Do not assume that another car is the best choice if your lease ends.

While many consumers go from lease to lease — which puts them in a new vehicle every few years — the pandemic has upended the auto industry. Experts say this generally indicates that the calculation has changed to determine whether another lease is worth it.

Pat Ryan (founder and CEO of the car-shopping website) stated, for starters, that it is not feasible to obtain immediate access to the vehicle you need. CoPilot. You might have to wait three to six more months.

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An ongoing global shortage of microchips — key components needed for today’s autos to operate — that began last year continues to impede manufacturers’ production of new vehicles, which has translated into demand outpacing supply. 

According to J.D., the average amount of time that a vehicle is left on a lot before it’s sold is 26 days. Power and LMC Automotive. Two years ago — before the pandemic hit — it was 62 days. A total of 54% sold vehicles within 10 days after arriving at dealers in October. 

The J.D. estimates that the average cost of buying a new car has increased to approximately $44,000 because of this supply problem. Power/LMC forecast. It’s 19.3% lower than October 2020, when transaction prices averaged $36,887

Manufacturers have cut back on incentives to make it easier to sell vehicles.

Also, consumer demand has spilled over into the used-car marketplace, driving up prices. According to CoPilot, vehicles aged 1 to 3 years are on average $38,974, up 46% from $26,627 two-years ago.

The good news for lessees is that your current car may be worth more than anticipated — and give you a chance to capitalize on the difference.

This means that you might be able buy your lease out for less than you would pay if the car were on a dealership’s lot. This is because the residual value — the vehicle’s worth at the end of the lease — was established when you signed the lease several years ago.

Ryan stated, “You were charged for depreciation which didn’t occur.” You’re making a profit, but the dealer will take it back if they turn it in.

It is also possible that the features you already have may not be available on the next model. Due to the chip shortage, some features — such as driver assistance and monitoring systems, or blind-spot monitoring — have been suspended by some automakers.

Ryan stated that you may not receive new features in the next vehicle or the same features as the one you have now.

With record car-price records, he stated that the next lease would reflect increased vehicle values.

Ryan stated that “what we are telling our members is to buy out” and added that prices could normalize when inventories return to normal.