SCHAUMBURG, Ill. -

If certified pre-owned Honda Civics or Ford Escapes turn quickly at your dealership, here’s more good news. Those units were the top two new models attached to a lease in the first quarter.

During a span in which leasing hit record levels, Experian Automotive found that the Civic and the Escape led the way in terms of leasing market share.

According to Experian’s latest State of the Automotive Finance Market report, Civics commanded a 3.45-percent leasing share in the first quarter of this year. The Ford Escape wasn’t far off that pace at 2.91 percent.

The remainder of the leading leased vehicles in Q1 settled as follows:

— Honda Accord: 2.81 percent
— Honda CR-V: 2.69 percent
— Ford Fusion: 2.54 percent
— Nissan Altima: 2.34 percent
— Toyota Camry: 2.32 percent
— Toyota RAV4: 1.97 percent
— Toyota Corolla: 1.93 percent
— Volkswagen Jetta: 1.81 percent

Of all new vehicles financed, 30.2 percent were leased in Q1 2014, compared to 27.5 percent in Q1 2013. Interestingly, of all new vehicles sold (whether financed or purchased in cash), a staggering one in four, or 25.6 percent, were leased in Q1 2014, compared to 22.9 percent in Q1 2013.

Overall, loans and leases for new vehicles were easier to obtain in Q1 2014. For new vehicle loans, the average credit score was 714, down from 722 in Q1 2013. For leases, the average credit score was 721 in Q1 2014, compared to 731 in Q1 2013.

“Over the last several quarters, leasing has come back as a very desirable option for consumers,” Experian senior director of automotive credit Melinda Zabritski said.

“Whether they are interested in getting the latest and greatest models or simply do not want to commit to a long-term purchase, consumers are leasing new vehicles in greater numbers than ever before,” Zabritski continued. “However, what they need to remember is that without good credit, it may be more difficult to get a lease, and that leases have mileage caps so they need to make sure their lifestyle fits the leasing requirements.”

As Zabritski mentioned, consumers with credit scores that fell into the prime or super-prime categories constituted 69.72 percent of the leases written in Q1. Just 8.24 percent had subprime credit histories, and only 1.57 percent were considered deep subprime.

No matter the credit category, Experian determined consumers on average now are paying $412 monthly in lease payments; that’s $2 lower than a year ago. The lease contract term they signed in Q1 averaged 35 months with 66.60 percent of leases written in the past quarter spanning 25 to 36 months.

Turning back to those 10 leading models that led lease activity in Q1, Experian’s data showed how much lease the average monthly payment was for a lease as compared to a traditional loan contract, giving the F&I more ammunition to write leases and boosting the anticipation for used-car managers looking for CPO inventory down the road. Here are how those numbers settled:

— Honda Civic
Loan: $347
Lease: $251

— Ford Escape
Loan: $343
Lease: $328

— Honda Accord
Loan: $429
Lease: $321

— Honda CR-V
Loan: $425
Lease: $323

— Ford Fusion
Loan: $426
Lease: $323

— Nissan Altima
Loan: $414
Lease: $288

— Toyota Camry
Loan: $412
Lease: $309

— Toyota RAV4
Loan: $443
Lease: $332

— Toyota Corolla
Loan: $357
Lease: $269

— Volkswagen Jetta
Loan: $384
Lease: $277