Itās much harder to strike a good deal in WA, especially in the greater Seattle region, as most dealerships are less willing to negotiate. Youāll want to cast a wide net and reach out to as many Nissan dealerships as possible and keep your expectations realistic.
Regarding the broker, @28firefighter had some good insight recently - to be a registered broker in WA, they have to have a physical location/address in the state, which is why there probably arenāt any on LH (Feel free to correct that statement if Iām not remembering the info correctly). Iām sure there are auto brokers in WA to be found via Google, just not necessarily on LH.
As someone who has been doing this now 7 years - 3 of which online, I find blanket statements like that a touch incorrect.
In my time of doing this online, Iāve largely worked in many states that require you to be registered as a ābrokerā.
Why? Well I have the protections in place in Michigan, and have had California, NY even Texas stores in the past ask for my Michigan information, which has been submit and Iāve never heard a peep.
Iāve even gone as far to ask attorneys who generally work specifically with dealer licenses/business licensing in several states and the answer Iāve received is you donāt really meet the ābrokerā requirements. (such as you do not show or deliver the vehicle, do not handle any personal information (Drivers license, SS number, insurance card, etc) and do not not sign the customer up on the lease/purchase paperwork). Iāve also had an attorney reference the lawsuits against carwoo, truecar, edmunds and the like - who all do what most of us do, yet have never been forced to acquire a ābrokersā license by the presiding state regulatory body.
Point is, this is largely a grey area and while I might be in the wrong - I think itās more apt that youāre honest and transparent with that. Folks in this space try to get cute and call themselves advocates, consultants or whatever they choose to call themselves but it does not change how the law views them. If youāre working with a broker - they should have the structure in place so you have protection against fraud or misrepresented deals (them telling you it has X feature or whatever) with their surety bond.
Update: After a few negotiation attempts with Nissan dealers in the Seattle region, I finally ended up in Everett where I havenāt had to do the usual āsales person has to ask his manager for making me a better offerā game that I didnāt want to play at all. Instead, that guy could do it all in one person, and I finally reached a deal with him that I am satisfied with.
What: Nissan Rogue Sport 2018 SL
Duration/miles: 36/12k
Drive-off: $750 (1st rate and registration)
Monthly rate including taxes: $325