Car Buying Advice
Step-by-step: Buying a used car
In this section
- What's your car’s value?
- Maximizing curb appeal
- Trading vs. selling
Financing
What is your car’s value?
Whether you sell or trade in your current vehicle, it's important to know its current cash value. If you decided to trade in your current car, expect to get something close to its wholesale value after taking all variables (option, mileage, condition, and so on) into consideration. Some dealerships will try to give you less money for it so they can make more profit when they resell it.
If you sell the vehicle yourself, you will usually be able to get a price that's higher than the wholesale price, but you may not be able to get the full retail value.
In addition to finding your car's book value and researching what other people are asking for their cars, it's a good idea to get quotes from some dealerships. This lets you find an easily obtainable, rock bottom price before you begin negotiating.
Start by making your car presentable and take it to the used-car department of several local dealerships. Ask what they would give you in a straight-out sale. That will be the minimum to expect if you trade your car in. There's another advantage to having this information: If you're being lowballed on your trade-in, you can always simply refuse the offer and sell your vehicle to the dealer who gives you a better quote.
If you sell your car, your final price will probably be above what the used-car departments offered but below the highest asking prices you found. Once you're armed with the vehicle's true value, you can negotiate with confidence instead of unknowingly accepting less.
For more information on trading in, selling a used car and getting more for your old car, see our new car buying guide.
