Lease-end help · Glendale and Los Angeles
Most people hear about one option at the end of a lease: hand back the keys. There are usually four, and the right one comes down to three numbers: what it costs to buy the car out, what the car is worth today, and what the lender is likely to charge when it is inspected. We work those numbers out for you before you decide.
Two to three months before the maturity date on your contract, which is also in your lender's app. That leaves time to get a payoff quote, book the lender's inspection, fix anything worth fixing and line up your next car, so nothing is decided in the last week. Most large brand finance companies offer a courtesy pre-inspection before the return; book it, because it shows what they expect to charge.
You hand the car back and the lender inspects it. What you can be charged is written in your contract: wear beyond what the lender treats as normal, miles over your allowance, and a disposition fee if your contract has one. Several brand finance companies waive or credit that fee when your next car is leased or financed with them, which is one more number we check. From your photos we estimate what the lender is likely to charge, so the final bill is not a surprise.
Small items such as curb rash on a wheel, a chipped windshield or a deep scratch can cost less to repair on your own than the lender would charge for them. If a repair saves you money, we tell you what it should cost and give you three shops to call. We do not do repairs and we take nothing from the shops we recommend.
If the car is worth more than it costs to buy out, the difference is equity, and returning the car leaves that money with the lender. We tell you whether you have equity and what we would pay for the car. Lenders set their own rules on who may buy a leased car, and some allow only certain buyers, so we check your lender's current rule before we make an offer. If your next car comes through us, the equity can go toward it.
Your contract lists a purchase option price. Keeping the car means paying that price, any purchase fee in your contract, and California sales or use tax on the purchase price, no matter how much tax you paid on the monthly payments. It can make sense when the car is worth more than the buyout or when you plan to keep it for years. We compare the buyout with what the car is worth today, and we can arrange financing if you decide to keep it.
A person from our Glendale office runs every check. Most are done by phone and text, so you do not need to bring the car in.
The page of your lease agreement that shows the residual or purchase option and any disposition fee, your latest statement or a payoff quote from your lender's app, the current mileage, and a few minutes with the car in daylight. A best guess is fine where you are not sure; the numbers are estimates until the lender's payoff quote and inspection are in.
Yes. California law gives you the right to end a car lease before its scheduled end date, and it limits what the lender can charge you for doing so (Civil Code section 2987). Ending early can still cost money, and selling the car or trading it in can cost less than handing it back. Send us your payoff and we compare ending now with waiting for the end date.
No. The check comes with no obligation. If you do want another car, this month's payments are on the specials page, quoted with $3,000 due at signing, tax excluded, or you can tell us the car you want.
