Most car buyers are now paying above sticker price. In fact, 82% of sales in January were more than the MSRP, according to Edmunds.
Cadillac, Land Rover, and Kia top the list of brands commanding these higher prices.
So, how do you deal with this crazy situation?
Edmund’s senior manager of insights, Ivan Drury, says you need to be flexible.
“Now’s not the time to be dead set on any color, any options, any content,” Drury said. “And if you really are, then I suggest you pre-order car, have it configured the way that you want, especially if you’re going to spend this kind of money.”
Another tip: Consider expanding your search area. You may find a wider selection or better pricing.
“If you start looking at different locations, you’ll start to see there might be a bit of pricing discrepancy from one to the next depending on the size of the dealer or the volume they sell. So, test those waters,” Drury said.
If you’re faced with above sticker mark-ups, try negotiating for some add-ons, such as dealer-installed accessories.
Maybe you’d rather wait for the market to get back to some sense of normalcy. Edmunds now says that’s at least a year out.
“Every automaker has been hit by these supply issues, so if you want to just show up at the dealership with no research, give that about a year,” Drury advised.
Herb Weisbaum, The ConsumerMan, is the consumer reporter at Northwest Newsradio, the founder of ConsumerMan.com, and host of the Consumerpedia podcast. You can follow him on Facebook and Twitter.
