# Leasing a Car



## Eddie O'Neill (Jun 25, 2011)

I am moving to Houston Texas in October. I am a UK citizen and my wife is A US citizen. I intend to lease two cars but can't find any online sites to get quotes. Can anyone help?


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## twostep (Apr 3, 2008)

Friend Google:>) "leasing auto houston tx"


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## Fatbrit (May 8, 2008)

Eddie O'Neill said:


> I am moving to Houston Texas in October. I am a UK citizen and my wife is A US citizen. I intend to lease two cars but can't find any online sites to get quotes. Can anyone help?


Not a great fan of leasing.

Lack of credit history may be an issue.

I always direct fresh-off-the-boat folks to read, understand and follow the instructions @ carbuyingtips.com. The site may look awful but most of the information is pure gold.


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## ednpat (Jun 25, 2011)

*leasing in US*

I agree about the lack of credit history. I could not even get a cellphone contract when I first got here. UK credit history no good over here. However if you can get by that problem go for cars with a high resale value. You get a better lease deal with these vehicles because the dealer knows he can resell them easily when they come off lease with a good profit margin. vehicles like this are: Honda, VW, Toyota,Subaru. look at the US news cars/ lease web site. it sometimes lists current worthwhile lease deals


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## Eddie O'Neill (Jun 25, 2011)

ednpat said:


> I agree about the lack of credit history. I could not even get a cellphone contract when I first got here. UK credit history no good over here. However if you can get by that problem go for cars with a high resale value. You get a better lease deal with these vehicles because the dealer knows he can resell them easily when they come off lease with a good profit margin. vehicles like this are: Honda, VW, Toyota,Subaru. look at the US news cars/ lease web site. it sometimes lists current worthwhile lease deals


Thanks for the replys


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## hhuberla (Oct 7, 2009)

As an expat I was able to lease a car from a company called Lion Leasing (google for it). They are basically a broker from Enterprise (the rental car people) who specialize in expats. They will verify your financial situation with your employer(s), check into your visa situation, etc.

The interest rate isn't world-beating but they were the only way I could find being able to finance a car without a credit score. 

The loan is a traditional loan masquerading as a lease. This means the leasing company takes no risk on the residual value/balloon payment. That in turn means you pay a higher premium but have a far better chance of getting some money back at the end of the term (there's also no lock-in as the minimum downpayment is the first year's depreciation).


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## zeroka (Apr 14, 2011)

*Car Leasing in the US for expats, IMPORTANT, READ IT*

Hi,

It's very easy to do, however one thing I must draw your attention: there used to be 2 companies doing this for expats with no credit history: Lion Leasing and International Autosource.

I first contacted Lion Leasing to arrange my car, it could have been done prior to or after your arrival to the US. Lion lease just advised me that a few days ago they lost partnership with Enterprise and they suggested me to contact Autosource Intl. Now comes the must know: you can only get a deal with autosource as long as you are not yet in the US. 

So contact them NOW, or else you will get stuck. w w w. intlauto. com
Once in the US, they will not be able to help you, as they are firmly bound by not competing against local dealerships once you arrive to the US.

I had to break up the web link otherwise it would not have allowed me to post this


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## ukexpat (Aug 3, 2011)

I bought a car from AutoSource 15 years ago and they are still the only reputable company offering leasing and financing options to expats without a credit history. I always refer my friends to them for cars. Besides the option to lease without credit history they sell their vehicles at wholesale prices. 

When I asked why I couldn't wait until I got to the US to buy from them they told me that their program is run directly by the auto manufacturers and the prices are so low that the manufacturers would be competing with their own dealers and they can't do that due to franchising laws. That's why you have to be outside the U.S.

Hope this helps.


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## Ducass (Aug 4, 2011)

I did not know about the company mentioned. However I can confirm, getting ANY credit is very difficult. If you need to do this before you come over, make sure you do it, because without a car you are generally very handicapped.

CREDIT SCORE IS EVERYTHING HERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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## Frase (Aug 11, 2011)

I am going through the same thing. Depending on your job/salary and visa etc. VW & Audi offer a Foreign Professionals plan for leases and loans that puts you on their Tier A credit, so pretty much a very good score rating. 

Better than the 22% subprime APR rate on a used car. 

Just weighing up my odds now whether to be tied in to a cease or not :-s


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## darkreign2409 (Jul 7, 2011)

@Frase did you have to ask them directly about this plan at the dealership?


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## Ducass (Aug 4, 2011)

Being locked into a car for 3 years, is not big deal I assure you. There are also escape clauses etc. Just pick a very affordable car $150-$300 per month.

VERY important too is insurance, they try to charge me $150 a month when we first arrived. You must bring your driving record and negotiate with the insurance company. I think we pay about $60 per month now.

Cheers


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## Frase (Aug 11, 2011)

I can't paste the link due to me being too new to this board. But google 'Volkswagen Foreign Business Professionals Plan' and it's the first hit. A VW savings website I think the link is. It's the same for Audi as they have the same parent. 

Ford told me that they do a similar thing, but I didn't have confidence that the guy knew what he was talking about in the dealership. BMW was the same. Wasn't confident, just salesmen after a sale. 

I would say companies who have their own financing units are more likely to do it. Look for bond issues by car companies to see. 

Fraser


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## darkreign2409 (Jul 7, 2011)

Nice one - Its seems hit or miss depending on the dealership as to what they can offer. I'm currently in contact directly with Audi and VW delearships and will post all the details on the forum once I know more.

Mike


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## ukexpat (Aug 3, 2011)

Eddie O'Neill said:


> I am moving to Houston Texas in October. I am a UK citizen and my wife is A US citizen. I intend to lease two cars but can't find any online sites to get quotes. Can anyone help?


