Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

Is it even possible? Any experiences? Thanks :starsmile::starsmile:

Re: Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

We used these back in 2008 http://www.intlauto.com/
Had no problems and were happy with what we sorted out - you have to get it arranged before you leave the UK though.

Re: Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

We used enterprise car sales for a 2 year lease with an option to buy through AIG travel assist who also got us set up with HSBC credit cards within about 4 weeks of arriving in the US without credit history.

AIG helped with our car insurance and renters insurances and have really earned their fee in my opinion. Well worth it!

Re: Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

+1 for AIG - we did the International Autosource through them as well. We also did the insurance and HSBC credit card - well worth the membership fee.

Re: Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

+1 from me for AIG as well. We didn't lease with them but they sorted all our insurance.

Re: Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

We used VW leasing - they only needed a letter from employer ( we were on an L1B)

a quick search should bring up loads of other threads on the subject too..

by the way - where abouts in stafford....( my home town....:thumbup: ) watched the torch go through yesturday wil home sick eyes.....

A

Re: Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

Yes, it's possible, yes there are plenty of threads on it.

Question really is, why would you want to?

Re: Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

Bob's point here is that leasing a car is perhaps the most expensive way to get a car (or not!) in the long run.

We leased a car through AIG from VW, over 2 years. Very happy, they took care of bank, credit card & car insurance & more than paid for their fee!

I wanted a reliable car covered by warranty. I wanted one that was top safety-rated. I wasn't prepared to pay double the monthly payments in order to own a new car - we could only get a lease or loan that was for no longer than the period covered by our visa (L1). I wasn't prepared to take the risk on buying a used car, and as it happens, used cars prices are more expensive here that I expected. We weren't moving out here with $200K in the bank from the sale of a house etc. So leasing was for us the only option that fitted our requirements.

Bob's wider point (I believe) is look at all the options, what you need & want, what your financial situation (including initial & on-going cash flow) will be etc etc.

Good luck!

Re: Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

Quite a few threads here about this subject. VW, BMW and Audi have special programs that will allow you to lease a car without any credit established here. I used the VW program: it was quite straightforward and I'd certainly recommend it.

Re: Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

+1

Re: Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

Yup.

Lease does make sense for some, those with a definite exit date, those who have a company car expense, those who definitely will drive no where in the car.

You can easily get a highend car that is 1-3 years old that is covered under warranty for the same kind of money as a lease, with the added benefit of a loan to get one will have a positive impact to a credit history.

Re: Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

We have just collected two Fords which we ordered through AIG/International Autosource from the UK.
Ford will lease direct to expats if you can provide an employment letter and copy of visa.

Re: Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

Aww, my daughter's school had a street party! Ironic to be leaving at a uber patriotic time! We live in Brocton, just outisde Stafford. Thanks for all the great info guys, we're scared but excited!

Re: Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

My lease with VW is reported as a loan, does nicely for the credit score.

Re: Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

That's good going...because it usually doesn't, so only late payments appear as dings rather than anything positive.

Re: Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

The thing is, we're not coming over with loads of company support or hefty relocation, so to buy 2 cars outright is not possible. Can anyone give me some idea of what to expect to pay per month for leasing? Thanks so much for the advice.

Re: Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

Will you have money for deposits? We worked out that the lease payment over 2 years was almost the same overall whether we out a big deposit down and had a small monthly, or put the minimum down and had a bigger monthly. The total money spent over the 2 years was almost the same.
So we put down max deposits and pay smaller monthly.

For a Ford Focus we put down $4090 deposit and pay $90 a month on a 2 year lease with 12000 miles a year. We could have gone direct to Ford and got the a very similar deal, but when I mentioned this to the Travelguard (International AutoSource) agent, he beat the Ford deal.

don't forget insurance costs a fortune here. Expect to pay close to $800 to $1000 per car for 6 months!

Hope this helps

Re: Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

You don't need to buy out right though.

You can get a decent, 3 year old car that's still under warranty for not much money, hell, you can get a high end Audi for $25K second hand if you wanted.

Monthly payment would still probably be less than a lease and it will build up good credit history that isn't just a credit card.

