Buying a vehicle out of state?

I bought a used car from a dealership six states away. The price was so much better than anything I could find in Colorado that it was cheaper to fly out there and drive the car home and still end up with a couple thousand bucks saved over what the same car would have cost locally. At the time of sale the dealership collected the 2.9% CO state sales tax, which they remitted directly to the JeffCo DMV. That was the only tax I paid at the time of sale. I then had to get an emissions test and VIN verification here before going to the DMV with the dealership paperwork to register it. The check I had to write to JeffCo at the registration appointment was f'n brutal. They collected all the remaining county/city/bullshit sales taxes (another ~4.6% on top of the 2.9% the out of state dealership had already collected) in addition to the normal annual registration and title/tag/whatever fees. Man I walked out of that DMV shaking I was so pissed. But from a paperwork/process standpoint it was pretty simple.

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Originally Posted by sic_semper_tyrannis

I bought a used car from a dealership six states away. The price was so much better than anything I could find in Colorado that it was cheaper to fly out there and drive the car home and still end up with a couple thousand bucks saved over what the same car would have cost locally. At the time of sale the dealership collected the 2.9% CO state sales tax, which they remitted directly to the JeffCo DMV. That was the only tax I paid at the time of sale. I then had to get an emissions test and VIN verification here before going to the DMV with the dealership paperwork to register it. The check I had to write to JeffCo at the registration appointment was f'n brutal. They collected all the remaining county/city/bullshit sales taxes (another ~4.6% on top of the 2.9% the out of state dealership had already collected) in addition to the normal annual registration and title/tag/whatever fees. Man I walked out of that DMV shaking I was so pissed. But from a paperwork/process standpoint it was pretty simple.

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Your tax situation is kind of what I am expecting. I figure even if the out of state dealer collects the state tax that I?ll still have to eat the city, county, etc. after the fact.

My main reason for even considering the out of state purchase is simply paint color on the make and model we are looking for. We are getting down to the end of the production run for the 2024 year models and the four dealers in the state swear up and down that the one color we want is unobtainable. Not only do I think I found one, but it is actually marked down $4K off MSRP. Around here, even if I just bought a gray or black one I?m probably getting gouged for full MSRP at a minimum.

I?m also considering trying a brokerage service instead of doing all of the legwork myself.

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Originally Posted by ray1970

Yes. New.

I hadn?t thought about shipping it here. I found it at a dealership in Texas very close to my mother?s house and thought maybe I would just fly down, buy it, see my mom for a few days and then drive it home.

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Car sales guy for 18 years. With a new cars, less risk of hidden damage and under warranty. If you are paying cash, TX dealer should collect no tax, you will pay CO tax when you register. If you finance, the loan is required to collect tax. Most dealers will get the deal funded and then send you a check to pay tax. (At a minimum some will collect CO 2.9% base rate)

If you dont want to fly down, get on a video call with sales rep and make them walk about the car with you. If you are happy, do everything remotely and have it shipped.

Most dealers will not let you ship a car from another dealer you bought it from. They dont want the liability or complaints when the car shows up. Plus customers generally want to be shown how to use the car and the receiving dealer has no skin in the same and no sales guy will work for free.

If you fly down, I would suggest arranging for a wire transfer while you are there, vs a check.

Last bit of advice, if you ship, do not go with cheapest carrier. Dealer likely has recommendations on trusted companies.

Yes... arrange for wire transfer. Had to deal with some dealer shenanigans out of state purchasing once that left me stuck there for two straight days declining to accept legal tender (that they were fine with on the phone) as they tried to get me to do their dealer financing. They also screwed me out of their advertised promotions / discounts, but I have bigger fish to fry, and about what I expect from any "large" car dealer, since monopolized enterprises are such a good legislative concept.

Point being - make sure you have wire transfer lined up and just expect any assurances to be a lie from the get-go.

BTW: I did resolve it with a wire transfer, which is not immediate.

I?m thinking about just stuffing $60K in small bills into a large duffel bag and paying that way.

Honestly, thanks for the payment advice. I haven?t really dealt with wire transfers but I have time to figure it out as technically the vehicle is still being built and probably won?t be on the lot until the end of July.

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Originally Posted by sic_semper_tyrannis

I bought a used car from a dealership six states away. The price was so much better than anything I could find in Colorado

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Denver dealerships tend to add several thousand to the sticker for "location markup" or whatever they call it.

