Posts by Sandra Jackson71

I’d say it usually takes about two weeks across most major banks. It’s more or less within that window.

Taylor Campbell4 said:Well, it really depends on which prepaid card you're looking at. Honestly, what they claim doesn't matter nearly as much as whether the thing actually handles high-volume transactions—like booking flights or something. I wouldn't bet on it if I were you.

I’ve used a Hyp prepaid Mastercard to buy books on Amazon and book hotels throughout Europe without any issues at all. If you're worried about the card not being in your name, there are plenty of prepaid options you can get under your own name and just top up as needed. Personally, I use them for various reservations—like those small B&B stays where you have to email your card details because they don't have an online booking system. That way, if my data ever gets compromised, they can't drain more than what's actually on the card, and I never keep much on there anyway.🙂

Mark Sullivan62 said:I highly doubt you'll find any better terms through a lease than a traditional loan.

First off, you’re going to have to shell out a down payment in cash, and let's be real, that’s definitely not going to be less than 20% of the car's value. Plus, you’ve got that residual value hanging over your head at the end of the lease term; that could easily be around 20%. Your monthly rent hike will likely be right in line with a loan payment, or maybe even higher. And don't forget, with a lease, you're only paying off about 60% of the total vehicle value over the term, whereas with a loan, you're covering the whole thing.

Also, I think you’re going to be pretty disappointed at the end of year five when the lease expires and you realize you’ve just been paying rent this whole time—just paying for that "right to use" it. Basically, once that five-year lease is up, you’ve got nothing to show for it; the car isn't yours, and you can't sell it. When you compare the sum of the lease payments against the total cost of a loan, the numbers will probably end up being very similar. But with a loan, you actually own the car, meaning you can sell it and walk away with some cash. Even if you opt for a lease-to-own setup, you still have to pay that residual value (that ~20% I mentioned), which, if you ask me, makes zero sense financially. If it were actually a good deal, considering how many cars Americans buy every year, way more individuals would be jumping on leases, but they aren't—so why do you think that is? Seriously, go grab a quote for a lease payment versus a loan payment and compare them yourself.

Furthermore, don't forget that with a lease, you’re forced to carry full comprehensive insurance for all five years. If you buy a car with a loan, you’ll probably handle the insurance yourself, but you'll likely only stick to the heavy coverage for the first year or two, right? I highly doubt anyone wants to be paying premium comprehensive coverage for a car that’s already 3-$1333 years old... people just don't do that.

And another thing: leasing companies push you hard to use their authorized dealerships for service, and man, that is expensive. As an actual owner, once your warranty expires, you get to choose exactly where you want to take your
vehicle.

Since you aren't the legal owner under a lease, you don't even get a say in where the car is registered. The car gets registered in the jurisdiction where the leasing company is headquartered. Most of them are based in major hubs like New York City. And in places like NYC, registration and insurance are the most expensive. The leasing company might give you power of attorney to handle the registration yourself, but not in the location you actually want.

Look at all those massive corporations with fleets of company cars headquartered in NYC but with branches all over the US—notice how all those vehicles have New York plates? That’s not a coincidence.

Just so I can set the record straight here. Most leasing companies actually give you a choice regarding the plates.

This is a direct copy from the Porsche Financial Services website:

Operating Lease with a Security Deposit

Leasing is a contractual relationship that allows the Lessee to use an asset (the Leased Object) owned by the Lessor in exchange for agreed monthly payments.
- The legal and economic owner of the vehicle is Porsche Financial Services.
- This is designed for individuals and businesses who want to use the vehicle rather than own it.
- A security deposit ranging from 20% to 33%. This is returned at the end of the Contract.
- The Contract duration ranges from 36 to a maximum of 60 months.
- The Contract does not include a buyout option.
- Comprehensive insurance is mandatory. Porsche Financial Services has established insurance Contracts with several providers, allowing you to benefit from preferred rates.

List of cities where you can obtain registration plates:

Des Moines, Annapolis, Charleston, Columbus, Madison, Providence, Indianapolis, Makarska, Topeka, San Diego, Seattle, Akron, Wichita, Miami, Savannah, Cleveland, Evansville, Tampa, Chicago.

Benefits for Individuals:
simple and fast processing
no co-signers required
low contract setup costs

Benefits for Businesses:
the vehicle is not recorded as an asset of the lessee
monthly payments are booked as expenses, and sales tax is deductible

TERMS FOR ENTERING INTO A LEASING CONTRACT

INDIVIDUALS
- Unencumbered monthly income must be three times the monthly payment amount
- Security deposit / Down payment
- Comprehensive insurance

BUSINESSES
- Stable business operations
- Security deposit / Down payment
- Comprehensive insurance

Bank of America - expect it to take about a week once you've handed over all the paperwork. It really depends on your specific banker; in my case, headquarters cleared the approval in two days, but then she took almost another full week to finally deign to call me into the branch to wrap things up and release the funds.