THE EASIEST WAY TO GET A $7,500 TAX CREDIT FOR AN ELECTRIC VEHICLE? CONSIDER LEASING

Thanks to a boost from the government, leasing - not buying is becoming the most affordable way to get your hands on an electric vehicle

Last year's Inflation Reduction Act provided a federal tax credit of up to $7,500 to use toward an EV. Under the rules, a dealer can apply that credit to any leased electric vehicle, no matter where it's made, to reduce a customer's monthly payment.

Not so for people who buy an EV.

For buyers, only EVs made in North America qualify for the full tax credit. And only 10 of the 49 electric vehicles for sale in the United States this year meet that requirement. Even then, the EV must contain certain percentages of battery parts from the United States or countries with which it has a trade deal for the buyer to receive a full $7,500 credit.

Why the distinction between leased and purchases vehicles? The Treasury Department says that in establishing the tax credit, Congress classified leased - but not purchased EVS as "commercial" vehicles. Under the law, commercial vehicles are exempt from the North America manufacturing and battery-content requirements. The result is that people who lease enjoy a much wider selection of EVs that qualify for the $7,500 credit.

"Lease affordability has surpassed purchase affordability" in a J.D. Power index that includes total cost of ownership, said Elizabeth Krear, vice president of the EV practice at J.D. Power.

Many consumers have become aware of the difference and are capitalizing on it. In April, Krear said, leases accounted for 41% of all U.S.

EV deliveries - four times the percentage in December, before the new rules took effect.

Geoff Pohanka, president of a 21-dealership group in Maryland, Virginia and Texas, said he is anticipating an increase in leasing. Buyers, he predicts, will increasingly recognize that the tax credit will help defray the typically substantial cost difference between an EV and a similar gas-powered vehicle.