Auto Leasing is Making a Comeback Because Poor Millennials Won’t Be Seen in Ugly Whips

Unable to afford luxury cars but too fixed on living every day like a rap video, Millennials are taking out cheap leases so they can buy wheels that would otherwise be well beyond their budget.

According to auto pricing website Edmunds.com, 18- to 34-year-olds account for 60 per cent of people who lease their luxury cars; they’re the largest demographic of leasers and are largely responsible for auto leasing being at the highest rate in years.

The motivation to lease certainly makes a lot of sense: $300 a month with a $3,000 down payment ensures Chase and Britt can pull up to Whole Foods in a Caddie instead of taking less glamorous modes of transportation like Uber or, worse, the public variety.

“Leasing opens the door to the bells and whistles that they couldn’t otherwise afford,” says Edmunds director of industry analysis Jessica Caldwell. Nevermind the fact that leasing is actually more expensive in the long run, when these kids see an opportunity to fake it ’til they make it, they take it.

The trend to lease high-end cars is also reflective of many other defining characteristics of Gen Y – obtaining the very best right up to the threshold of possibility, and the option to upgrade every few years without taking a financial hit (the iPhone phenomenon). Leasing also absolves one from the responsibility of vehicle repairs and maintenance.

And we all know how Millennials feel about responsibility. (Joking).

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