Lease v Buy for preorder people

[rroonnbb]

Wondering if someone more knowledgeable than I about all this stuff might weigh in on the financial tradeoffs between buying vs leasing for my specific situation.

I have an original preorder (from January, 2019 - did not sign any additional contract) that will be expiring on Sept 30, 2024. I'm in California.

I'm thinking I'll either get Performance Dual Motor or Quad Motor with the Large Battery pack (unless the Max pack suddenly comes down in price) so the likely price (before voucher) will be somewhere in the mid $90K range.

I'd prefer to Lease, but don't know if the costs pencil out as being as good vs. buying. Ideally I'd lease for 24 months and I'm happy to put down whatever deposit makes for the best deal.

My understanding is that I should be able to get the $7500 tax credit if I lease, whereas if I buy with the configurations I'm considering I may not qualify for that? But it's not clear that the pre-order discount for doing a lease is nearly as good as the discount for purchase...

Has anybody out there dived into this more deeply?

Only other bit of pertinent info is that I'm going to be out of the country for all of August. So ideally I wait until very early September to do this. My other (minor) concern is that there will be tons of people in the same boat as I am who will be wanting to order before that Sept 30 deadline, and inventory may be sparse but it's not a huge issue if I have to wait a little longer. (Although it probably means that being able to purchase from existing inventory is less likely).

(EDITED to add intended lease period of 24 months and preorder info)

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[RoadRunner]

Pretty sure if you lease the 20% preorder voucher applies only to the portion of the MSRP minus the Residual Value.
So if the MSRP is 90K and the residual value is 60K, you get 20% off of the 30K difference rather than 20% off the 90K MSRP.

EDIT - based on reddit thread with the same question, this may be incorrect.

Full $7500 Tax credit would apply to a lease but may not to apply to purchase, depending on your income, MSRP, etc. - unless you signed the binding purchase contract and file a revised tax return for 2022 as described in other threads here.

 

[RoadRunner]

From Reddit post:

"I had been in the same boat as an early reservation holder, pulled the trigger a few days ago when Rivian offered free Stealth package and picking up a R1S Quad next week.

For pre-price hike order holders, you get a $6250 discount when leasing instead of the 20% off purchase or financing. This is for a Quad Motor (other models might have a different discount). You will also get the $7500 tax credit.

Say Vehicle price is $90k

Financing: you deduct 20% ($18k) + $3750 (tax credit).

The leasing math goes like this: $90k - $6250 = $83750 (Your price) the lease residual is calculated on your price (65% for 3 yrs 36k miles for me) = $54450 approx (Residual)

Lease Principal= Your price - Residual or $29300 in this example (Add Interest, taxes n Fees)

Deduct = $7500 + Down payment

With $1k down, my payments are ~$700

There are a lot of posts on money factor and APR calculations, for me it made sense to lease instead of financing.

Hope it helps!"

 

[Kylechoffman]

I spoke to two different guides about this topic two weeks ago as I am a day 1 reservation holder who has been holding off for a number of reasons but will be taking delivery in July of R1S. If you are a preorder and signed the agreement/ have a copy of said agreement, you can still take advantage of the $7500 tax benefit by purchasing a R1T or R1S and amending your 2022 return. I asked specifically about the 80K ceiling and they both stated the price reported for that ceiling is after discount.

 

[rroonnbb]

I spoke to two different guides about this topic two weeks ago as I am a day 1 reservation holder who has been holding off for a number of reasons but will be taking delivery in July of R1S. If you are a preorder and signed the agreement/ have a copy of said agreement, you can still take advantage of the $7500 tax benefit by purchasing a R1T or R1S and amending your 2022 return. I asked specifically about the 80K ceiling and they both stated the price reported for that ceiling is after discount.

What's the reason for having to take the $7500 in 2022 (and go through the hassle of filing an amended return) vs. just claiming the $7500 in 2024?

 

[Kylechoffman]

$7500 POS is not an option for Rivian in 2024.

 

[rroonnbb]

$7500 POS is not an option for Rivian in 2024.

Ah, ok. But, to be clear, it _is_ an option for 2024 if you're leasing?

 

[Kylechoffman]

Ah, ok. But, to be clear, it _is_ an option for 2024 if you're leasing?

Yes leasing 7500 is an option or 3750 for purchase without the agreement (my understanding).

 

[b_ack51]

Yes leasing 7500 is an option or 3750 for purchase without the agreement (my understanding).

Your understanding is correct

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