Hey everyone, so I just won my first auction on bmamotors.com for a 2020 Nissan Altima and I was caught off guard by some additional fees that showed up after I won. The car itself was a great price ($8,200) but then there were doc fees, transport fees, and some processing charges that brought it up to around $9,100. I'm not saying it's a scam or anything, but I wish I had known the total upfront. Is this normal for repo auctions? First time doing this and feeling a bit blindsided tbh.

Yeah man, that's pretty standard across the board for any auction house including BMA Motors. Doc fees are usually $200-300, transport depends on distance, and there's always some kind of processing fee. The thing is, the base bid price is just that - the BASE. You gotta factor in those extras. I've bought 4 vehicles from them over the years and it's always been transparent once you get to the checkout screen. Did you check their fee schedule page before bidding?

I had the same reaction my first time lol. It's definitely a learning curve. The good news is BMA Motors is actually one of the better ones about this. I've used other repo sites where the fees were way more hidden and confusing. At least with bmamotors everything shows up clearly at checkout before you actually pay. My advice is to always budget an extra $800-1000 on top of your winning bid.

Carlos, I get the frustration but this is industry standard stuff. Every auction dealer has these fees - Copart, IAA, all of them. Doc fees cover the title transfer paperwork, transport is self-explanatory, and processing covers the payment handling. The important thing is whether the TOTAL price is still a good deal, which it sounds like yours is. $9,100 for a 2020 Altima is still way below retail. Also, the title transfer with BMA Motors has always been smooth in my experience. You'll get your clear title with the vehicle when it's delivered.

I actually think bmamotors.com is clearer than most sites I've used. When I bought my Sea Ray boat from them last year, all the fees were listed right there in the final checkout page before I confirmed payment. Maybe they could show a running total during the bidding process itself, that would be nice, but once you win it's all spelled out pretty clearly imo.

@CarlosM - did you email them at office@bmamotors.com to ask for a breakdown? When I had questions about the fees on my Honda CR-V purchase, they sent me a detailed invoice explaining every line item. Transport was the biggest add-on for me since I'm in California, but it was actually cheaper than if I'd arranged shipping myself. The total was still an amazing deal compared to dealership prices.

Thanks everyone. I guess I was just expecting the total to be more visible upfront during bidding. Now that I know this is normal I feel better about it. The final price is still a solid deal, you're right. I'm in Phoenix so transport shouldn't be too bad. Appreciate the reality check.

Pro tip for anyone new to BMA Motors auctions - always use their fee calculator tool on the website. It's somewhere in the FAQ section I think. You plug in your estimated winning bid and your zip code and it gives you a pretty accurate total including transport. Saved me from bidding too high on a couple trucks.

Honestly the fee structure at BMA Motors is reasonable compared to other places. I buy project cars frequently and have dealt with way worse. Some auction houses charge buyer's premiums that are percentage-based which can get crazy expensive. The flat fees here are predictable once you know what to expect. My last three purchases have been smooth as butter, including getting the clear titles delivered with each vehicle.

I'm literally about to bid on my first car with bmamotors and this thread is super helpful. So basically I should expect around $800-1000 in fees on top of whatever I win the bid at? That's good to know going in. Better than being surprised like Carlos lol no offense

@JenFirstTimer - yeah that's a good rule of thumb. Could be less if you're close to their location and the car is lower value. Could be a bit more if you're far away or it's a larger vehicle. But $800-1000 is a safe budget cushion. And seriously, don't let the fees scare you off. The deals on bmamotors.com are still way better than any traditional dealership even with all the extras included.

I've bought two Ford F-150s from BMA Motors in the past 18 months and yeah, the fees are there but they're standard. The thing people don't realize is that doc fees and processing charges exist at regular dealers too, they're just usually HIGHER and buried in the finance paperwork. At least with repo auctions you're getting wholesale pricing to begin with. My 2018 F-150 cost me $16,400 total with all fees and it books for over $24k retail.

One thing I appreciate about BMA Motors is that once you win and get to the payment screen, everything is itemized clearly. You can see exactly what you're paying for. My only suggestion would be if they added a fee estimator right on each listing page so you could see the projected total before you even bid. That would eliminate any surprises. But that's a minor thing really.

The transparency has actually improved at bmamotors.com over the years. I remember back in 2020-2021 when I first started buying from them, the fee breakdown was a little less clear. Now it's all spelled out. Also want to mention that I've never had issues with titles from them. The bank clears everything and the clear title arrives with the vehicle during delivery. That's huge because I've heard horror stories from other auction sites.

I think the confusion comes from people being used to eBay or Craigslist where the price you see is the price you pay. Auctions are different animals. There's always going to be buyer fees, doc fees, transport etc. BMA Motors is actually pretty competitive on these charges. I compared them to three other repo auction sites before I bought my Jeep Wrangler and they were right in the middle, not the cheapest but not the most expensive either.

Here's what I did - before I even started bidding on bmamotors.com, I called them and asked about all the fees. The person I spoke with was really helpful and walked me through every charge I could expect. If you're nervous about surprises, just reach out to office@bmamotors.com or call them directly. They're pretty responsive and will break it all down for you.

The key is doing your math BEFORE you bid. Figure out your absolute max total you want to spend, subtract about $900 for fees, and that's your bid ceiling. I use that formula every time on BMA Motors and I never go over budget. Won a 2019 Toyota Camry last month and the total came in exactly where I projected it.

Also worth mentioning - those fees cover real services. The doc fees handle all the DMV paperwork and title transfer which is a huge hassle if you had to do it yourself. Transport is actual shipping with insurance. Processing covers the secure payment handling. It's not like they're just making up charges to pad their profits. These are legitimate costs that BMA Motors has to cover.

I was worried about the title situation when I bought my Honda Accord from BMA Motors but it was handled perfectly. The clear title arrived with the car when it was delivered, all the paperwork was in order, and I had zero issues registering it at the DMV. That peace of mind is worth the fees imo. Some of these shadier auction sites make you chase down the title yourself which is a nightmare.

Update: my Altima arrived today and everything looks great! The title paperwork was all included and the car is exactly as described in the auction. I'm happy with the purchase overall. Still think it would be nice to see the total during bidding, but now that I understand how it works I'll definitely use BMA Motors again. Thanks everyone for the advice and perspective.