Bob

That's why you don't tell them how you're paying, you get them to put the final price on the table, in writing, then you pull the cash out if you're paying cash, or with your own financing.

Bob

Around here, unless it's those clunkers for bad credit places, they all tend to use a local credit union or end up punting you through a AAA affiliate.

Might be different else where in the country

GeoffM

You're right, they do tend to be the bad credit places ("buy here, pay here", "we are the bank"). But - according to the relatives who drove me around some of them - most have been there for yonks so can't have that bad a reputation for clunkers! The place I bought off, they not visible from a main road so there's no passing trade as such, yet they never advertise, no website, no email - just word of mouth - and they turn over loads of cars it seems. Maybe I just got lucky - apart from the lack of credit reporting thing!

Bob

Definitely got to depend on location...because around here, where it's cold, those kind of places tend to sell rust buckets, well hidden rust buckets...or cars brought in from Florida or anywhere else that might have water damage, but look okay but won't last long in the snow/salts.

joylove

I'm reading with interest. This is a great forum for tips and thick and fast banter!

If anyone from the San Jose area could chip in with a recommended garage or dealership that would be awesome.

Englishmum

This is a great website for how to negotiate when buying or leasing a car:

http://www.carbuyingtips.com

avanutria

Tax for the buyer or the seller? Can you elaborate on this please?

Insomniac

I think this might be the thing I was thinking of.

http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/...148821,00.html

Mind you I'm not great with tax related stuff, but I saw some people warning about it. I could be wrong, but there's the info, read away.

Elvatoloko

Some 'secrets' to know prior to buying a used car:

A dealer has to make between $2000.00 /$3000.00 net profit on any vehicle sold to keep the lights on and pay employees so they will not sell you the car unless they are making at least that much on it. They will NEVER sell you a car 'at cost' or 'at a loss' no matter what they say, what paperwork they show you regarding re-conditioning they did or price they paid for the vehicle.

KBB and Edmuns are good resources to give you an idea of what the car may be worth. What the car is worth and what the dealer is willing to sell it to you for is dependent on the cost of the vehicle to them, not on what KBB says.

Keep in mind that dealers who sell new and used cars operate like this: They keep the good trade-ins they get and sell them on their 'used car' lot. You can get a good deal there if they got the trade-in for cheap. What do they do with the unsold trade-ins they got? They sell them in turn to a wholesaler, who then sells it to strictly used car dealers.

Used car dealers get their vehicles from wholesalers, auctions, trade-ins and people who are strapped for cash and want money right away and sell their car to a dealer willing to buy it, usually at a great discount. They go to insurance company and repo auctions restricted to dealers and bid on cars there.

I have seen cars being sold $5000.00 below KBB still net $6000.00 plus profit to a dealer because of the good deal they got on the car. This happens a lot with popular vehicles in good condition they acquire as trade-ins.

If you buy a new car, you are losing money the minute you get off the lot. Unless you are paying cash and are getting a huge deal somehow. I have seen people get a phenomenal deal on a new vehicle and turn around and sell the car for a few thousands more. This is highly unusual but happens to people with lots of cash and patience.

The best way to proceed was explained in detail above:

Get a loan from a good credit union, forget about banks. Figure out what model you want, how much you are willing to pay for it, get a bunch of printouts and go see the dealers. Make it known to them that A) you are not in a hurry to buy, B) that you are a cheap B******D, C) That you already have cash/or a pre-approved loan and D) If after 15 mins. you are not getting anywhere, leave. Move on to the next one.

Be mindful that whatever price the dealer agrees on, he is still making $2000 $3000.00 on the vehicle.

Also, some used car dealers do not even 'own' the stock on their lot, they may have the cars there on 'consignment' from a wholeseller who extends 'credit' to them. There is no way that they will sell the cars for less than what the got them financed from the wholeseller.

The only way to get the BEST deal buying a car, is to cut the middleman, i.e., the dealer out.

How do you do that ?:

1) Buy from a private seller strapped for cash. I have seen people be very successful by placing a cheap 'wanted' add in a local paper indicating what car they want and the price they are looking to pay. Do this if you know about cars or have a willing friend who is a mechanic. Carfax is a must and having the cash on hand is a must. There is a risk associated with this as it may attract a crook wanting to lay his hands on the cash they think you have. In this type of deal, you have to be VERY careful on how and where you set up the transaction. If you have a cop friend, arrange to have him there and let the other party know that's how the deal will go down.

2) If you have a dealer friend, go to a 'dealer only' auction. There are some great deals there from repoed vehicles, theft recoveries from insurance companies, seized property sold at auction, they can buy the car and then sell it to you 'at cost'.

3) If you have a friend with a dealer license, they may be able to buy the car for you from a wholesaler, same as above.

4) Go to a government seized property auction. Good deals can be found there.

5) The very best possible deals come from insurance auctions where damaged and theft recovery vehicles come from. Those auctions are closed to the public, you must have a dealer, auto exporter or salvage vehicle rebuilder license to participate, none of these licenses are easy to get and not cheap. You also need to have a friend who is or be a licensed auto rebuilder to fix the car and to be able to title it as a 'rebuild' to be able to use it on the road. Getting insurance for such a car is a little tricky but possible. You can do a google search and find some companies that bid on those cars for you and purchase them for you. The cost of their services varies according to the price but is around $3000.00 over the auction price.

For all of these, you need to have the cash in hand which is an obstacle for most people.

Probably the best deals out there that do not require some sort of license to get are private party sales from a cash-strapped seller. Patience is key there.

So, the morale of the story is that if you think you got a good, deal, then be happy about it and enjoy the car since you still have to pay for it whether you enjoy it or not.

avanutria

Ah, OK, thanks. Yeah I am not likely to walk in with $10,000 of cash in my pocket. It also says:

"Is a personal check considered cash for reporting on Form 8300?
No. Personal checks are not considered cash."

I'm pretty sure we used checks for our last used cars (both under $10,000 though).

RalphJolly

I bought a car 6 months ago from a dealer. I offered 16% less and paid 11% under. I didn't cite any problems and I wasn't going to pay the asking price on principle even though it seemed good value to me.

Insomniac

Well I was naive and assumed that having cash on hand would make it easier to bargain, as they'd have the money immediately. So I brought in a cashier's check for $9990. Missed a great opportunity to establish credit as I had none at the time(i dont like credit cards).