Dealer margins

[beenthere]

The JD 4400 with MMM and FEL shouldn't be a pain. Check the FEL out and how quick it goes on and comes off. The MMM doesn't have to come off for the loader to go on, unless the MMM is going to be in the way. The MMM is not a pain to remove or attach either. IMO

 

[Soundguy]

<font color=green>As far as Tractors, Implements, etc. in the state of TENN. if you own a farm and it is for agricultural production you can get a tax exemption. You must have a farm with a Farm # given by state to qualify.

<font color=black>Considering dealer rebates, possibility of the sales tax issue, and shipping charges, a 4k$ difference might be possible. I looked into having a tractor delivered from Northern Hydro. one time and the delivery was 1100.00.. or I could go get it from the dockside in tampa.

As for tax, here in florida, you can get away with paying 2.5% if the tractor is used for agri purposes. I don't file a schedule 'F' on my taxes and am not listed as a farm, but the dealer asked if i had cows/horses, and/or agricultural land. I do have cows/horses, and my land is a-1, so the dealer filled out the paperwork for me to get the 2.5% tax rate. Saved a little bit of money anyway.

Anyone have any idea what you need to run a boni-fied farm in florida? Or where to find out? I'm guessing there is a business license or county occupational license that needs to be purchased, but is there anything else?
I know it is harder than rock to get the ag exemption on you a-1 land right now.

Soundguy

 

[Anonymous Poster]

In Illinois I think the key to tax exemption for farm use is if the equipment is used for the production of a cash crop. This applies to orchards and the like, but I have heard directly from the Secretary of State that your farm may be inspected to confirm the validity of your cash crop. Growin' dope don't count either.

 

[Anonymous Poster]

I was hoping your attachment was a picture of your bike. It must be an 1100 if it is 20 years old. I know what good bikes Goldwings are. I am the one of the best bike mechanics in s. Illinois and I think Yamaha and Honda make the finest motorcycles money can buy.

 

[BKColeman]

I believe you're referring to BlurryBill's saga when you refer to $4000 difference. I believe Bill was very thorough and had researched things enough to be sure he was comparing apples to apples.

Back when I was shopping, I got 3 quotes on a JD 4410, 2 on the same day. One quote was almost list (about 1% off according to the JD configurator). The other quote was more than $2000 less than the first guy. Then I called back 3 days later to see if that was their best price. The expensive dealer didn't budge a bit. The cheaper dealer told me to come back in, he was sure he could whittle it down some more. I ended up choosing a NH Boomer, so I don't know how much further down he would have came.

Both of these guys were local to me (30 minutes at most). When you figure in that Bill got some implements, forks, 4n1 bucket, etc., I'm confident there could be a $4000 difference between two dealers, even ignoring sales tax.

Here in Va, I believe we're supposed to voluntarily pay sales tax on out of state purchases. But I'm pretty sure most don't and I've never heard of anyone getting a bill. I don't even know who you would pay if you decided to, but I'm sure some tax collector would be glad to tell me if I asked. /w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif

--Brad

 

[GlennT]

I don't have hard data and I only have limited experience so take this for what it's worth. In 1999 when I was shopping for a tractor, posts in this forum indicated that John Deere dealers have a 20% markup to work with, with the occasional product that has less of a markup because it is being marketed more diligently to compete with compeditors. I was told that this was true at that time for the JD Model 790, which had a markup of 10%. I'm interested in hearing if this was factual and if it still is true.

 

[tdenny]

Gary,

Still no box blade. I also ordered a 5 foot rear finish mower. Pieter sent me a note before he left to Italy mentioning that his folks were trying to work out a better shipping possibility. I think he's back now so perhaps I'll give him a jingle. I am still very anxious to test out some new equipment. I've been saving up "work" to do when the new additions arrive. It will be amazing to mow my grass in a matter of minutes instead of hours.

 

[froggy]

To get an idea about dealer margins, visit this web site for information:


http://www.dot.state.mn.us/equipment/contracts/

 

[Gary_in_Indiana]

TD,

I hope you get shipping worked out OK. I know LTL (Less than {full} load) freight is very expensive. Where I caught a big break with my dealer was that I'm not that far from the plant. Also, I think the dealer was able to get mine drop shipped here for less than the LTL rate he normally pays because I'm actually closer to the plant than he is. That could have contributed to my savings, too.

Now I'm awaiting the start of production of the rotary mowers (most specifically, the 5' green ones /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif ). I ordered one of those at the same time as the box blade but, for obvious reasons, they didn't ship together.

I should be "the first kid on my block" to have one (remember those ads?). As soon as I get mine I'll post some pictures of it

 

[Gary_in_Indiana]

Froggy,

I can't speak to tractors and attachments going out to municipal bids, but I know on cars and trucks you can't use those numbers as a fair comparison. The reason is a factor known in the industry as "bid assistance."

Every manufacturer I've ever known offers the dealers what they call "bid assistance" on municipal bids. The dealer is the one selling the equipment but on municipal bids the factory offers additional incentives to the dealer to help them in the bidding process. It can be as little as a few hundred dollars per unit or as much as a few thousand dollars.

My experience has been that there is no easily discernible rhyme or reason to how much is given. It seems to vary widely from bid package to bid package. My point here is that with "bid assistance" in play, yet not knowing exactly how much that amount is, it would be very difficult to take bid amounts and determine what dealer cost might be.

Bid assistance allows the dealers to consistently sell to municipalities at figures below their normal dealer cost, if they so choose (and they usually do). A lot of times it's merely an ego thing. One dealer wants HIS mudflaps on the back of all those new state highway trucks, for example.