I gave up on dealerships for used cars for this very reason. When I got in an accident last year that resulted in my car being totaled, I first tried visiting a dealership to browse their used cars. It was incredibly scummy. First car I tried, I asked when the inspection expired and the guy kept saying "I don't know, we'll talk about that later." What do you mean you don't know?! You have the paperwork right in front of you! I had to find out myself. Turns out it expired THAT day. I walked away (more like ran) and started looking on Craigslist.
I got a 2002 Honda Civic for $2k from a private seller. I've put 20k miles on it in less than a year with nothing but regular maintenance and it passed inspection with flying colors. I am so glad I bought private. Dealerships are not worth it. My first car before this one was a 2003 Toyota Corolla for $1.5k with 240k miles on it when my dad helped me buy it and I drove it for three years (would still be chugging along today if I hadn't crashed it).
Not that you need my advice, but just in case it helps - Buy private. Find someone who is the 1st or 2nd owner of the car and took relatively good care of it, knows the full history, and is just looking for something newer, not selling because it's dead. Click out immediately if they don't post a LOT of photos of all angles of the exterior and interior, or they miss key information like body style, year, miles, when last maintenance was done, etc. Trust the sellers that openly say what they know is wrong with the car. The ones that claim everything is perfect are trying to hide something. When you visit, check everywhere for any rust (can get you a failed inspection even if the car runs great). When you go to look and test drive, bring a friend/family member for safety (and to remind you to check certain things). And, of course, only buy clean titles. My dad has been trading and driving used cars for years and this is the advice he gave me when I was car shopping.
I know how stressful it is to be car shopping alone, especially when you need something yesterday. Hang in there and keep looking!
(Not that I'm biased or anything but the 2000s Hondas and Toyotas are amazing cars if you're looking for something cheap, readily available, and incredibly reliable~)