One of the dealers asked me to sign an intent paper and leave a deposit. I believe that is NOT signing a contract and they can’t hold me to anything and I should be able to get my money back. No? is my thinking incorrect. Unless I sign those contract papers the dealership can not hold me to anything and is obligated to give me my deposit back?
I have left a deposit before and got my money back, not sure if they are obligated to give it back to you though.
Depends on the wording doesn’t it?
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Never heard of letter of intent in car purchasing process yet.
At least use credit card for a deposit if you must. Easier to dispute it down the road if anything goes wrong.
Some states have laws that deposit must be refunded. But always put in writing “refundable deposit” on any document you sign and have the dealer initial. Unless it’s specifically spelled out in the document.
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I’ve signed them before, but never with a deposit. It was just something short, signed before going into the finance office, and it said something like I agree to purchase the vehicle if we can agree on financing.
I have had to sign a letter of intent and leave a deposit since I was doing a dealer swap. I charged the deposit on my credit card so that it is easier to dispute in case something happened. Read the agreement carefully. We’ve had to modify the wording slightly before I signed.
If you want the car, buy it when you leave the deposit. If you still have doubts, why commit to any contract and/or deposit?
Even if you can get the money back it just adds a headache in your life that you’re better off not adding.
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It’s just a sales tactic to get you to invested into buying the car. They know the moment you walk out the door, the chances you’ll change your mind or find a better deal elsewhere go way up.
A letter of intent is legally meaningless, they can back out of the deal and so can you.
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I see no reason to sign the document and many reasons not to sign.
A Toyota dealership in Huntersville NC did the same thing to me…twice. Like a fool I signed them and in both cases hammered out really poor deals on Sienna minivans ($500/mo on $37k MSPR vehicles). . I’m a lot smarter these days and this forum has been a tremendous help.