition fees. I may sound like a broken record, but always ALWAYS read the fine print on any agreement that you sign.