Rental rates WAY too high! Lease, or buy?

I just moved to los angeles and rented a car for a month for $550. i am on my father's geico insurance plan so i don't pay for that. I am 6 m. shy of 25 so i think rates might be very high for insurance. i am going to be in LA for at least 6 months but maybe much longer. I really don;t know if it is smarter to lease (downsides having to get my own insurance, other issues) buy used (no warranty, having to spend a lot of money if problems arise)





looking for most affordable and safest option.





do i need my own insurance seperate from my father's if i buy or lease a car in my own name? can i lease a car without a full time employee status (i am an ind. contractor)?





please help.Rental rates WAY too high! Lease, or buy?
Yes, you have to have separate insurance if you buy or lease a car in your own name. The bank requires it if you finance. If not, and the car is crappy, you get liability and forget about collision. Leasing is always worse because of all the restrictions, the money they hold as a deposit, the mileage restrictions, etc. It's good for business people who can write it off and need new cars every few years to impress clients.





1. Buy a cheap, new car and keep your payments under $250/mo. Always get the warranty. More lemons are sold than you can dream of. Legal recourse? Yeah, whatever.





2. Lease a cheap *** car, but that will suck because you will probably want to go out a lot and drive the car. You have no clients to impress. If you did, we wouldn't be having this Yahoo answer conversation.





3. Ask your Dad to help you purchase a cheap car for about $3000 from a private seller. You're not going to have the problems you're talking about. Buy from old people who are trying to sell before they're not allowed to drive. Let a mechanic check it out. Learn a little about cars since it's clear you don't know squat about them. Understand things like oil changes, brakes, tires, rims, fluids, battery, transmission.





Don't sign an AS IS clause if possible. CA is pretty protective of the consumer. Just find out where the seller lives all that shiet.