In my opinion - there are 2 main different customers we encounter as brokers. 1) exact spec with the most aggressive price possible on that particular unit 2) close enough spec with the best price in the market.
Our LH clients tend to be #2, looking for the bloodiest deal, but “retail” clients want the best possible deal on the perfect car, don’t want to spend hours shopping and negotiating and comparing deals, & want the best service.
Obviously, as our reviews show, we do both. If OP falls in category 1, there’s no need to hire a negotiator. Reach out to us, or any broker you deem “worthy”, & we’ll get you the best possible deal on the perfect spec.
If you want the best possible deal in the market, then let go of that spec.
I don’t get what you’re saying. If it’s a brand that allows custom orders, then you can negotiate the discount/price for one.
This car likely isn’t that special. Make an offer you have researched that you think is reasonable, when you are ready to pull the trigger. They’ll either take it or they won’t.
You don’t really need a broker for this. If they don’t take your offer, you could utilize a broker to find another one
X4MC is a very low production model for BMW…a ‘deal’ most likely won’t be had…find a BMW broker in the SoCal Marketplace and work with them…make sure you know what your trade is worth…think about the potential 25% tariff effects depending on when you make this deal happen.
There’s some clown company that charges you $1000 before you even get pricing. That’s what a buyer agent prob looks like…you’re better off with a broker and figuring out what you want or if flexible give them a budget for the best deal
Unlike dealers brokers don’t have any incentive to lie to you when you tell them your budget. So if you tell me I want to spend no more than $500, I’m going to send you the best deals I can, bc I want to earn your business.
With all due respect as I feel you are one of the more honest brokers here, isn’t that the same goal a sales rep/dealership has? To earn your business?
Yes but I’m also not going to promise you a deal to get you through the door. That’s where we differ. I’ll get you options that fit your goal, not say “the exact option you want is the one I’ll make happen, c’mon down so I can waste your gas, time, and energy on something completely impossible!”
First off, thank you to the brokers who tell us what they can and can not do for a retail buyer.
As far as the OPs position, how long has that X4M been sitting at the dealership. This is not a high volume car, so the dealer may be willing to move it by Monday being end of quarter. Offer a lease with 10% discount then start negotiating if they say no. Include what you think is fair trade value for your car based on KBB or better yet get an offer from Carmax or Carvana. You will need to be ready to negotiate on the trade as well. The dealer will always have at least $500 more he can give for the trade than the initial offer.
You can do this on your own if you are prepared in advance. Set a realistic target that you can live with then go get it done. Don’t worry about getting the unicorn deal if this is the only vehicle that will make you happy.
Yes and no… If you call, email or walk into 10 dealerships today to talk about the exact same spec car, how many of them do you really feel will try to “earn” your business? Or how will they attempt to earn it? Will they offer you competitive pricing? Or will they try to win a war of attrition with you? A broker earns your business by hopefully offering a competitive price up front without the hassle. A dealer COULD do this on their own but many choose not to.
I think you are getting into semantics with your definition of earning business. Doesn’t matter if they offer discounts or war of attrition, they are trying to earn your business.
When you choose a broker, he already earned your business. You don’t shoot an offer to 10 brokers and play them off each other like you do a dealer.
Then the dealers try to earn the brokers business.
The broker offers convenience and time savings. Many on here love to car shop, they love the chase. Some people hate it and want nothing to do with it, but do not want to feel like they got ripped off so they put their trust in a broker to do it for them.
When I think of someone trying to “earn my business” I think of someone who is making me a favorable offer of some sort to entice me, something I can’t get elsewhere. A dealer who just wants to rough you up in a cubicle until you sign something that’s not in your best interest is trying to “earn” business in a way but not in the same way a broker or a dealer who is aggressive on price and transparent would be. The first example is certainly trying to work for your money, just not in the way @Jrouleau426 was suggesting.
And that includes people who think they can just wing calculator and get a deal. Got a text from a friendly GSM just yesterday laughing at someone who walked in with a wrong LH calculator expecting dealer to honor it. Yeah, that went really well!
Some brokers also have exclusive pricing too. Like I know some dealers that will give their affiliated brokers special pricing compared to walk ins where they try to fleece you.
For sure…it is super simple to find the relevant data and use the calc here but they don’t take the time to understand all the inputs and the variables to focus on…it isn’t rocket science or even takes more than an hour but people would rather just walk into a dealer with no data or bad data and leave thousands on the table…and then you see people who put in the time AFTER they have signed a deal they had no clue about. Haha, oh boy.
Yes I meant that I’m gonna give you my best deal off the bat bc I expect you to call a few dealers and compare. I’m also not trying to push crap that’s been sitting forever. I might do that bc it’s super cheap and matches what you like, but I don’t do that exclusively like a dealer prob would. Doesn’t benefit me to sell those cars like it does dealerships.
Also when someone tells me 500 for instance. That can be a Tacoma sport with screen and heated seats. But $25 more you get leather and moonroof. So I try to give people all options close to budget and throw in some cheap ones too like an sr and sr5 as well.
If you tell a dealer you want to pay 500. That’s prob the least you’ll be walking out paying and it’ll likely be in something that’s really like 425…
Sadly, ,most people are not very smart with numbers was mentioned before. Oh boy even on Leasehackr, its a bit worrisome but I guess people are free to do what they want with their money.
