Leasing beats owning when a business plans to hand equipment back before its useful life runs out; owning wins when the machine stays for years after the last payment. This post prices a production copier and a mini excavator both ways for a Jackson, WY business, with invented figures. Heathfield can take a call on either route.
An invented copier priced as a 48-month loan and as a lease with a fixed purchase option, an invented mini excavator on a 60-month loan and a 48-month lease with a purchase option, the years-of-use test, and points to settle with a dealer. Dollar figures are invented.
Monthly Cost and Total Cost for One Production Copier, Leased and Financed
An invented Jackson, WY engineering firm prices a production copier at $14,860, and the dealer offers two routes:
| Route | Monthly payment | Months | Paid over the term | At the end | Total if the firm keeps the copier |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loan at 11.85% | $390.23 | 48 | $18,731.04 | The firm owns it | $18,731.04 |
| Lease with a fixed purchase option | $352.00 | 48 | $16,896.00 | Hand it back, or pay the invented $1,950 option price to keep it | $18,846.00 |
In this invented quote the lease runs $38.23 a month under the loan. If the firm hands the copier back after 48 months, it has paid $16,896.00, which is $1,835.04 less than the loan’s total. If it buys the copier at the end, the lease route reaches $18,846.00, or $114.96 more than the loan. The monthly figure points one way and the keep-it total points the other, which is why both belong in the comparison. The equipment financing page turns a $1 buyout lease on a skid steer quote into an annual rate.
A Mini Excavator for a Teton County, WY Landscaping Crew: 48-Month Lease or 60-Month Loan
Heavier machines change the math because they stay useful far longer than a copier. In an invented quote, a mini excavator costs $46,300. Financed at 9.65% over 60 months it runs $975.78 a month and $58,546.80 in all, and the crew owns it outright after payment 60. The dealer’s other offer is a lease with a fixed purchase option: 48 invented rent checks of $935, or $44,880, and the right to buy the excavator for an invented $13,900 at the end.
On these invented figures, keeping the excavator through the lease means $58,780 paid over 48 months, $233.20 more than the loan, though it is finished a year sooner and the monthly figure sits $40.78 lower until then. Returning it after 48 months costs $44,880 and leaves the crew with no machine. Landscaping equipment leasing can also carry limits a loan does not: a cap on yearly use, wear charges at return, and rules on who services the machine. Get those terms in writing before comparing totals.
How Many Years the Business Keeps the Machine Settles the Question
Both cases come down to one estimate: how long the business keeps the equipment. A firm that replaces copiers every four years to stay on current models gains from the lease, because it never pays for the copier’s later years. A crew that runs an excavator for nine or ten years gains from owning it, because every year after payment 60 carries no payment at all.
- Planned use shorter than the term: a lease with a return option can cost less.
- Planned use longer than the term: a loan, or a $1 buyout lease, ends in ownership.
- Not sure yet: price the purchase option before signing, since it sets the total if plans change.
A line of credit is not the tool for either purchase; it suits short gaps such as a repair bill, while the machine sits on a fixed schedule. A term loan can also carry equipment when the business wants one payment for items from more than one seller.
Points to Settle With the Dealer Before Either Agreement Is Signed
- the total of all lease payments, not only the monthly figure
- how the purchase option is priced: a fixed amount, $1, or a fair market value set at the end
- who pays for repairs, service and insurance during the term
- any usage cap, and the charge for going over it
- what happens if the business ends the agreement early
- for the loan: the annual rate, any fees at signing, and whether paying off early carries a charge
Bring both quotes to a call at (307) 248-6867 or start with the request form. The blog lists other posts, including one that ranks landscaping machines by cost per working day.
By Heathfield Commercial Capital · Updated
