When you write a lease, you are typically entering into an agreement with a leasing company or a bank that has a leasing program. Most people think that they are leasing from their car dealer, but this is not true! The car dealer is NOT the leasing company!
In addition, many car manufacturers have their own leasing companies such as GMAC, Ford Motor Credit, and BMW Financial Services that specialize in creating financing programs for their own vehicles. Typically when you see an ad for financing on a certain vehicle, it's the manufacturer's finance company that is creating that special to sell more of their cars.
When you visit a car dealer and are presented with a potential lease payment, it is the leasing company that you will ultimately lease this car from. The car dealer sells the actual car to the leasing company who then turns around and leases it to you. Keep in mind that during that process the dealer is getting paid a commission from the leasing company to offer you this financing. Learn more about negotiating with the dealer
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