Businesses big and small may be making important strides towards a paperless environment, but a printer, copier, or multifunction device are still vital components of a business’ day-to-day operation.
Whether you’re just beginning your research on used office printers or you have one or more multifunction devices you’re looking to replace, one of the biggest decisions you need to make is whether to buy or lease. While many companies do purchase their office printers outright, the more common approach is leasing. When comparing the two options, there are several considerations that may steer you in one direction or the other.
Buy or lease used office printers
Once you’ve identified the right model machine for your business, it’s time to explore the pros and cons of both leasing and buying. For most people, the decision is ultimately a financial one. Buying an office printer involves a big upfront investment which most small or startup businesses do not have. Leasing, on the other hand, gives you all the benefits of the model you need at a fixed monthly payment for a set period. This is not only a friendlier budget option, but it also frees up capital to invest in other areas of your business.
Keep in mind too, your initial investment doesn’t include ongoing expenses such as toner, paper, maintenance, and repairs. When you start to add it all up, leasing a printer tends to become the more attractive option. Here are some simple guidelines to help you determine whether it’s better to buy a used office printer or lease one.
Should you buy a used office printer?
The biggest upside to buying a printer outright is that you don’t need to make monthly lease payments or pay years of interest. Other benefits include:
- The ability to recoup your investment. While it’s true a printer is a depreciating asset, you can still sell one you own when you no longer need it, something you can’t do with a leased one.
- You are not locked into a third party provider contract.
- Equipment maintenance is under your control and you can hire the service company of your choice.
In addition to the initial expense, drawbacks of purchasing a used office printer include escalating repair costs as the machine ages, eventual replacement costs, and missing out on the technological advances of newer machines.
The pros and cons of leasing a used office printer
If you’re uncomfortable with the idea of making a substantial investment in a used printer, leasing is probably your best bet. The advantages are significant.
- Low upfront costs. Not only can your business save money on the initial investment, a lease also helps you preserve valuable credit that can be used for other, growth-oriented opportunities.
- Flexible payment. You get to choose the most comfortable leasing arrangement and monthly payments for your situation.
- Low or no hassles. When you lease a used office printer, there’s no annoying resale or disposal issues. And because most equipment providers offer maintenance plans included in the lease, you don’t have to worry about finding a company that can service your equipment or have an in-house person responsible for maintenance and repairs.
- Avoid obsolescence. New technology not only speeds up and improves business processes, it also tends to have lower maintenance costs. It also will undoubtedly be more efficient than older equipment which is a boon to employee productivity. In other words, giving your staff the latest tools that allow them to work more efficiently makes good business sense!
- Less is more. You can often lease a more advanced printer then you could afford to purchase outright. The payoffs in productivity, greater efficiency, and reduced downtime can be substantial.
There are two major disadvantages to leasing.
- More expensive. Because you pay interest on the equipment lease, at the end of its term you will have paid more than the actual value of the printer.
- Locked into a contract. It’s important to understand your printer lease agreement before signing on the dotted line. Otherwise you may be locked into a contract that has you paying for features you don’t need or with terms you cannot change, such as reducing the minimum number of copies per month or ending the lease before it expires.
Overall, though leasing a used office printer costs slightly more because of the interest, it’s usually the more appealing choice in the long run.
Technological upgrades and service terms
Used office printer leases typically span between three to five years at which point you can upgrade your equipment. Today, multifunctional devices not only print, they fax, scan, and make copies, too. Who knows what new technologies will appear in the next few years? Keep that in mind when choosing the length of your lease agreement. A shorter term lease may be the right choice for you if you like the idea of benefitting from new technology as it happens.
Finally, don’t overlook the service terms of a lease agreement. Do they roll into the lease or do you need to pay a separate maintenance agreement fee?
Tax considerations and implications
There are also tax implications to buying or leasing a used office printer. According to the IRS, printers are depreciating assets that can be claimed at tax time. But leased equipment isn’t depreciated as an asset; it’s a fully-deductible expense that decreases your business’ taxable income from profits, making it a smart move come tax time. Under most equipment leases, as long as you use the leased printer at your place of business, you’re entitled to deduct the lease payments on your tax return. You can also expense the printer as a part of doing business, leaving your capital free for investment back into your business.
Printer leasing also helps you save in the form of sales tax, particularly beneficial if you need to buy or lease more than one copier. Instead of paying a huge sales tax at the time of purchase, you get to defer taxes and keep more of your cash on hand.
Be sure to consult with your tax accountant or financial advisor before making a final decision on whether to buy or lease.
Learn more
At Common Sense Business Solutions, we believe there’s no better way to market and grow your business than by leasing a used Konica Minolta Bizhub multifunction printer—and our customers agree!
Leasing is a convenient and tax efficient way to access the very latest in printer technology. To learn more about the advantages to leasing a used office printer, contact CSBS today. We look forward to sharing our knowledge and expertise! And for additional helpful information on whether to buy or lease a used office printer, download our free guide: Leasing vs. Buying Business Copiers.
