My lease will end in March but my vehicle registration renewal is December. Do I still have to pay for the registration? I mean, it doesn't feel right paying $300 registration fee for a car that I will keep for just 3 more months...

 

Yes you do, bank terms have nothing to do with state fees. That's why people always recommend sticking to 12 month intervals. Try trading in the car in December

 

I would think you would have to, unless you don't plan on driving it between Dec and March. If you plan on picking up another Lexus, why not see if you can turn it in early so you don't have to deal with the reg?

 

This is why I always go for 24 or 36 month leases lol, but you can always try turning in the car early or trading in and see if you don't end up with negative equity

 

In Florida the registration and tag goes with the owner (and renews on the owner's birthday) so in our case if you buy a new car you can just transfer the old tag to it.

I guess the process is different in the land of fruits and nuts?

 

How very special it must be that in FL you might get a birthday greeting when the DMV notifies you that it's time to renew your vehicle registration. Congrats to you. I do think, however, your location might be the "different" one, as I don't think there are many states using the birthday method for registration renewal.

To the OP - you've probably already realized this, but try to avoid the odd month lease terms as a previous poster has noted. If you like your IS, you might consider extending your lease for six months - otherwise, try making a deal right around the time the registration is due.

 

Thanks so much for all suggestion. I will probably try out Carmax.

 

$300 for registration.... wow that's crazy. In NY you register for 2 years at a time and I believe the registration price is based on the price of the car. A full two years would be about $120 for IS350 fsport awd.. Mine was $69.25 for 14 months because when you get a new car, as long as you keep the same plates, they just keep your registration date from your previous car and pro-rate the cost or even in some cases issue a refund. So when I bought a new car in February of 2006, the next car registration was up in February of 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016, etc. no matter if it was a new car or not and as long as you keep the same plates. If you get rid of the car before the 2 years is up and you turn in the plates you get a refund of the remaining balance.

We also have a yearly inspection fee on top of registration. $10 the first year and I think $25 after that.