Dealer-insider explainers
Guides
How out-the-door pricing actually works — fees, caps, taxes, and the rules that decide what a dealer's advertised price must include. No fluff, no upsell.
Which states let dealers leave the doc fee out of the advertised price?
In 27 of the states we cover, the state's own rule lets a dealer leave the doc fee, or another dealer fee, out of an advertised price. The FTC says the all-in price is still required. The list, state by state, and which rule wins.
October 12, 2026 · TheRealOTD
Do dealers have to put fees in the advertised price? What actually changed for 2026
The FTC's car-pricing rule was struck down in 2025, but the FTC says federal law still requires an all-in advertised price, doc fee included. Here's what governs advertised prices now, and how California's SB 766 fits in.
July 9, 2026 · TheRealOTD