Car Pricing: Dealer Margin

Car Pricing: Dealer Margin

A dealer margin, or dealership profit margin, is the monetary difference between the invoice price, which is the amount that a dealership pays to acquire a vehicle, and the MSRP, which is the manufacturer suggested retail price – also known as the sticker price.

Price Negotiations

As its name suggests, the MSRP is only a suggested price, which means that a consumer can potentially lower it through negotiations. However, by lowering the price, the consumer can cut into the profit amount that the dealership would gain by selling the vehicle at MSRP. For best results, the consumer’s negotiated price should be two per cent or more above the invoice price.

Dealership Overhead Costs

There are other factors that can affect a dealer’s profit margin, such as dealership overhead costs – or costs that are not directly related to acquiring vehicles. Those tend to include employee salaries, building maintenance, electricity and so on. The true profit margin comes into effect after all these other costs are taken into account.

Manufacturer Margin Cut

Sometimes the manufacturer may raise the invoice price but not the MSRP, forcing the dealer to pay more for the vehicle. This move leaves the dealer with a lower potential profit margin, which in turn makes it tougher for the consumer to negotiate the price down.

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