If you really want the car, don’t walk away from $300. Get creative. Do more research. Put more details on the table. Are you able to do a cash purchase? Money talks. Find another angle but stay focused on the TOTAL VALUE. Price is just one aspect of negotiating.

You can do it!

great idea regarding the internet sales.

You give me hope to accomplish even more than I have down on my 5 and 10 year plans.

I will say this. At 36 years of age, it is a good thing I moved to a new town. I have worn out my welcome at every other car lot in 2 counties. I refuse to be taken for an obviouse ride and will confront them on shady tricks. With your post I can polish up my act and get an even better bargain.

My last car purchase was a used vehicle. I prayed for assistance and God’s will before and during the hunt. Through divine intervention ( one time work assignment) I ended up at a lot that had the exact car I was looking for down to the shade of paint ( THANK YOU God). I had previously run the car through KBB and was not willing to pay more than $5000 ( private sale). I NEEDED the second car for work as I drove a two seater sports car and worked with foster children, often sibling groups. I was not willing to give up my job and did not want to give up my sports car.

They had just received it as a trade in and were going to send it to a used car dealer ( I suspect just an auction).
They had ripped the person trading it in off and I knew they probaly gave a trade in of less than $500. That and the fact they had worked that right back into the price of the new car so they had the car for essentially free. Yet this was the car I wanted for functionality and gas mileage (35 mpg).

It was right at closing when I happened by this dealer and I was out of town. I cut all the chase with them and refused to talk anything but cash out the door price. They knew I was from out of town, would not be back and I was serious. Can you believe I got a car I was willing to pay $5000 for at a steal for only $2350 out the door.

I even had them back the taxes into the price and I refused to pay the $125 documentation fee. And I quote, ” There is a lady in the back who gets paid the same whether she fills out my documentation or not. Do you want to sell the car?”

They tried balking that it was killing their profit on all the concessions. I let them know I was wise to the trade in at no real cost to them deal. Again, I quote, ” You probably gave them $500 trade in on a new car. I know they paid the $500 in the price of the new car. You were going to sell this car to a dealer or send it to auction. Either way you would not have got the full $2350 wholesale price you quoted me. To get them to buy it you would have given them a discount. Right here you have a cash done deal. You get a great profit on the car and I get a great price on a car to serve foster kids. We all win. Do we have a sale?” All the manager could do was blink, look at the salesman and say,” Do it.” I gave prayers of thanks all the way home. and picked it up that weekend. They must have been either very nice or impressed with me because the car had been detailed within an inch of it’s life. ( it was sitting dirty, inside and out, behind the dealership in a fenced in area for cars that were not new enough for their used car section)

Now when it comes to my next car purchase for a more stylish personal car, I doubt I could have done the same deal. Armed with your post, I think I can get closer.
Thanks Single Ma- You are fabulous!!

l britt I’m glad you found it useful. Some things are the same when buying a house, but the options are limited if you have your heart set on a specific home, then you have to be more flexible. However, if your credit scores are top notch and your finances look good on paper, then you can apply the same techniques when searching for a mortgage.

calgirl Thanks! I agree, you’re negotiation strategy for a car and a house is different because of the limited inventory.

debt hater Welcome! I’m glad you decided to stop by. Enjoy Ms. Nina but you know better for the next time, right?

ira Ooooh I would hate that! All of your work wasn’t in vain if you negotiated a good sales price for them. Selling your own car is a better option. I wish I would have done that.

jlp You are so right. Dealer financing will try to throw in everything but the kitchen sink. Don’t laugh when I say this, but I was up in the sales office with my laptop crunching numbers. The guy was lookin at me like I was a fool…especially when I cleared his desk to make room for my computer. He was like “WTF!” I said, sorry dude, I’m checking your numbers. LMAO!

miss ahmad A home is more important than a car. Hopefully I’ll be in mine next month. I’ve found that the same negotiation skills apply when searching for a mortgage. Whenever you get ready to do either, I wish you luck. Do ya thang sis!

using your methods and more i talked the sales guy down approximately 6 grand on my car!

it was a wonderful feeling, but since I don’t really need a car, but need to purchase a house I decided to wait!