Recently we ‘ Canadianized’ a U.S. update on what was termed the ‘ 10 Advantages of Leasing Equipment. The U.S. document also spoke of the top 5 reason why companies lease… We thought those were worthy of some comments also.
Canadian owners and financial managers who wish to lease equipment or obtain a commercial lease/loan for equipment are not only motivated by good leasing rates. Let’s examine some of those other motivators also.
Number 1 on the list was ‘ the bank won’t help our firm’. That’s a common thread when we talk to clients looking to finance their assets. However, we must also point out that the Canadian chartered banks in very recent times have become very aggressive in lease financing of assets. Several banks have even purchased commercial lease companies and reframed them under the bank logo.
If your company can ‘ meet mustard’ for the bank credit bar, which is typically quite high then you are in a position to get rates, terms and structures that clearly can’t be beaten.
Another complication we have noted with bank leasing in Canada is that the preference is for them to only finance their own commercial borrowing customers under their lease programs. If they can’t do that there is usually a strong pitch made for moving all your credit facilities over to their bank. That of course may, or may not, make sense! It certainly complicates the process in our opinion. However, those bank leasing rates can be very appealing and are often significantly, and we really mean significantly under their competitors, the independent lease finance firms in Canada.
Reason # 2 for Canadian firms to choose Leasing .We guess you can call it our ‘ royalty’ reason, because, so we’ve been told, cash is king ! So if you can obtain 90-100% financing of your asset, conserve credit lines, and finance numerous ancillary needs of the asset, i.e. maintenance, warranty, delivery, installation, etc then you are clearly way ahead of the game.
Reason # 3 – It’s easy, it’s as plain and simple as that. The reality is that in 2011 the equipment lease is a highly competitive offering in Canada. Numerous firms that finance small, medium and large ticket transactions are very aggressive in marketing their financing services for a commercial loan / lease. The trick here we caution customers is not to reverse that ease of application by wasting time in talking to the wrong firm – someone who doesn’t match your firms credit quality or asset financing need .
Reason # 4- Want to be held captive? What do we mean by that? Simply that one of the category of lease offerings in Canada is held by captive finance companies and dealers who offer financing. They have one main motivation. Sell you their products! So their ability to finance those products for you becomes their motivator, with your firm being the winner, often getting great lease rates and terms by an incented manufacturer or dealer.
Reason # 5 – Hold on a minute, we have to talk to our accountant. By that we’re simply saying there are number tax, deprecations and accounting implications and benefits around an equipment lease. This further solidifies the reason why many firm not only focus on leasing rates but other intangible benefits such as accounting, tax treatment, etc.
So, as always there’s a bottom line. Canadian firms who lease equipment have some great reasons to finance their asset needs in this manner. Speak to a trusted, credible an experienced Canadian business financing advisor to find out which of these reasons make the most sense to your firm.