I just wanted to share my real world experience. Often on here people post stuff like this with no specific detail. Its good advice sometimes, but it is generic and hard to understand how to apply. I have been in the market for a car. I was going to buy a slightly used one, but when I got to the dealer to shop I liked one of the new ones and thought I could get the price to work. I drove the various trim levels and picked out a fairly high end trim. I walked out the first day and got his "Best price". The next weekend I went back to drive a couple of more trim options he did not have the previous weekend. He was firm on that "best price". This price by the way was inline with the KBB fair market price.
I went home and e-mailed him that I wanted to make a deal, but I was going to contact the 5 dealers within an hour and 1/2 to see what they could offer before I purchased. He came back with a song and dance of how hard it was, and reduced the offer $500.
4 of the 5 dealers came back with offers in the ball park of his offer off their first contact. One of the dealers came back with an offer $1000 less than the second offer. I called that dealership and made sure there were no hidden things to be aware of, and indeed what price I would be paying out the door with taxes and fees. Then we drive over and bought the car.
Benefits to buying in the big town. They deal in more volume, so they can offer discounts because they get more kickbacks from the manufacturer. They also have more cars, so instead of settling for that color, you can choose almost any color/options.
These are some things to consider.
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Best if that big town is in state. I was warned if you go out of state you will pay taxes there, and then again when you get your tag in state.
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Deal in out the door prices for negotiations. These guys will withhold fees ($600 documentation fee) until you get at the table. Then you will find yourself trying to negotiate as numbers fly.
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In my city the tax rate is +0.5% on car purchases. That is an extra $100. That $100 will look like nothing in a payment, but it is $100 that is coming out of your pocket.
There is a line that car dealers have pulled out onto me several times over the years. This fee is how I pay my family. I am sure it is in the handbook of emotional cues to car buyers. While I respect they have to feed their family, I do also. With very little negotiation, I paid $1,600 less than the original offer. Its why car buying sucks, who knows what I should be paying that is fair for all involved. They have all the data. This was all unemotional for me. I was never confrontational, its just business for all parties.
Remember that kbb and other fair market values are tools. They are likely tools crafted/manipulated by the car manufacturers. Use those numbers to understand boundaries. At the end of the day determine how much you can spend on a car, and find the one you like at the value you want. I would have likely paid what the guy was asking for this car originally if no one came back with any better offers.
Submitted September 03, 2017 at 07:55AM by luckyleighton http://ift.tt/2gBRDMV