Basically, either way, it depends on what you put down for a deposit, the length of the lease and what you want. You can get a small shitty Chevy for probably $100 a month and a BMW for $500, but the more costly car will cost a hell of a lot more to insure.

Re: Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

So could you get finance to buy a second hand car?

Re: Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

Probably not, as you don't have any credit history

Re: Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

All the more reason not to get a millstone such as 2 car leases round your neck.

craigslist.org

Re: Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

You'll have to use a company that is used to working with expats with no US credit history. VW do it, as I believe do BMW and Audi. It's a specific overseas scheme. If you do a search for VW leasing on here, you'll see plenty of threads on that scheme at least.

You can pay almost as much or as little as you want. $300/month per car will get you something decent. It really depends what you go for. Obviously something like a Ford Focus is going to cost you less than a 3 series BMW etc.

Re: Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

Pretty easy, with letter of employment.

The rate will be shit without a decent deposit, but it's not like the lease rate will be much better.

All depends on what you want to get and how much you want to spend.

Re: Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

Talking of International Autsource...I'm working with them now to find a car.

I've discovered that a lot of the makes listed on their website do not lease to people without a tier 1 credit history. I believe that VW and Audi are an exception to this, but certainly Jeep, Mazda, Ford and Nissan aren't available. Has anyone else found this? What vehicles did you go for?

Re: Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

Using Enterprise car sales through travel guard we paid $4000 up front and $308 per month for a 2010 dodge avenger with 30k miles on the clock with an allowance of 15,000 miles per year for 2 years. Our insurance is $520 for 6 months for 2 cars. (we bought a 1996 tahoe for around $5k when we arrived)

Re: Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

Wow that is much better than they could do for us - 3500 down and 229 a month for a 2 year lease. How did you get a competative quote to show them? Any help is appreciated

Re: Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

I contacted a Ford Dearlership in the US and asked for a quote. AI beat it!

Re: Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

Thanks that is useful - i tried the same (ford website) and the IA guy said that was not for an expat! I guess i have to play hardball!

Re: Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

Find a dealership local to where you will be living, ours had an Internet sales person. I emailed her and explained situation and she honored ford website & put it in an email with costs. All she would have needed was visa and letter of employment to show we were in US for term of lease and had funds to pay. AI need to know you have actually been quoted costs, not just what website says, as website price is for good credit history, and we expats don't have any!
I also told AI I would not be using them as had cheaper quote - that's when they started beating deals. Play hard ball, it worked for me!
Good luck

Re: Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

Hmm strange i spoke to a few nice people at Ford dealers and none of them would quote me - the main one i contacted said he was not allowed to quote me without a SSN! You might have been lucky there! They said they most likely could lease to me but sounded a bit vague.
Anyway my search goes on - but i think i have to ditch int. auto they just seem too expensive for me.

Re: Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

Hi Bilbos, I am new to the forum - will be moving for 2 years to NJ and wanted to know on the VW lease - did you contact a VW dealer on went through IntlAuto? The numbers they quoted me for a 2 year lease were quite high. Many thanks!

Re: Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

I leased a new Ford Focus one week after I got my work permit, car loans and finance are usually the easiest credit to obtain and kick start your ratings.

Re: Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

We moved to NJ in June and leased a Jetta from VW in Manhatten. We went in on a Sunday afternoon and completed the paperwork and picked up the car a couple of weeks later (our choice). It was quite painless, and we had to supply the following documents:

Letter from employer confirming salary, position etc..
SSN number
Passport with visa
3 x references from US persons

The deal you get will depend on the current promotions running at the time. You will also need to supply insurance documentation before they will release the car.

Re: Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

Thanks HartleyHare and watchamacallit - very helpful information!

Would you be able to tell me how much roughly it costs you the lease per month (just to get an overall sense and idea - I know that the actual cost for me will be different depending on current promotions, etc.).

In terms of US references - did these have to be in some special format provided by the lease company/car dealer?

Many thanks!:)

Re: Car leasing with no credit history in US?
 

Hi,

We put down a deposit of $1000 and pay $399 per month for 24 months. This includes servicing and all fees and taxes, plates etc..