Justapickup

Hi,

Carvana asked (on the website) for the payoff amount. I got that info from the lessor of my vehicle.
I've been told that the payoff amount that Carvana pays to the lessor is LESS than what I (the lessee) would pay, because Carvana doesn't have to pay sales tax, while I would have to.
If that is true, then why would Carvana want me to give them the payoff amount? The lessor (in this case, it's Mazda) didn't want to tell me what Carvana would pay, only telling me it'd be less than my payoff. They want Carvana to contact them directly, with my authorization over the phone.
Has any of you sold a leased vehicle to a 3rd party, like Carvana, and can shed light on this?
Thanks!!

mosesbotbol

You have to tell them the pay off amount as you do not own the car outright. The buyer is dealing with two "owners".

Soul Coughing

I'm surprised that Mazda is allowing you to sell the car to Carvana, without first buying out the car yourself. Many manufacturers are not allowing 3rd party sales as places like Carvana, VROOM, and Carmax were buying up all the leased vehicles and dealerships were left with no used cars to sell!

On topic, you do not own the vehicle, the bank/manufacturer owns it, and you have a lease agreement to drive the car for however many miles and months. Depending on what month in your lease you're in, you'll have a certain payoff. There may be some state specific rule in regards to state tax that Mazda needs to abide by, but that's probably a question better asked on a website like Leasehackr; go to the specific state and ask the question. There are probably people who have already gone through the same process and will give you some input.

David1

Most manufacturers will not allow any competitor or Carvana to acquire the vehicle. On the leased vehicle I have, they will not even provide a payoff. Most leased vehicles are now captive to the manufacturer/owner of the vehicle. If Mazda still allows this, they are the last.

mosesbotbol

I had a leased car that I wanted to trade in early. a few years ago. Instead of trading it in, the selling dealer wrote my a check for the remaining months on my lease and I dealt with returning the car at the end.