It’s purely a love/hate relationship; shopping for a new car. We all love the new car smell; the jealous look on our friends faces; but is it worth all that stuff to get there?

One of the first things you’ll want do before visiting any car lot is search the advertisements in the paper for the ones that have these particular catch phrases. “No pressure”, “One-on-one salesperson negotiation”, “No manager involvement”, “Easy, less time, no hassles”

… and do cut these out; they just might come in handy later on!

If you brought in another car as a trade-in, the next thing they will want to do is take your keys and bring your car around back.

Have you ever wondered what they are doing to it while your car is around back?

Once your trade-in has been taken; your dealer will be off to see The Wizard, The All Mighty, The Grand Poobah, The Big Kahuna, The Man with the Plan (a.k.a. the Manager). Dealers can usually not make a move without their manager’s approval.

…and remember this fact while you are sitting in that lot that claimed, “One-on-one salesperson negotiation” in their advertising.

In fact, go ahead and bring this to their attention. They will have to go back and speak to the manager about this too.

There are two basic phrases to the dealers vocabulary, “What can I do to put you in that drivers seat today?” and “Let me see what I can do.”

The whole process goes something like this:

Dealer: “What can I possibly do to put you in that driver’s seat today?”

You: “Can you take another $1,500 off that price?”

Dealer: “Okay… let me see what I can do.”

You: “Can you throw in a years worth of oil changes and tire rotations?”

Dealer: “Well… let me see what I can do about that one.”

You: “Can you paint a target on your forehead while wearing a tutu and climb into a Bull ring singing I’m a little tea pot?”

Dealer: “Yeah, um… well, I don’t know… let me see what I can do for ya there.”

When it is all said and done, you have to wonder if it would just be easier to walk; but then you would have the shoe salesperson to deal with…

And that is but a whole other discussion of it’s own!

Mr. Credit Card has an interesting blog post about the statute of limitations in dealing with debt. The statute of limitations, or time period after the date of delinquency during which the creditor could legally sue you, varies greatly from state to state. For instance, Alaska and North Carolina have three-year statutes of limitations, while Ohio’s and Kentucky’s run up to 15 years.

Mr. Credit Card points out that the statute of limitations can start over if you make a payment on the debt, or even acknowledge the debt in any way. Of course, after seven years, delinquent debt is removed from your credit report, but in some states you can still be sued for payment. The thing to keep in mind is that the laws in the state of current residence typically preside, according to Mr. Credit Card and the attorney friend he references. For instance, if the debt was incurred in North Carolina, but the debtor now lives in Tennessee, the latter state’s laws would trump that of North Carolina. As far as statutes of limitations go, that means adding three more years to the time period. This is important information to know when cleaning up your credit.

You may have racked up some hefty bills this holiday season with travel alone, not to mention gifts, decorations, baking, cards, tipping, party hosting, etc. Why not start now planning ahead for next year? Some might think that planning for the next holiday season while coming down off the rush of the current season can lead to mental instability, but your wallet will thank you.

Ironically enough, your wallet holds the key. If you simply must get out to see Great Aunt Myrtle in North Carolina next Christmas, but the distance is too far to drive, check out the Miles by Discover card. It offers double rewards on food and travel-related purchases, and one mile for each dollar spent on all other purchases. You receive one travel credit with no blackout dates on a major U.S. airline each time your mileage points reach 5,000. APR is quite competitive at 10.99% to 18.99%. Of course, this card is for those with elite credit. Apply for Miles by Discover through the Banks.com web site or check out our full list of airline miles rewards card. Rack up airline miles yearround and remove at least a little stress from your next holiday season.