Document preparation fees--RIPOFF

[ultrarunner]

Nothing wrong with saying the price is firm and being up front about it.

I still have connections in the business and what turns a lot of people off is when is a deal a deal and the not so uncommon last minute shuffle.

Some of my best transactions is when the salesman will just cut to the chase...

A knowledgeable buyer should have a figure in mind... this is how I shop and I have no problem or ill will to a salesman that says he can't do it for that price and counters with a number he can make it work...

Buying a vehicle should not be the bad experience many associate it with...

 

[JDgreen227]

So, it is free to register a trailer/vehicle where you are? Just as long as you get it there?

I did not say the cost to register was free, only that my trailer dealership did not have to send someone to the DMV to get registration for my purchase. It could have been handled by mail easily. I paid the $75 registration fee for my new utility trailer in the purchase price for my plate, etc. Dealer wanted an additional $50 for "document preparation". They were ten minutes away from Secretary of State office, and I told them I would be happy to stop there on my way home after purchase to get my plate, they said no we have to do it...I had the trailer hooked up as I went by SOS office, offered to save them the "work" but no, since I didn't want to give them $50 pure profit I had to wait a few days for my plate. Suit themselves.

Michigan sells trailer (non motorized) plates for a flat fee, think it is dependent on axles/weight. Paid $75 for a permanent plate for a single axle, 750 lb. utility trailer. I had one of those U-build from a box 4X8 utility trailers, annual registration for a single axle, 235 lb. trailer used to be $17 a year, then they raised fee for a permanent plate for it to $75. No, you cannot transfer trailer plates, have to buy a new one for a new trailer. SCROOM.

 

[JDgreen227]

I just read your signature line.. now I understand...

So i guess you wont be getting the TruCoat either?

Retired guys squeeze every nickle they can get....fifty bucks is BIG MONEY for someone surviving on a pension while waiting for Social Security to kick in....:laughing:

"Trucoat...." PHFTTTT....I hand wax all our vehicles at least once a year, would never let some idiot with a buffer near one of our paint jobs. This is a 2003 model...look at that shine....

 

[schoolsout]

Well, that does sound a bit shady, then. They don't have to do a thing. I provide going to the DMV as a service for a customer if he/she wants me to, but I'd almost rather let them handle it themselves anyways.

We do have Admin Fees, though.

In SC, and I'm sure most places, you must store certain records for a period of time. Lots of costs that haven't been mentioned go into this.

We have lowered fees with the economy, though.

 

[LBrown59]

These fees aren't really legal.
It's the dealers obligation .
If they want the sale they will do the paper work free because they can't make the sale without the paper work

 

[4Rook]

Retired guys squeeze every nickle they can get....fifty bucks is BIG MONEY for someone surviving on a pension while waiting for Social Security to kick in....:laughing:

"Trucoat...." PHFTTTT....I hand wax all our vehicles at least once a year, would never let some idiot with a buffer near one of our paint jobs. This is a 2003 model...look at that shine....

:thumbsup:

Glad to see you take care of your stuff. My grandfather had a beautiful Olds with a blue metallic paint job that looked so good until he got some sap on the hood. Unfortunately he let one of those "idiots" buff it.

A few months later I took a job at a new car dealer while working my way through college. I learned how to do it right and got the swirls out. If done properly buffing can leave a swirl free finish, provided the operator uses the right products and uses them correctly.

The dealer I worked for did not charge doc fees and did not offer any of the BS undercoating, fabric guard or TruCoat products. Buying a car there was a straght forward process. While other dealers in the area would offer cars at lower prices, they would make up some profit with high fees.

Its all a game... as they say "caveat emptor"

 

[schoolsout]

These fees aren't really legal.
It's the dealers obligation .
If they want the sale they will do the paper work free because they can't make the sale without the paper work

The fees are perfectly legal.

 

[Bird]

These fees aren't really legal.

Nothing illegal about them, but I think maybe you meant that they are not legally required; i.e., not a legal requirement.

 

[MikeD74T]

I won't pay any paperwork fee unless it's an application fee to an agency like finance or vehicle title/registration. Back in the 1900's ('77) I bought a new F150 which I financed thru the dealer & a local bank. 3 years later after the last payment was sent I got a notice from the bank that they needed a title release fee ??? The bank said that they file a lien with the town office for their protection and couldn't release the lien & title without a fee to the town. I said that if they didn't think I was going to pay back the money they shouldn't have loaned it to me. Anyhow, since I planned to keep the truck for several more years I wouldn't need a title in hand anyway & they could just safeguard it for me. Title just showed up in the mail about a month later. MikeD74T

 

[tlbuser]

And as a disclaimer, I sell commercial trucks. There is so little profit in most of what we do, customers that haggle and want $500-1000 off are kindly explained that that is the profit level...if they don't want it, go buy a Ford...

Oh if I had a dollar for every time a sales person used that line. If you're upfront about it, I'm ok with it. (no, there's not a ford in my future) With a next to zero margin, how does a dealership pay the utilities, pay the help, get more inventory, buy more land to expand, put up a larger showroom, marble baths and counter etc., etc., etc.
Actually part of that equation isn't true, most of the local dealers have almost stopped stocking inventory. It's much more convenient for them to order it from the warehouse and have the customer make two or three trips to get parts. Then the parts guy wants to gripe about how people are buying things off the internet and having it direct shipped.