A car can either make you or break you financially. Owning one is quite expensive and not easy. Since having a car requires money, most people face the dilemma between choosing either buying a new one or lease one. So which is better, owning one or just renting one.
People live in different circumstances thus whatever your reason on having a car might not be the reason of other people for having one. Hence, the best way to assess whether the better option is to buy one or just rent one is to assess your lifestyle. However, before anything else, keep in mind that a car can either be an asset or a liability. A car can be an asset if it puts or brings in more money into your pockets while it becomes a liability if it pulls more money out than it brings in.
If you live a very mobile lifestyle such as moving constantly from place to place in just a matter of less than 5 years, renting one is a good option. First, cars depreciate very fast. The moment you brought a new one and drove it out of the store, you can no longer sell it back to its original price. Second, car maintenance is quite expensive. If you own one, you’ll spend more on repairs and probably on decorating it and making it look good. There are recurring expenses such as oil change, wheel alignment, new tires, etc. If you rent one, they may provide such services for a lower cost. Third, once your car breaks down, you can easily rent a new one. If you own it, you’ll be bombarded by the expenses fixing it and putting it back on good condition.
However, if you want to be in control of your finances, you can opt to buy one. A car has become a necessity in everybody’s lives today. So what are the benefits of owning a car? First, you’re not liable to your car. If you rent a car, you are responsible for it and may pay for the damages to the owner. If its yours, at least you won’t worry about anybody else. Second, there are no regular fees to be paid. It’s yours so you can free yourself up from paying rent. And lastly, you can find the best shops or shops of your choice. If you rent cars, they may have their own or preferred shops or mechanics which, at some point is beneficial because it makes things easy for you. However, it doesn’t necessarily mean that its the best. If you look to being practical, cautious, and take good care of your car, owning one is a good option. The time may come that the amount you’ve spent on renting can already afford a new car.
Having a car is very important but you must check which one will you benefit the most, through leasing or owning one? Having a car is expensive either way so you must be very careful and strict when it comes to finances. If you’re not too tight and being too reckless towards finances, leasing or owning one won’t help. you’ll still struggle financially.