2025 State of the Lease-to-own Consumer Report coming soon

Learn about your consumer’s behaviors and what they’re looking for this year.

Almost 121 million Americans are considered non-prime consumers, meaning they have credit scores below 660—and this number is only growing.* In fact, the number of Americans with credit scores between 300 and 600 grew by 1.2 million in the past year.^

Economic uncertainty, coupled with the continuing trend of inflation, is fueling anxiety among consumers, many of whom rely on financing to make necessary purchases.

Over 70% of lease-to-own consumers in our research reported recent price increases influenced their choice to finance, and 60% of consumers are either occasionally or frequently worried about their finances.**

So what does this mean for your business? Why should you care about non-prime consumers and lease-to-own options at all?

Because the data is clear: Offering lease-to-own bolsters your financing options, broadens your consumer base, and can help boost your sales. It also allows you to meet the needs of these often marginalized consumers in the current economic climate while helping your business grow and evolve.

Join Koalafi for our first thought piece of the year this spring—a deep dive on recent research that will help you understand the modern non-prime consumer in 2025 and beyond.

We’ll explore:

What kind of consumers are using lease-to-own for purchases:

Who is utilizing lease-to-own? What pre-conceived notions about this group are incorrect or holding your business back? We’ll analyze the trends of the almost 121 million consumers and show you what opportunities your business has to help them buy what they need—which means more sales for you.

What non-prime consumers are looking for in financing options:

What do they expect from your business? Consumers want more, and more diverse, financing options so they can make the purchases they want and need. We’ll look at the data on changing notions about financing and what you can do to meet consumers where they are.

What motivates or necessitates consumers to utilize lease-to-own financing:

Is it economic uncertainty? Underemployment or unemployment? A life event that negatively affected their credit or budget? Having a deep understanding of factors like backgrounds, needs, and motivations can lead to better outcomes for your customers and sales for your business.

What shoppers are buying using lease-to-own, and how often they use it for purchases:

Our data shows lease-to-own is among the most popular payment methods, especially for purchases over $500, and almost 60% are using this option to replace broken or outdated items.** What does this reveal about the future of lease-to-own, especially for sales on things like auto repairs and appliances?

All of this—and more—will be discussed in our inaugural State of the Lease-to-own Consumer Report. Stay tuned for the full report and contact us for more information!

*“The Consumer Credit Card Market.” Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, 2023

^Adam Hardy, “Credit Score Trouble: 1.2 Million More Americans Just Became ‘Subprime Borrowers,” Money, April 2024

**Koalafi proprietary research conducted in December 2024, surveying Koalafi customers.