Payoff Quote
What is a payoff quote on a car lease?
A payoff quote is what you owe to end a car lease before its scheduled term is up. It equals the lease-end buyout amount, the residual value plus a purchase-option fee and tax, plus every monthly payment you have not made yet. On a hypothetical 36-month lease, a payoff quote requested with 6 months left came to $18,820.43, versus a $16,235.93 buyout price at the scheduled end.
Key takeaways
- A payoff quote equals the lease-end buyout amount plus every remaining monthly payment, since the contract's remaining months are not paid for yet.
- On a hypothetical 36-month lease with a $430.75 base payment, a payoff quote requested with 6 months left came to $18,820.43, versus a $16,235.93 buyout price at the scheduled end, a $2,584.50 gap equal to those 6 payments.
- The payoff quote shrinks every month and becomes identical to the buyout price once zero payments remain.
- Most of the remaining-payments portion of a payoff quote is still rent charge, the interest built into the lease, not principal simply being un-paid.
- Comparing a buyer's offer to the wrong number, a payoff quote instead of a buyout price or the reverse, is a common way people misjudge whether a deal is good.
What is a payoff quote on a car lease?
A payoff quote is the amount you owe to end a car lease before its scheduled term is finished, whether you plan to buy the car early or just close out the contract. It equals the lease-end buyout amount plus every monthly payment you have not made yet, because ending a lease early means the contract has not yet collected the months of depreciation and rent charge it was counting on.
Most of that remaining-payments portion is still rent charge, the interest built into the lease, not principal you are simply un-paying. Treat a mid-lease payoff as a real cost of leaving early, not a discount owed to you. A lender rarely erases interest it already priced into the deal, and signing a new lease right after a payoff just restarts that same interest clock on another car.
How is a payoff quote different from a lease-end buyout price?
A payoff quote is always the buyout amount plus whatever payments remain, so it runs higher than the buyout price at every point except the very end of the term, when the two become the same number. Here is that relationship on a hypothetical 36-month lease: a $26,900 selling price, a $430.75 monthly base payment computed with the site's lease calculator, and a $16,235.93 lease buyout price (a $14,850 residual value plus a hypothetical $395 purchase-option fee plus $990.93 in hypothetical tax at 6.5%).
| Months remaining | Remaining payments | Buyout amount | Payoff quote |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18 | $7,753.50 | $16,235.93 | $23,989.43 |
| 6 | $2,584.50 | $16,235.93 | $18,820.43 |
| 0 (scheduled end) | $0 | $16,235.93 | $16,235.93 |
The remaining-payments column is the script-verified base payment, $430.75, multiplied by the months left. The buyout amount holds steady at $16,235.93 because it does not depend on timing, only on the residual, the fee, and the tax rate. Once zero payments remain, the payoff quote and the buyout price converge on that same number.
How do you get your exact payoff quote?
Contact the leasing company directly, not the dealer, since the leasing company holds the contract and the numbers behind it. Ask for a payoff good through a specific date, because the figure changes with every payment you make and every day of accrued rent charge.
Quotes typically expire in a matter of weeks, so request a fresh one before finalizing a sale, a trade, or an early buyout, rather than relying on a number from a month ago. For the full worked comparison between a payoff quote and a buyout price, including how this confusion causes people to misjudge a good deal, see why is my payoff quote different from my buyout price.
Common questions
What is a payoff quote on a car lease?
A payoff quote is the amount you owe to end a lease before its scheduled term ends. It equals the lease-end buyout amount plus your remaining monthly payments. On a hypothetical 36-month lease with 6 months left, the payoff quote came to $18,820.43, versus a $16,235.93 buyout price at the scheduled end.
Why is a payoff quote higher than a buyout price?
Because it adds the payments you have not made yet on top of the same buyout amount. In a hypothetical example, 6 remaining $430.75 payments added $2,584.50 to a $16,235.93 buyout price, for a $18,820.43 payoff quote.
Does a payoff quote go down over time?
Yes, every payment lowers it. In the same hypothetical lease, the payoff quote fell from $23,989.43 with 18 months left to $18,820.43 with 6 months left, and it reaches the $16,235.93 buyout price once the term ends.
How do I get my exact payoff quote?
Contact the leasing company, not the dealer, and ask for a figure good through a specific date, since it changes with every payment. Quotes typically expire within a matter of weeks, so request a fresh one before finalizing a sale or an early buyout.
Is a payoff quote the same as a lease buyout price?
No. A buyout price only applies once the lease's scheduled term is finished. A payoff quote applies at any point mid-lease and includes the buyout amount plus whatever payments are still due, so the two numbers converge only at zero months remaining.
Sources
- Keys to Vehicle Leasing: End-of-Term Charges — Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System