As others have indicated, Jaimer, patience is the key to finding a good one. Searching under the gun can lead to an ill-advised purchase. When buying a used car, I always purchase from a well-heeled private owner as doing so offers several advantages, a lower price usually being one.

With rare exception, for $5000 you're going to get a 2003 or older with higher mileage. $10,000 should buy an '05 or '06 with around 100,000 miles. Exceptional LS 430s, regardless of mileage, sell fast. Others, not so much.

06 White - Sold today

The good ones fly off the shelf, you need to be ready to buy the correct one if it shows up really quickly.

I know exactly the one I would want but I have yet to ever see one come up.

Sorry for the misunderstanding. Was not a recommendation. Was an example of fresh LS430s for sale listings occurring daily. (3 out of the 29 listings shown as being listed yesterday with over 70 total listings showing. Used NC as location as you have "NC" in your profile.)
Only one LS430 showed as "just listed" on Craiglist in the area....
https://greenville.craigslist.org/se...&nearbyArea=14

....JFC...yes, that is exactly why I posted on this forum...to help me sort through this.

This just takes me to a regular page. The first one listed is in Atlanta.

Do you have the knowledge and ability to maintain and do most LS430 repairs yourself...?

I am not afraid to figure it out and have access to a lift bay.
Why?

Late 2018 went looking for an ‘05 or ‘06 to replace my ‘01 with over 228k miles. After searching for over 6 months and looking at 10-12 candidates I decided to stay with the car I knew for the past 14+ years (we acquired in ‘04). Invested in the suspension and wheels/tires and happy with the decision.

I suggest you find the best shape you can find of an ‘01 to ‘03 MY and apply your remaining budget to any maintenance items you need or upgrades you desire. Also, start now on finding a reliable, referenced independent Lexus mechanic to inspect your candidates (if feasible) and perform work you cannot do on your own. Do NOT take your car to the Lexus dealership no matter how good you may think they might be; you will be taken.

Good luck with your search.

Yet another uninformed copy and paste. Everyone here knows how to search the internet.
Please do your homework and respect other members time.

Ok - any advise on this?

If you can then this car is cheaper to own than a Corolla

You may also wish to check https://www.clublexus.com/forums/market/ for listings.... (An enthusiast with an 06 for sale in NC https://www.clublexus.com/forums/mar...5/ls-model-s28 will consider an offer....)

Fly in and drive home.....or ship

I am in Northern California and have only 2 Lexus dealerships in reasonable proximity. When my son had the SC he used the dealership in the South Bay Area once. We have 3 Lexus vehicles and have had good customer service but extremely high quotes for routine or repair services.

So, using Yelp and references I used some local shops with mixed results. One was extremely high quotes (albeit a bit lower than the dealer) and the other had reasonable quotes but the services were sub par.

Then turned to the local Nor Cal Club Lexus thread, a sponsor along with CL members positive references found a very reputable and fair priced shop (but 65 miles away). Located a second, reliable shop close to my workplace (5 miles) and now use both shops depending on the service required. If you have no local NC thread to turn to for recommendations, members have posted threads asking information on shops.

Hope that may help.