KeyAdvance gets your deal today instead of tomorrow. Their tax refund is your down payment.
Tax-season buyers walk in with the down payment still at the IRS. Key Advance is built to turn that refund into the down payment on the deal you already desk, with the lenders you already use. LBS handles the filing and verification.
- IRS approval before signing
- Built to pay you first
- One upload at F&I
- Fits your process & lenders
Example. Down payment is a real April 2026 quote from a San Antonio lot; $3,676 was the average federal refund early in the 2026 season. The customer gets the remaining balance less the LBS fee. Actual amounts depend on the return and IRS approval.
The average refund covers the down payments buyers are actually quoted.
These are down payments quoted to buyers at a San Antonio lot in April 2026, next to the $3,676 average refund.
41% of the average refund. $2,176 to spare.
81% of the average refund. $681 to spare.
82% of the average refund. $676 to spare.
"To spare" is before the LBS fee, which comes out of the refund. Individual refunds vary.
This isn't a nice extra. It keeps tax-season deals on your lot.
From February to April your lot fills with buyers whose down payment is on its way from the IRS. The store that can use that refund gets the deal.
"Come back when your refund hits."
- The customer leaves with no paperwork and weeks to shop around.
- The car goes back on the line and your salesperson's work is gone.
- When the refund lands, it gets spent at whichever lot calls first.
"We can use your refund right here."
- Tax documents are collected at your desk the day they pick the car.
- The deal moves forward with your store from the first visit.
- The down payment is based on the IRS-approved amount and is set up to be paid to you once the refund posts.
What does "come back later" cost your store each season?
Move the sliders to match your lot. The starting values are examples.
That money gets spent this season either way. The only question is which dealership it goes to.
Nothing to replace. One more way to fund the down payment.
Key Advance is built to sit alongside your process, your lenders and how your team sells.
Your process stays
Desk the deal the way you do now. The refund is the down payment line.
Your lenders stay
Send the deal to the same lenders. Key Advance is only about the down payment. Lender approval is separate.
BHPH too
In-house deals need a down payment as well. The refund can be it.
One upload
F&I sends the tax documents to LBS. LBS does the tax work.
What your team does. LBS handles the tax side.
This is the dealership's view of Key Advance. The dashed box is LBS's work, with nothing for your team to do.
They want their tax refund as the down payment.
Tax documents and ID. Customer signs the release form.
F&I sends the documents through the secure upload.
Offset check, e-file, IRS tracking. Nothing for you to do.
LBS confirms the IRS-approved refund to you and the customer.
The approved refund covers the down payment, so you're clear to close.
Your lender or in-house, as usual. Customer signs the Promise to Pay.
Vehicle is released to the customer.
LBS gives you the go-ahead to debit the down payment before the card is released to your shared customer.
Your down payment is in. The customer receives the card with the remaining balance.
Checks at every step that matters.
Signed release
The customer authorizes sharing their documents before anything goes to LBS.
Offset check before filing
LBS looks for child support, student loan, IRS and other federal debts that could reduce the refund.
IRS approval before signing
The deal is signed on the approved refund amount, not an estimate.
Designed to pay you first
The refund goes to an account in the customer's name, as federal rules require. The process is set up for your down payment to come out before they get the card.
Your customer's tax refund can become their down payment. File it with us, and your down payment can be collected once the refund posts.
The IRS opens filing season in late January. A 20-minute walkthrough covers the document upload, the dealer packet, and how and when your down payment reaches you.
