Getting a new car is always a big decision for a car buyer to make. With endless options, it’s hard to narrow it down to just one model. Overdoing research can easily happen and for some people, they’d rather just pick one and go with it.
So what happens when you finally make a decision only to find out you don’t love the car for a few months? Well, unfortunately depreciation kicks in as soon as you drive the car off the lot.
In a TikTok, with over 327.4K views, the car salesman, Joseph (@jrodsellscars) tells us about a story with a Hyundai Elantra lease that rapidly depreciated when she only had the car for three months.
What made this Hyundai Elantra depreciate so fast?
In his TikTok, Joseph shares how this woman wanted to trade back in her Hyundai Elantra due to the small size. She complained the car was not big enough for her preference and that she would like to trade in for a new car. In three months, she put 9K miles on the car, which is a lot considering this is a leased car.
She informed the car salesman about the negative equity she had rolled over from previous cars to this current lease. Her past debt she had was more than what her previous car was worth. This rollover move is done to avoid buying off a past debt while being able to upgrade to a new car.
Now that she is looking to trade in her Hyundai Elantra lease, the car salesman needs a new appraisal value. The appraisal came in at $18,000 after she drove the car 9,000 miles.
The salesman then goes on to check the payoff amount from the past lease and it’s bad.
Turns out, her upside down is $14,000 from her past lease making her payoff to be $32,000 if she wanted to trade in.
The 2025 Hyundai Elantra’s starting MSRP is $25,350. With her total tab being $32,000 and the appraisal coming in short at $18,000 while having upside down $14,000 debt is a tricky situation to be in.
Losing 29% of the resale value after only driving it for three months certainly stings.
Joseph feels bad for her situation but advises her the best move is to stick with the current lease.
The realities of car leases and depreciation
When leasing a car, a mileage limit is agreed upon when signing the lease. The annual mileage limit for the Hyundai Elantra is typically 12,000 miles per year on a three-year lease. If the driver goes over the agreed upon mileage limit, they will be charged anywhere from $0.15-0.30 per extra mile.
Now, considering the women in TikTok already put 9K miles in three months, you can assume she’ll easily go over the mileage limit. At her current rate of 3K miles a month, she put 36,000 miles on the car in one year.
If she signed a three year lease she would meet her limit in one year. This is when it gets dangerous financially to lease a car. Once you go over the mileage limit, you will get penalized for each mile that you go over.
Let’s say she continues to drive at her rate of 36,000 miles each year for three years and it costs her 0.15 per extra mile, she’ll owe $10,800 in excess fee mileage. If it costs $0.30 per extra mile, the amount due at the end of the lease will be $21,600.
This is why it’s crucial to figure how much you intend on driving the car before leasing. Going over the annual mileage limit can create a huge financial hole.
Joseph told the Daily Dot, “Consider a lease buyout if you’re going to go over mileage on your lease.”
When does leasing a car make sense?
Determining if leasing a car makes sense for you will be based on your driving habits, financial situation, and long-term goals. Benefits to leasing a car include lower monthly payments, getting a new car every 3-5 years, and lower maintenance costs without the long-term commitment.
Now this is a good option if you don’t plan to drive your car a lot.
Leasing a car turns into a bad idea when you drive over the mileage limit. Exceeding the annual mileage limit on a lease can create future financial burden.
With lease cars, any modifications or customizations are not allowed. The car must be returned in its stock form. So if you are into modifying your car, look at buying it. In addition to this, drivers must return the cars in good condition. Just because it’s a short term lease, doesn’t mean you can completely trash the car without consequences.
Understanding your driving habits and preferences will ultimately determine if buying a car or leasing makes more sense.
What did the viewers think about this?
“$32k for a Hyundai ELANTRA?“ one commented.
“Not a good advertisement for Hyundai,” one added
“The dealer is going to sell it for 30k,” one commented
“Hyundai loses half their value when you drive it off the lot,” one joked.
“2025 Elantra appraised at $18K? That says EVERYTHING anyone ever needs to know about that brand,” another person said.
“She is doing Uber in it. If you don’t like the car you won’t drive 9k in 3 months,” someone else stated. This TikTok has more than 327.4K views with over 10.6K likes.
@jrodsellscars I felt bad 😕 #carsalesman #jrodsellscars #approved #dealership #carbuyingtips ♬ original sound – Joseph Rodriguez
The Daily Dot received a statement from @jrodsellscars over Instagram messenger. We also contacted Hyundai over email.
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