I used to be in this "leasing is stupid" camp but now I understand why people do it. As a lessee you are essentially paying for the depreciation on the car whi

I used to be in this "leasing is stupid" camp but now I understand why people do it. As a lessee you are essentially paying for the depreciation on the car while you drive it. The depreciation on a new car is the worst, but that's for a good reason: those first few years of car ownership are the most hassle-free. No random breakdowns, no going to the shop and hearing "you need a new xxx" or, even worse, "hard to tell what that sound is, leave it here for a day while we figure it out." That's the last thing I need to hear when I need a car to get to work. Leasing can be seen as a fixed payment that always gets you reliable, newish transportation with less hassle. Sure it costs more than buying a car and keeping it for ten years, but after taking my ten-year-old car to the shop and putting thousands into it, and after seeing that it lacked newer features like the car seat "LATCH" points, I see that driving a ten-year-old car is no panacea either and might not be worth the cost savings.