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I worked with Benedetto when looking for a mid-size SUV lease and wanted to post some feedback here. Apologize for the length, but hope it is helpful.
My experience was mixed, with some really positive aspects that reflect Ben’s experience, expertise, and warm personality. There were some frustrating aspects that were a combination of problems with the scheduling system and follow-through on communication timelines. I hope that this part of my experience is the exception, but wanted to make sure I’m not only sharing the positive aspects.
The Good: Ben is really great to talk to. He is straightforward and always gave me the impression that he was just interested in working on what the client’s needs are (not angling or selling). Also, I’m pretty enthusiastic about lease deals and have done lots of homework, but I learned a fair amount from speaking with him. Bouncing ideas around on different vehicles that we were considering really helped us narrow down our choice.
The Not-So-Good: To put it plainly almost every communication we had was good, but involved some kind of frustration regarding follow-up. I didn’t receive a call for my confirmed appointment to have our initial discussion (he called several hours later in the day after I emailed to follow up). Ben explained it was a problem with populating to his calendar, he apologized, and we had a great chat. Then, the next several times we spoke Ben committed to contacting me in a certain time-frame with some specific information. In each case, no contact came, which left me reaching back out. It left me feeling like I was pestering Ben, which isn’t the way you want to feel in any business relationship. Ultimately I think this was caused by the fact that Ben is a busy guy, and he may have reached too far trying to be helpful then couldn’t find the time to follow up.
After a few instances of this, I expressed my frustration to Ben. He was very gracious and offered a refund of my retainer. He also explained that he was migrating to a new data service, which helps him work up deals more quickly. I told him I would rather continue working together and look at developing some prospective deal options for a couple of the vehicles we were considering. It was a positive resolution of the situation. A few days later I moved forward with a Volvo SUV lease that sort of fell into my lap. Ben gave some helpful feedback and confirmed that it was about as good of a deal as could be hoped for. Even though we didn’t sign a lease set up by Ben, I felt that his time and attention were worth the money.
Ultimately I would work with him again. Thanks for your time, Ben.
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Justin, I sincerely appreciate the feedback.
Thank you for the opportunity and good luck on your travels.
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Add in another successful deal for @Benedetto!
Overall experience was positive and I would definitely work with him again… however, note that the deal did take a month, so I was not as lucky as some of the above people in more competitive areas.
I reached out to Ben in mid-April with all specifics on the car I was looking for and what I was willing to spend. He got back to me a few days later that it should be doable, though the geographic region could pose some challenges (which it did). He would shoot for an end-of-the-month deal.
End of April rolled around and Ben called me to let me know that it was looking more like the first week of May for a deal. He then spent the next couple weeks exhausting all the options in the neighboring states, with dealers that were not willing to come close to a reasonable offer. Mid-May came around, and he was able to get a great deal with a dealer a couple states away, who was willing to do the paperwork by mail, and ship me the car. Ben made the deal and connected me to the GM at the dealer. I had all the paperwork done and the car dropped off in front of my house a week later (1100mi from the dealer).
While Ben was great overall, I did experience similar hiccups as mentioned above with some of his responsiveness and feeling in the dark sometimes (along with feeling like I was pestering him). I chalk this up to him being very busy; both working his ass off for clients, and helping out the community a lot. He was much more communicative as he got closer to the deal, so others should know to just be patient and trust that he’ll get something worked out for you.
Here’s what I ended up with. Loving the car!
2019 Volvo S60 T6 R-Design w/Polestar & all available options (minus the B&W stereo… not worth $3200 to me)
MSRP: $55595, 36/10k
$507/mo + tax. 1st-only DAS, with inceptions & shipping car 1100mis rolled in. No MSDs. (Effectively ~$450/mo)
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Finally had the chance to speak to Ben about my lease situation. I can say that I am very pleased with the amount of time he spent on the phone trying to nail down the right course of action for me. He was very easy to talk to and you just know when someone knows what they are talking about.
We decided to ride my lease a little longer but I will def contact him in the near future.
Mike Z
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I will be unavailable from the 31st to the 3rd.
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Ben helped me get an XC60 for my wife in FL. He was very helpful and very prompt, especially for being sick and it being a holiday weekend. He worked very quickly and within my parameters, had the car dropped of at my doorstep. Definitely contacting him again.
Car was 2019 XC60 T6 Momentum, $390/mo, $1500 drive off, $4000 MSDs
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I have worked with Ben multiple times with his clients!
Can’t recommend him enough.
Great follow up, thank you for the business Ben!
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Contacted Ben to get a Volvo S60 scheduled an appointment and kind of got an idea of what payment I should be expecting. Towards the end of the month was able to pick up a S60 T6 Inscription.
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Keep this thread on topic, please. This is a review thread. Any comments should be taken to PM.
Hello,
This post is a month late.
I had waste endless hours searching online, CarGuru, dealership websites, and at the dealership to negotiate and understand the numbers. With one email and phone call, I had the vehicle of my choice with the best monthly payment. Best money I spent!
Short version: Ben is the man to get you the optimal deal. He is fast and reliable. He comes through and is to the point.
Ben got me a sweet deal on White 2019 Volvo XC 60 T6 R Design w/ upgraded wheels and 360 camera package 12k/36 months all for $514/month.
I have already referred friends and family members to Ben and I know I will def. returning back to him in future.
Thank you,
Tej
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Working with Ben was great. He was responsive and acted quickly to get us a Volvo XC90 T5 R-Design at a price that worked for us down here in South Florida. I would not hesitate to use his services again, and in fact intend to contact him at the end of the year when we switch another car.
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I had the pleasure of working with Ben to get a new lease for my college son. The entire experience exceeded my expectation ( and I have worked with a previous broker, no one here on LH). Ben was easy to work with, explained his process, answered any and all questions I had - even suggested a better vehicle than we were initially talking about that still was under my budget. The whole process was done in about a week. My son is thrilled with his new Jeep Cherokee Trail Hawk. Would I work with Ben again…already am on a new luxury SUV!! Would highly recommend him!
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I worked with Ben at the end of May to help find my next vehicle.
I explained to him that I wanted a small to medium size SUV with all safety features. I was currently leasing a 2 door BMW and needed something bigger but also did not want to step down in terms of features. He was easy to communicate with through the phone and texts.
Ben was able to find me a great deal on a 2019 Volvo XC60 T6 R-Design w/ the advanced package. The car was located about 800 miles away but the dealer shipped the car straight to my door and it only took a day.
I would definitely recommened Ben and his services.
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Will be unavailable this Sunday and Monday unless otherwise scheduled.
I contacted Ben through his website. He called me at the set time. we briefly discussed the vehicle i was interested in (volvo xc60), the process and his fee. He let me know he would be able to start working on my deal the following week, Wednesday. He called me the following week as he said to discuss a few options. We had a few more quick phone calls and exchanged some txt messages and email. In a few days, he had the deal all set. The car was a few hundred miles away. He said we could ship the car, but i’m always up for a drive so i went myself to get it. I picked up the car yesterday.
Overall, I’m very happy with Ben’s service, process and price received. I would definitely use his services again and recommend him to anyone looking for a broker.
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Just a heads up as I’m getting a lot of emails about 4th of July deals.
I will be working through the 1st for month end.
As of now I’ll be off from the 2nd to the 5th.
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