What Exactly Is a Lease?

At its core, a lease is essentially an agreement where a person/group rents something from another person/group over a period of time in exchange for money. Leases are a popular option because payments are usually lower and spread out over a number of months or years. Leases can be signed for a number of different things, including an apartment, house, vehicle, piece of furniture, technology or dozens of other items. While all leases are not the same, a sound, transparent lease agreement will include how much money is owed in each lease payment, how often payments need to be made, how long the lease will last, and other verifiable information for both the party leasing the items and the party making payments to rent/lease those items.

Why Should I Look to Lease?

There are many pros to leasing your items. Let’s walk you through the advantages and show you why leasing just might be the option for your budget.

Lower Upfront Cost

For starters, leasing means you don’t have to worry about paying a costly upfront price. Making smaller, more manageable lease payments over time will allow you to get the items you want in a simple, affordable way all while effectively balancing your budget.

A low initial payment and small lease payments means less time worrying about the weight of a purchase. Even if you’re leasing multiple items, making lease payments over time gives you the opportunity to bring home new merchandise while still having control over your budget down the road. Which brings us to our next point …

Ability to Stack Merchandise

As we already hinted at, leasing gives you the ability to take home more items at the same time. Purchasing things like a new, name-brand TV, couch or range outright at most retailers would be a major financial decision for each individual item. Because of the cost, buying all three upfront might require you to purchase them separately over an extended period of time. But what if you don’t want to wait that long? Lease each item, and you could bring home all the merchandise you need the same day.

Eventually Own Your Merchandise Outright

It’s easy to feel like your new items aren’t really “yours” during a lease, but that doesn’t have to be the case. For example, Acima offers lease-to-own agreements*, putting you on track to own your new items at the end of your last payment. Each payment you make along the way within your unique lease agreement puts you one step closer to owning your new merchandise all without credit*, no strings attached.

What Should I Look For In a Lease?

While we agree that most transparent leases will have a similar structure and similar qualities across the board, some are still much better than others. We recommend looking for leases that offer the following:

Approval

A really ideal lease will offer plenty of wiggle room when it comes to approval. Some are designed to help you obtain approval in spite of a murky credit background. Some don’t require a particularly high credit score or any minimum credit score.

It’s important you do your research and make sure you find a lease that works within your unique financial situation.

Payment Plan Options

Another benefit of a lease-to-own agreement is one with payment options. Budgets aren’t one-size-fits-all, and your lease agreement shouldn’t be, either.

Look for a lease that offers flexibility when it comes to things like the length of your lease, how frequently you make payments, the ability to return your product if you no longer want or need it, and other parts of the agreement.

In the case of Acima, we’re flexible with our approval requirements and payment plan options. All of our lease agreements incorporate the no credit option*, meaning your particular credit situation doesn’t have to stop you from getting the things you need. This means that you can get the things you want for your home without using credit you may have or increasing your debt.

When it comes to variations in payment plans, we can cater to your unique budget, even allowing you to choose between two payment options biweekly or monthly. People earn money at different rates, and you deserve a plan that reflects this.

How Can I Start the Lease Process?

By now, you hopefully have realized that leases aren’t as complex as they may seem. Acima lease-to-own agreements offer an affordable solution to get what you need, when you need it, and all without credit*. It’s about time we help you take control of your shopping power.

Leasing through Acima is as simple as finding stores that offer and honor our services and filling out a quick application. In less than a minute, you can be instantly approved for up to $4,000. All we need from you are a few pieces of information to get the ball rolling on a lease agreement:

• Some personal info about yourself (name, date of birth, contact info)

• A verifiable source of income (pay stub, tax return, bank statement, etc.)

• Proof of residence, plus a way to contact any landlords/housing managers, if applicable

• At least two personal references

From there, we have over 15,000 Acima retailers for you to visit and start shopping for name-brand furniture, appliances, electronics, technology and more.

Really, it’s that easy. Get your lease on today!