leasing can be a great deal. I personally love leasing cars because there is nothing I hate more than fixing a car, and I desire a new car every 3 years or so. That being said, I usually alternate between buying a 1 or 2 year old car and leasing. I just go for what I feel is the best deal for me.

The best lease deals are when the residual purchase value of the car at the end of the lease is really low.

You can find leases where the purchase price is lower than the three year old version of the car is selling for. In those instances there really is no risk to leasing and you can purchase the car at the end of the lease and sell it (sometimes for a profit) or turn it in to carmax and avoid paying costs associated with the end of a lease. This also gives you the option to just buy the car at the end of the lease if you are over miles to avoid the milage penalty.