New car loses like 15% of its value the moment you drive it off the lot.

Someone is probably just gonna smash into it, vandalize it, or it'll get hail damage anyway.

And that's why I drive a 40 year old shitbox, lol.

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Originally Posted by Clint45

Denver dealerships tend to add several thousand to the sticker for "location markup" or whatever they call it.

New car loses like 15% of its value the moment you drive it off the lot.

Someone is probably just gonna smash into it, vandalize it, or it'll get hail damage anyway.

And that's why I drive a 40 year old shitbox, lol.

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When I bought my 350Z nismo edition, they tried to gouge on the price. I showed them an ad from a Kentucky dealer for $15k less. Same exact car, color & options, 10 miles on it. I asked what was so special about the Denver market and why should I not fly to Louisville for $300 and save $15k? When they initially wouldn't match, I called the number in the ad in thier showroom... it was the end of the model run as the 370s were on lot.

The manager came over and matched the KY dealer price.

When Fiat open thier Denver lot, they added $5k on every car because Denver market. I was looking for an economy commuter and left after laughing at the salesman trying to justify the markup... for a Fiat.

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Originally Posted by Clint45

Denver dealerships tend to add several thousand to the sticker for "location markup" or whatever they call it.

New car loses like 15% of its value the moment you drive it off the lot.

Someone is probably just gonna smash into it, vandalize it, or it'll get hail damage anyway.

And that's why I drive a 40 year old shitbox, lol.

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In my defense, the vehicle I am buying is for my wife.

I drive a fifteen year old truck with 170K miles and have no intention of replacing it any time soon.

Recently went through this in April '24 with a pre-owned vehicle. Purchased in Houston, drove home. Dealer paid for flight, and picked me up at the airport.

Paperwork went surprisingly well at the dealer. Problems arose later, but nothing terrible. Couple of forms FedEx'd back and forth. Everything was finalized before the temp tag expired.

I financed for a couple of reasons, though not terribly important to this conversation. Paying off within the next month. Dealership collected all taxes as part of deal. In fact, I received a check from them in May because they had over collected by $150~. Yes, it has a minor impact on the loan. In this case, I'm not terribly bothered by it.

When I got back to Colorado with the vehicle I was required to do the Colorado VIN verification. No big deal. Any dealership's service department is capable and should do this for no charge. FedEx'd signed form back to them.

The only problem was the plates. I told them at the time, and again the following week, to not get plates for the vehicle. I had the plates from the one that had been totaled by insurance, with time left on them. I wanted to use those plates for the replacement and would handle all that myself.
About 10 days before temp is set to expire, plates from the county show up in my mailbox. I spent over an hour getting it sorted out at the local DMV office. And thankfully, I got someone that was willing to help. They could have easily told me that there was nothing they could do.
She took the time to work with the system and her supervisor transfer my old Vet plates to the new ride, transfer the new plates back to the county, and get me remaining funds from the old plates as a refund from the county. About two weeks after that, a check showed up. Deal done.

Don't be afraid to work with an out of state dealer, but be very clear with what you want. And don't hesitate to ask for more. By the time all is said and done, I saved about $3K by purchasing in Texas over Colorado when comparing apples to apples. And I love the new ride. Still wish the wife hadn't gotten into a crash in the old one, but that ship has sailed.

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Originally Posted by Eric P

When I bought my 350Z nismo edition, they tried to gouge on the price. I showed them an ad from a Kentucky dealer for $15k less. Same exact car, color & options, 10 miles on it. I asked what was so special about the Denver market and why should I not fly to Louisville for $300 and save $15k? When they initially wouldn't match, I called the number in the ad in thier showroom... it was the end of the model run as the 370s were on lot.

The manager came over and matched the KY dealer price.

When Fiat open thier Denver lot, they added $5k on every car because Denver market. I was looking for an economy commuter and left after laughing at the salesman trying to justify the markup... for a Fiat.

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Awhile back my now ex wife wanted to buy a new Jeep Wrangler 4 door. We went to the dealership after hours and looked at the sticker prices. They added a $3000 "Denver location fee" to every Jeep on the lot. First I laughed a lot. Then I told her no. Then I bought her something used off craigslist.