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Thoughts on bike leasing


IndMoto

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A harley may not be on everyone's todo list, but being that there are a few well rounded riders here on the forum, I thought I would ask. Independent Motorsports is starting to dabble in the leasing of quality used Haley Davidson motorcycles. What would be your thoughts or concerns on something like this?

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You mean leasing as in long-term, i.e., 2-3-4 years?  Vs rental as in by the hour or the day?  Biggest issue I see is that leases typically appeal to the buyer wanna-be who has OK disposable income but no free cash saved for the down payment.  Not sure how that would work for a bike buyer.  Seems like the greater risk of loss would require a large dp, but then you might as well just buy outright.  This comes with the disclaimer that I've never leased a vehicle and never understood the mindset of renting a rapidly depreciating asset and then returning it after the majority of the value loss has been realized.  I suppose there are advantages for business tax write-offs.  Don't know if that would apply to a MC….

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Lease that which depreciates. Buy that which appreciates. That being said, monthly payments are so low with Harley's 72 month payment program, you would battle the "heck, for this $$ each month, I could own it".

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True, if you 1) can write off the loss/depreciation costs, and 2) have a need to drive the latest/greatest/newest vehicle all the time.  Realistically, the monthly payments are based on the lease duration and residual value, and so you end up paying for the bulk of the vehicle's early years depreciation and then have nothing to show for it after 3-4 years….and that's if you don't blow your mileage allotment.  Sorry, but unless you REALLY need to be driving a vehicle that's less than 2-3 years old, buying--and keeping--makes more sense.  Your argument for leasing holds true only if you buy and then sell and upgrade every few years.

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Personally is never lease a barely used Harley. A barely used Harley has all the depreciation already sunk so why not just buy it and take advantage of their inflated re sale value?

Edited by Bad324
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I'm not necessarily your target market, but I do have a policy that may apply.  I never borrow or lease for a hobby, and in Ohio motorcycles are a hobby because most people only ride 6-9 months out of the year.  I also prefer to work on and customize my own bikes, which I' guessing I wouldn't be able to do on a lease.

 

Looking at this from the lending side of the deal, be sure to price in the actuarial likelihood of someone having an accident, theft, garage-rash or leaving the bike in the elements.  Lots of financial risk there you'd want to price into your leases.

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I'm not necessarily your target market, but I do have a policy that may apply.  I never borrow or lease for a hobby, and in Ohio motorcycles are a hobby because most people only ride 6-9 months out of the year.  

 

Agree, I'd not be too interested in leasing/financing a toy.

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I think short term renting would have a better market. Such as daily or weekly rentals. I know when I come to visit in Ohio I'd like to go on a motorcycle ride. The problem is there's only a couple places to rent from and the daily rate is way too high.

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I would expect major wear/tear on a vehicle turned in from a lease.

 

Bikers like to tinker/customize.

 

If they can't afford traditional financing...repo'ing might be common.

 

If i was going to lease a bike(not gonna happen), it damn sure wouldn't be used.

 

 

this is my thought. I don't know for a fact, but I'd say a motorcycle is also much easier to part out than a car would be. I could see people just parting it out when repo time came.

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