At what point is the spread between an AD and trusted seller not worth it?

[Maxy]

Less than $1K, I would go with AD.

[drmizzou]

Somewhere in The range of $500-$750. More than this, I’ll got to TS, however, right now TS prices are ridiculously overpriced and way above MSRP for me to consider buying from them.

[Singslinger]

In S'pore, ADs offer up to 36 months' interest-free credit so for me, that's the way to go.

[SoCal_Batman]

How many of your AD’s would waive sales tax if the watch is shipped out of state, empty box or not?

If you can save $500+ buying from a TS and not pay sales tax, that’s a great deal. Now if you buy @ MSRP and can get sales tax waived, may be worth it to buy from an AD IMO.

EDIT: This is all hypothetical of course

[tyler1980]

Originally Posted by SoCal_Batman

How many of your AD’s would waive sales tax if the watch is shipped out of state, empty box or not?

If you can save $500+ buying from a TS and not pay sales tax, that’s a great deal. Now if you buy @ MSRP and can get sales tax waived, may be worth it to buy from an AD IMO.

thats a whole different argument. When is the delta enough to commit tax fraud

For 500 savings i wold not ship out of state. In any case you are legally obligated to pay the tax in the state received even if you are not paying it in the state where the store is located.

[WAK4]

The relationship is key IMO. If market is soft, I offer my AD what I'd pay and they say yes or no... They appreciate getting first crack, and know what I'm offering is based on what I can do elsewhere. Yes, I'd pay more to get it from them.

Now that things have gotten a bit nuts with steel market and new release items, I know I'm capped at list price and can usually get what I want in a reasonable time, even if hard to get in general. Can't say I planned my approach to achieve this benefit, but I'm happy it's worked out this way

[Bt122]

I only do AD. Doesn’t matter the price difference and I can wait.
Just like I pay MSRP for my cars.


I value personal relationships that make my purchases enjoyable.

[SoCal_Batman]

Originally Posted by Bt122

I only do AD. Doesn’t matter the price difference and I can wait.
Just like I pay MSRP for my cars.


I value personal relationships that make my purchases enjoyable.

IMO paying MSRP for cars is ridiculous and I’m in the industry. What kind of benefit are you hoping to gain from that relationship? The dealer and the sales person don’t care whether you paid MSRP or stole it off the lot. Get a deal and with the savings you can buy your next ♛!

[chad362wiley]

The advantage of TS for me is the tax off. Can do that w an AD but it’s a hassle. AD for scarce pieces, TS for everything else. No reason to buy a PM from an AD

[emd710]

This isn't really a definitive answer, but somewhat food for thought:

If you intend to purchase sooner than later, and you are looking at the stainless steel (aka SS here as this community LOVES its acronyms more than the military or technology sometimes!) types, you might be forced to get something via a trusted (re)seller versus from an authorized dealer since new stock is rarer than an honest politician.

As I mentioned in my thread from Friday, for me, the planets aligned and I purchased my choice from an AD. YMMV and all that.

[mml4]

What is a reasonable discount to expect from an AD on a PM reference?

[Rahir]

Originally Posted by tyler1980

thats a whole different argument. When is the delta enough to commit tax fraud

For 500 savings i wold not ship out of state. In any case you are legally obligated to pay the tax in the state received even if you are not paying it in the state where the store is located.

Not true. Plenty of friends do this and they don’t pay taxes in their state. I also did it when I bought my sub.

[Danny83]

Ads are the new trusted sellers

[Bt122]

Originally Posted by SoCal_Batman

IMO paying MSRP for cars is ridiculous and I’m in the industry. What kind of benefit are you hoping to gain from that relationship? The dealer and the sales person don’t care whether you paid MSRP or stole it off the lot. Get a deal and with the savings you can buy your next ♛!

Im sure I’ve thrown away too much money over the years. But we always buy from the same people. It just makes the buying experience enjoyable for us. Typically walk out, wife happy I’m happy, kids happy. We’ve never liked the angst of stressing over negotiating the car. We try to make it up on our other investments so it all works out at the end :)

But I hear you.

[samson66]

I would say $1,000 after taxes difference or more I would go to a TS. Anything less than that I would go with the AD. Hard to get references are another story however. I would be willing to (and have) paid >MSRP to get models where I didn't want to camp out outside an AD's front door for a year to get.

[otherminds]

1k seems about right to me!

[Art 1]

Originally Posted by Rahir

Not true. Plenty of friends do this and they don’t pay taxes in their state. I also did it when I bought my sub.

Well, it is true. You are wrong.

[TacticaLCawacoL]

I buy to my Trusted Seller Precious Metal, Two Tone or Datejust for example...

For SS Rolex Sport ref., i stick with my AD. And if the watch is a slow seller, no doubt my AD will discount as much as my TS.