Purchasing vs Leasing Vehicle

Afternoon,

My wife and I had a child 8 months ago this coming Saturday. We have found that her current vehicle gets great gas mileage for her driving back and forth to work and our trips to visit her family. We have also found that it's not exactly providing the amount of room we feel we need. That's not entirely based upon the amount of luggage and/or baby toys we take with us but includes the amount of people we can fit in said vehicle once we get there or they come here.

For instance, when we travel down to see her family we basically end up having to take at least 2 cars everywhere we go. We can pack 4 adults and a car seat in the car and ride (although it's not comfortable but it's an option). But when we throw my sister-in-law in or my sister-in-law and her husband into the mix that's where it gets tricky. They all come visit us often and it's the same situation here in town. It's a pain to have to take 2 cars when they come into town as they like to go shopping or we just like to go to places they don't have in their hometown. I don't exactly think it's a huge deal but when they aren't familiar with the roads around here then it becomes a pain as you have to wait and make sure they make it through a traffic light, etc.

So with all that being said, we are looking to possibly get an SUV with 3rd row seating. I know it's not always the greatest thing as the 3rd row seating isn't all that in some vehicles. My wife has a 2010 Honda Accord and when she got it they had leased it for 2 years. When the lease was expiring we had gotten married so we had to decide whether to turn it in and get her something else or buy it. We chose to buy the car and I feel as though we made a good choice.

We are currently thinking of a Toyota Highlander (the wife loves them) and we are trying to figure out if we would like to buy or lease. If we lease I know we are looking at fees and whatnot if we decide to turn it in, but I would like to do the same as we did last time and buy the vehicle at the end of the lease. Is this a smart move or not?

I don't have a ton of car shopping experience because in 20 years of driving, I have only had 3 cars. The first car was when I turned 16 and my dad bought a used car. The second car was used and I paid $7K cash and drove it 10 years before buying my 3rd and current vehicle. So as you can see, I typically get a car and keep it as long as possible. I am just looking for some advice on what you would do or wouldn't do.