AutoSource handles VW and Audi. They also have low cost insurance. They sell the cars cheaper than dealerships. Check them out they also have a Facebook page. Igood luck!


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## Frase (Aug 11, 2011)

Hey there,

Just to let you know. I picked up my new car last night. Direct through VW using their Foreign Business Professionals plan thingy. 

Brand new on a 27 month lease (expiry of my visa, without an extension). 

Everything went through pretty smoothly, only niggle was with my firm confirming to VW Credit that I was actually an employee. My firm is a Big Multi-national, and they use an automated service provider to do their verification which just added an extra day on to the process. But other than that it was pretty straight forward. 

Picked out the car and signed docs on Sunday, drove off last night. 

For the record, I am in LA, didn't have any previous credit history in the US, and I am 27. 

The dude said that my credit should go up as soon as I make my next monthly payment. He said to 700, but I think I'll take that figure with a pinch of salt. 

Take it easy.


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## Pinkjellybean (Aug 5, 2011)

Frase said:


> Hey there,
> 
> Just to let you know. I picked up my new car last night. Direct through VW using their Foreign Business Professionals plan thingy.
> 
> ...


Hi,

Did you arrange it through a VW dealer in the US? or over the phone? if so, could I have the number  Did you actually start the process in the US or before your went?!

Thanks

Vicki


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## Frase (Aug 11, 2011)

I did it at the dealer. Just went in there and told them my situation. Luckily one of the salesmen had done a number of these Foreign Business Professional plans before (he was Ukrainian). 

They sorted it all out. You need a SSN, a job, proof of your US address, proof of your job / salary. Google it. It has all the details. 
So it will take a few days/ weeks to get all that sorted. 

For the record, the salesman was Alex from VW Santa Monica, highly recommended.


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## Ducass (Aug 4, 2011)

Well done!


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## laurad (Jan 7, 2011)

Hi, we have been living in the States for around 8 weeks now and we have hit wall after wall with regards credit. We have now got a car through Auto source and phones with AT&T. Autosource was a great company to deal with and i highly recommend them. AT&T have also been great but prepared to pay hefty deposits on each line as you have no credit here. We had our credit fle from the Uk but it means nothing here. 

Hope you get sorted.


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## twostep (Apr 3, 2008)

laurad said:


> Hi, we have been living in the States for around 8 weeks now and we have hit wall after wall with regards credit. We have now got a car through Auto source and phones with AT&T. Autosource was a great company to deal with and i highly recommend them. AT&T have also been great but prepared to pay hefty deposits on each line as you have no credit here. We had our credit fle from the Uk but it means nothing here.
> 
> Hope you get sorted.



I am sorry to hear that what we have been posting here is true. One option for cell phones are pay as you go - WallMart, BestBuy ...


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## Fatbrit (May 8, 2008)

laurad said:


> Hi, we have been living in the States for around 8 weeks now and we have hit wall after wall with regards credit. We have now got a car through Auto source and phones with AT&T. Autosource was a great company to deal with and i highly recommend them. AT&T have also been great but prepared to pay hefty deposits on each line as you have no credit here. We had our credit fle from the Uk but it means nothing here.
> 
> Hope you get sorted.


Start chipping at the wall. Grab a secured credit card (BoA, Chase or Wells/Wachy) with $500 down, spend up to but no more than $100 on it every month, pay off in full when bill arrives. Rinse and repeat over six months and you'll have a fledgling score.


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## Ducass (Aug 4, 2011)

*Good advice here...*



Fatbrit said:


> Start chipping at the wall. Grab a secured credit card (BoA, Chase or Wells/Wachy) with $500 down, spend up to but no more than $100 on it every month, pay off in full when bill arrives. Rinse and repeat over six months and you'll have a fledgling score.


The advice in this thread is very sound, by the way when I first arrived (I am now 27 months here so credit okay now) I tried many times to get store cards etc. This then showed up on my credit report as a "red" markand the credit apps stay in the system for 2 years from what I understrand.

I think the answer is to apply for maybe 1 store type card every 2 months or so and pay the monthly fee to one of the credit score providers so you can keep track. 

Don't know if this will work, but maybe it helps.


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## Fatbrit (May 8, 2008)

Ducass said:


> The advice in this thread is very sound, by the way when I first arrived (I am now 27 months here so credit okay now) I tried many times to get store cards etc. This then showed up on my credit report as a "red" markand the credit apps stay in the system for 2 years from what I understrand.
> 
> I think the answer is to apply for maybe 1 store type card every 2 months or so and pay the monthly fee to one of the credit score providers so you can keep track.
> 
> Don't know if this will work, but maybe it helps.


Yep -- every time you apply for credit, your score goes down. So don't keep applying if you keep getting turned down! Nobody should be applying for any credit line within 6 months of the last credit application. Choose your credit providers wisely.


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## domenico (Feb 17, 2011)

I've been here since 8 months now and I must say that it's not so hard has everybody says. We are in Portland and since we arrived we were able to get a mobile phone contract (it's true that AT&T asks you fro $500 deposit for each line, but they'll give it back after 1 year) and lease two cars. We've lease one car from Audi and one from VW, directly from the dealer. The only issue is that the leasing can only last till the visa is valid, which means in our case that we had to stick to a 24m lease. Price is a bit higher than a 36m but at least we have the cars. Of course you'll need to show your contract and the usual 3 references (US residents) but at the end of the day it takes just few hours and you have your car. 

For the amount you can check on the carmaker websites, they usually have a form to calculate the rate. Consider it just as an indication though as you'll never find the exact model you want and the interest rate can slightly vary


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