Yeah, I only have the 10 codes for $5 Amazon, but no Target offer.

I feel pretty certain Amex is killing Plenti especially if the credit card is being dropped. And frankly without Rite-Aid earnings, I am not sure I would expect to really earn much from Exxon Mobil and the others.

I feel confident that Amex will have a way to pay out the balances from Plenti if it came to that, but it seems they need to cutoff earnings as fast as possible. That being said, seems like it is a good idea to keep redeeming. I have a double whammy as my state will have no Rite Aids at some point next year (WG takeover).

Rasheed

You can also stack whatever mfr coupons on top I believe. Some are there on the Kroger app, and some are paper ones you can use. You cannot do that at Costco.

I had been doing the in-store printable coupon + MFR coupon combination at CVS for the past few weeks, so I don’t know if I can handle any more candy.

Rasheed

Chase Liquid?
https://www.chase.com/debit-reloadable-cards/liquid-prepaid-card

It is free to get for many existing account holders (even if you put it in some else’s name I believe). I think the ATM and now Zelle access is really nice. The linking is for the no fee part, does not require funds availability be linked.

Rasheed

First time ever for me, extra $5 KC if I pick up in store versus free ship. This special KC is instantly usable after your pickup.

To get this trigger, log out of your account, search for item (T-Fal Reserve). Make sure your starred local store is listed at the top.
Then, add item for ship, you will likely see a pop-up box that says $5 if you pick-up (they save shipping!). Select store, then add all your discounts and check-out.

Remember, you must get the RED one.

With the 3% click referral and extra $5 KC, it is $26.10 plus tax for me.

Now this set isn’t that great. I think this is a similar set to a BF deal from two years ago at Kohl’s. The screws come lose too easily and the plastic handles are iffy, but it is pretty low cost.

Rasheed

When you do the financial argument, used (pre-owned) is probably the best value if you do want to buy a car (especially higher retail cost vehicles).

I am sure others will chime in and some will find some rather difficult means to save even more, but I will try to cover the major categories that I come across.

Times are changing fast. Some aspects of used car sales have made it better for the buyer, others have made it worse. I will try to cover some key categories for most buyers that I am seeing these days.

First steps recommended:
-Determine your max budget including tax, fees, warranty, etc… If this includes finance needs, consider that too, but don’t apply yet for any loans.
-Determine which model, max number of acceptable miles, trim requirements (color, interior, features, etc.) year (I recommend you consider miles before model year). You might decide to pursue a few models, but the faster you get to just 1-2 models, the easier this process becomes. It is very possible that you will have to restart if you find the preferred models just don’t match up in the used market (inventory, cost, condition, etc.)
-When considering your favorite models/years, visit edmunds/kbb/other review sites to read the reviews both from when the model came out and follow-up notes. Look at owner forums to determine common issues and how they were fixed. Especially for older cars, issues tend to happen commonly I think because of a design or other operational issue.

Second:
-Determine from what venue are you willing to buy the car and from how far away.
-If you are afraid of the unknown or attributes or just not very good at researching all the details, you will likely want to buy from a franchise dealerships affiliated with a brand (even if not certified). They, as a group, are usually least willing to sell cars with any question marks (from damage to multiple owners). Even if they get these cars as trade-in, they are likely to list it auction rather than sell it on their lot.

Third:
-Give yourself a month if possible to find your car. You need to get a feel to see the type of inventory that comes on the market and the price points. You will quickly become savvy on the individual cars and know right away the issues that impact the car.

Fourth:
-If you need financing, take a look at what you can qualify for best. I think credit unions still offer the lowest rates, but not every one of them advertises such and some have rules (how you buy, how old and mileage). Internet lenders since the 2000s have done well here too, but are mostly targeted for those with excellent credit.
-If you want a warranty (or some sort of service agreement), you have to decide what you are willing to take. Some folks only want coverage done by the manufacturer. This typically means buying a certified car or even a non-certified car from an affiliated dealer (such as buying a Lexus from a Toyota or Lexus dealer). Others are okay with third-party warranty. Some larger chains (like CarMax) have their own version which may or may not be useful. In general, warranties are priced based on risk and warranty companies are in the business to make money. A very expensive cost of a warranty may indicate bad risk history. My impression is that this is the biggest issue with buying used – the unknown aspect of what might happen with the car if you are not willing to handle repair bills (or DIY).
-Doing the internet quoting concept like new cars works, but used cars are so much more varied and unique unfortunately. I found it near impossible to get franchised dealers to internet quote the warranty/service agreements because that is a profit for the finance office, but more reputable ones are not afraid because they know you are a more serious buyer.

Finally:
-While I will list some special topics below, here are some things I suggest.
-Always test-drive any car you plan to buy. I recommend test driving new cars too. Sometimes a car doesn’t feel right even if it looks good on paper.
-Focus on out the door price. Never negotiate on the car price before TTF (tax/title/fees). Even if this means you want a warranty/service agreement, get your quotes with this included. Don’t be shy here. All car sales dealers are used to this, but would never suggest as such.
-Be ready to walk away. Just like a new car sales. In almost every case, you will find another car to try again and it won’t be your last chance. This is a big purchase for many, the fear to say no is surprising to me.

