u2..that's the point of the lease, it doesn't cost you a dime. It pays for itself from day 1. $1000 or so for taxes,etc at inception, $1 at the end....
...If you are a full time EC, there is no reason on earth you, even as a one man shop, can not afford to put a new van on the road. Even at $600/month. That is $30/day for the average 20 day working month. That is 2 dimmers a day extra (after deducting all costs) that is nothing. $30/day.
I fully agree on the lease/expense aspect
I did check into a few lease possibilities and the end of term buyouts were not $1. The best that I was offered was 10%. Maybe the $1 deal is something I needed to shop harder for. With a much higher buyout, I worry that at the end of the lease I may be forced to either pay lease penalties for condition or overmileage, or buyout a van I don't even want for more than market value.
You bring a good perspective to the table. I know I'm intimidated by a financial commitment like that, whereas I have bought used sub-$10k personal vehicles every few years usually out of rapidly changing needs. Whether I thought I could afford them or not, things still seemed to work out.
The lease expense divvied out to the hour certainly is manageable - no doubt about it. I'm still pretty new at this (coming up on one year) and getting those 20 full days/month of billable hours is a dream.
I'm glad this forum exists. I know I'm better off for the experiences and information I read here.
