Newbie questions (expecting eye rolls/snarky comments:) )

Ask the Hackrs
1

I swear I tried to read through all the posts,FAQ and did a search but couldn’t find the answers.

  1. I get acquisition fee but what exactly do dealer fees compose of and can they be negotiated?
  2. Is paying for the acquisition fee, dealer fee and dmv considered as part of money down which I’ve read should be avoided?
  3. Should those numbers be included to know if you got a good deal or not or is it just the cost of doing business and should not be factored in when comparing deals?
    Thanks
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  1. I get acquisition fee but what exactly do dealer fees compose of and can they be negotiated?

Dealer fees can be anything from doc fees to government fees that they pass on as part of the deal. There can also be a lot of garbage fees, so it’s best to get them all up front and in writing and then post them here if you have questions.

  1. Is paying for the acquisition fee, dealer fee and dmv considered as part of money down which I’ve read should be avoided?

A lot of people confuse “money down,” “down payment,” and “due at signing.”
“Down payment” is mostly understand as a cap cost reduction. In other words, money that you pay up front to lower the monthly payment. That is what should, in most circumstances, be avoided.

  1. Should those numbers be included to know if you got a good deal or not or is it just the cost of doing business and should not be factored in when comparing deals?

The total deal is what you should be looking at. Vehicle list price, dealer discount, rebates, fees, taxes, residual, and money factor. It doesn’t necessarily mean if they mark up the money factor for instance if you can get a corresponding dealer discount on the price. Some dealers like to structure the deal in a way that works better for them but doesn’t necessarily change the overall deal for you. That’s why it’s best to put everything into the calculator and post it and ask questions.

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Thank you for the quick response. So helpful!

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You are welcome. I’m sure others will have great advice. I just covered the basics. Good luck.

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The Negotiable items on a lease

  • MF (If it is above Buy Rate, then argue down to buy rate) (This can result in $50-75 month changes)
  • Dealer installed Add ons (Get those removed as it cost them 1% of what they are charging and are probably not preinstalled)
  • Anything that Finance tries to slide into your lease at the last second
  • The Price of the car before bank incentives.
  • MSDs which can lower your payments $30-50/m (NY might not allow this btw)

Dealer fees are fixed (and if in Florida are really outrageous) but the above items is where they stick you.

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What does that mean, the buy rate? I thought the money factor you could find is the only one?

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The MF Buy rate is min rate the bank will charge.

Dealers have the option to mark it up 0.0005 I believe which will kick it up another $50/m

Edit : I forgot about MSDs so I added it.

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Wow. That is so wrong and thanks for the explanation. How can I make sure they did not mark it up?

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get the deal emails / picture / faxed to you ahead of time. There is almost no way you will spot it during the deal as it’s pretty deeply buried

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Back again and am trying to better understand your response on #2. So if I pay the dealer fee, Acq fee and DMV upfront, isn’t that kind of making the payments lower?

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Oof. Thanks. I’m finally realizing I don’t think I got good deals on my last leases. Haha. And wanting to be a lot more prepared this time. I thought I knew things but didn’t know everything

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Also, do you guys put all the data into the calculator while at the dealership? I’m wondering if they see it they don’t want to negotiate as well

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TBH you’re asking all the wrong questions. What’s the vehicle and what’s the target for payment and DAS based on Marketplace and Share Deals & Tips

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So I saw this and that’s when I started asking questions. I’m not sure yet about which car I want but am trying to narrow it down to this or something similar in this category with the best lease deal

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And to add. I was wondering why the dealer fees were so high. 2 everything I read said no money down and this was asking for money down.

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because they like money. Most deals can be done with Zero Due.

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That was from a broker on marketplace. So I was wondering why they had money down

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Brokers get their dealers from dealers. You just just ask the broker for Zero Due and the price changes…

Also putting $3000 Down makes the Monthly look lower so it looks like a better deal when it’s the same deal as the others.

Also please note, putting $3000 Down means you save on the interest on that same $3000. So if you are at 5% that’s $150 yr extra in interest. (Or $12?) (It’s a little hard to get the precise number due to lots of math)

So it has it’s benefits and drawbacks.

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Try starting here on how calculator is used

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Thank you! I didn’t fill that out. It was a marketplace deal pre-filled out but duly noted on your advice