Buyer Guide
Leasing, in plain language
This page teaches the ideas. It does not know your contract, and it will not name a best option.
- Residual is not today’s purchase amount
- Being over miles is a projection until the contract says otherwise
- Return location is not “any Royal Moore store”
- Dropping the vehicle off early is not the same as ending the obligation
- Wanting a different brand does not prove the lease can move
Residual is not today’s purchase amount
The residual is a number written into the lease. A customer purchase quote is what the company servicing the lease will sell the vehicle for now, if they will. A dealer acquisition quote is a separate number, for a store, and only if that company allows it. Those three are not one “payoff.”
Being over miles is a projection until the contract says otherwise
You can estimate an ending odometer from the miles you have driven and the miles you expect to drive. That estimate is not a bill, a fee, or a promise that buying the vehicle makes the miles irrelevant to its value.
Return location is not “any Royal Moore store”
The leasing company decides where a return is accepted and how the inspection works. Keys, charging equipment, and the written wear standard belong in that conversation. A website cannot promise a store will ground the lease.
Dropping the vehicle off early is not the same as ending the obligation
An early change can involve remaining payments, a purchase, a transfer where one is allowed, or a dealer acquisition where one is allowed. Handing over the keys does not, by itself, erase the contract.
Wanting a different brand does not prove the lease can move
Some companies let another store acquire the lease. Some do not. The answer is specific to that lease, and it has to be checked. It is not guessed from the badge on the hood.
Have an actual lease you’re trying to figure out? Check your lease.