Some of the big changes I have seen in the used car space in just the past year:
-Price transparency. Just as you use sites to determine what to pay for a car, dealers are using the same site to price their cars to sell. This has helped reduced outrageous list prices, but it has also made it harder to distinguish good deals. I have noticed that the good deals out there are primarily for a few reasons: 1) Car has been sitting around (sites even tell you how long it has been for sale) 2) Car has some issues (condition/ownership history) 3) Car is not popular 4) Car was a low balled trade-in (margin)
-Car history is now a given and free. Just a few years back, I had to pay for CARFAX reports. Now, every website usually has a link to a free CARFAX (or the lesser detailed AutoCheck). Use these car reports to determine if the history meets your threshold (lease/fleet return, multiple owners, damage, widely reported issues), but don’t expect them to be like title insurance. I hear CARFAX has only paid out for nine cars ever where there was some covered discrepancy. Of course, be afraid if a dealer or seller is not offering a free history (hiding some aspect). The market has spoken here, not offering this is just not worth the savings. I find most interesting that now almost ever car repair shop is reporting data to these companies.

Websites I really like in this area:
https://www.edmunds.com/ (still a leader I think)
https://www.kbb.com/

https://www.vehiclehistory.com/ (incredible site)

https://www.autotrader.com/
https://www.truecar.com/
https://www.carsdirect.com/
https://www.cars.com/
https://www.cargurus.com/ (I really like how they look at car values to price.)
(Note, I think these sites cover most of the licensed dealers inventory. I would run the search on all of the sites listed to get a full list of inventory out there. Private party can list here too, but you may need to use craigslist or ebay as well.)

I am not going to list finance websites here, there are lots. Start with your local credit unions, then look at online lenders. Frankly, dealers almost never have better financing on used cars unless you are dealing with a manufacturer-sponsored lending (but again the better option is to take the cash rebate option if possible). I have begged dealers to offer me better rates to make some more money on a deal, but they have not been able to do so from what I already had (with a bit of disbelief at the rate I got from another lender). Try to only buy with what you can afford to pay monthly for 48 to 60 months loan (some would say don’t go above 36). 72 months has become too common.

Intermediary private party (Shift, Vroom and others):
These seem to be popping up. Essentially, letting someone else handle your private party sale. Now, these guys need sales, so they are doing some strange things.
-Car is really not local to you. They tend to advertise too broadly.
-Car is priced below others. They want to get the car sold. You should be comparing their price to other private party ads not dealer prices.
-They promise that they did an inspection. In general, I would not trust it because there is really no long warranty with that inspection (beyond a few days return policy).

Maybe one day, these companies will be more useful.

Rental car sales (Hertz, Enterprise, Avis, etc.)
-Usually these cars are driven harder in a shorter period of time.
-Perhaps there are good deals, but I have not found as such.
-Usually, the price tag is fixed, not negotiable (beyond a few hundred dollars). No fun.

Private party or curb-side/parking lot sellers:
-There are deals that exist here, but there are so many additional factors to watch for that this is only for the very experienced. I won’t go into the issues I have personally seen in these sales.

Auctions (Manheim, others):
-First, the concept of savings a lot of money is not so common anymore. You might be able to save an extra 1k to 2k, but it is work. This is most effective for hard to find cars, but usually a car would have listed somewhere before it went to auction. I think most sellers at auction have realized that is important because there is no need to go to auction to get the best demand if you list a car for sale on a well-seen website. Auction is a disposal situation for seller these days.

Dealers with fixed price advertising:
-These are spreading like wildfire with major dealership groups going this route along with those who have done this for a long time (CarMax, Sonic, etc.).
-In general, you will pay more than if you find a seller/dealer who negotiates.
-If you want a car from one of these places, the best tactic is to wait and see how much they drop the price of the vehicle (assuming you are not competing against a bunch of other interested buyers). An email request with a counteroffer price may be the best option with an indication to contact you when they lower the price to your requested amount (assuming your counteroffer is within the market prices).

Buy Here, Pay Here:
-In general, these places make money on cycling a car through a number of buyers (who default) or on very high interest costs
-Sometimes, they have desirable cars to attract people, but almost always you should look elsewhere. It appears laws are starting to get better here, but these places may go out of business before they become the right places for the normal used car buyer.

In an ideal world, attributes of used cars I like:
-Lowest mileage you can afford for less wear and tear, even if older in year model. I find the year model seems to have a bigger impact than mileage even if the car has not been redesigned. However, redesigning seems to be a yearly concept now which might be a problem for used cars down the road.
-One personal owner, not lease use. Now, this is a lot harder because I would argue too much car sales (when the new car price was over 30-40k) are lease nowadays. I frequently see one owner from a lease use (very normal).
-Car stayed within region of original sale. Not a dealbreaker, but I can’t see how this hurts.
-Has not been auctioned. However, I see a lot of larger group dealers avoiding auctions by moving cars rapidly among different dealerships to avoid this stigma. This is no better I think because there is a reason why the car is getting moved around and can’t be easily sold.
-No bumper repairs. This is obvious, but a car can have a clean title and still have such repairs. Now, this might be an opportunity for a hot deal if the repairs were truly cosmetic. This depends on your risk profile.

Best of luck,
Rasheed

Yeah, they sent the same $5 code each day. You also can’t combine them as they seem to roll-up to the same ‘master coupon’. This is all part of Kohl’s getting smarter on managing the discounts. The good news is that there was clearance all over the store right now.

I really wish Kohl’s would do free delivery to stores for spend during non-MVC days.