"The difference between a monthly payment for those leasing a new vehicle versus those who buy new is almost $100," said Melinda Zabritski, Senior Director of Experian Automotive. 

Officially, the latest report on automotive lending by Experian Automotive found the average new vehicle lease monthly payment in the first quarter was $405 while the average monthly payment for a new vehicle loan was $488. 

In addition, while the average monthly payment for those buying a new vehicle increased $14, the average monthly payment for those leasing actually fell $7 compared to the same time last year according to the report.

The numbers help explain why Experian found an all-time high of 31.46 percent of new vehicles financed in the first quarter were leased. Just five years ago, Experian says the percentage of new vehicles leased was 24.05 percent.