Should you lease or buy a car? In this example, the same Honda Civic can either cost you $375 a month or $761 a month, depending on if you lease or buy the car. In most cases, leasing is the most expensive way to own a car. Some counter-arguments though are if your lease payments amount to less than the total depreciation at the end of your lease term. So if your car is $50K, and worth $35k in 3 years - if your lease payments are less than $15k total - then you come out ahead. For some cars, thi