with a vehicle lease. at the end of lease, is the leasing company able to descriminate, and quote different buy-out prices for different buyers?

I lease a car.  My lease has a buyout amount in the lease contract, and so does every automobile lease I've ever had.  The buyout price is whatever is negotiated between lessor and lessee.  You can try to negotiate a better buyout price at the time you lease, or you can offer a lesser amount to purchase at the end of the lease and see whether the leasing company will take it.  Unless the leasing company treats people differently based on some statutorily prohibited reason (race, religion, gender, etc.), there is no reason that one person can't negotiate a better deal than another.