Attempt to match your lease term to the useful or optimum life of the equipment you are leasing. For example, if you only require the use of the asset for a short period of time but its useful life is 5 years it may be beneficial just to rent the item for the interim period. If you require the use of an asset that has an expected useful life of 4 years before it will require major maintenance or replacement parts it may be useful to lease it for the 4-year optimum life cycle.