There are two ways to end a lease (without destroying your credit). One is to do an "early termination" and the other is to do an "early buyout." Actually, there is a third way -- trading your leased vehicle -- but we'll discuss that in another article.
An early termination is simply a way to return your car before the scheduled end of your lease and pay any associated costs. Other articles here discuss this method in more detail.
The second method is to buy your car from the lease company through a process called an "early buyout" (as distinguished from an end-of-lease buyout).
People have different reasons for wanting to end their car lease by purchasing the vehicle, although it usually doesn't make sense financially. Most often, they feel uncomfortable "renting" their vehicle and not "owning" it.
Assuming that the desire to buy the leased vehicle comes near the beginning or middle of the lease term, the cost to end the lease and buy the vehicle can be very expensive -- much more than the vehicle's market value. This is because a lease pays off very little of the cost of a vehicle until very near the end of the lease. The result can be that the cost of the early buyout can be much more than the value of the vehicle. It would have been much less costly to have simply purchased the vehicle in the beginning.
To determine how much an early buyout will cost you, you can simply call your lease company and get an early buyout (not "early payoff" or "early termination') quote from them. Be prepared for a shock. the amount will very likely exceed your estimates, or even your ability to pay.
Because the cost can excedd the "book" value of the vehicle, lenders such as banks or credit unions, may not be willing to let you borrow the entire amount you owe. Therefore, you would be required to make a down payment to make up the difference.
