|
|
Selling Your Used Car To Get Top Dollars |
By:
Dr. Deepak Dutta |
|
|
You are in the market to buy a new car. Your first thought is to
trade in your existing one at the dealership. If you do not have
any time and you are very comfortable loosing a couple of
thousand dollars, go ahead and trade in your existing vehicle at
the dealership. If you trade in at the dealership, you don't
have to pay a portion of the sales tax, equivalent to the
trade-in value of your old car, on your new car. For a $2,000
trade-in, that may be as high as $160 at 8% sales tax rate. But
the same $2,000 trade-in car can be sold at $3,000 to a private
party if you put some efforts. And that can be a nice chunk of
money for a few hours of works.
If you have read so far, you must be interested in getting that
extra $1,000. Go ahead start your research for the fair market
value of your car using edmunds.com. Enter all your available
vehicle features and mileage to obtain an accurate number. Take
a printout of the page. Now you have all the details of your car
at your finger tips and the estimated market value the sellers
in your region are willing to pay from a private party sale.
Call your local news paper and buy a classified ads in
automotive section for one week starting from a Sunday. Some
local papers will extend your ad for an additional week for a
nominal charge or for free if the vehicle is not sold in one
week. Give details like make, model, year, mileage, engine
cylinder size, etc. Also check out the online car selling sites
like motor zoo.com and car.com. Get the title of your car and
keep it in a place you can access it quickly if a prospective
buyer wants to buy the car immediately.
Take your car to the nearest car wash and give it a through
cleaning, both interior and exterior. Remove every thing from
the trunk, back seats, and floor. The car should only have floor
mats on the floor. Trunk should be completely empty. Secure the
spare tire and the jack appropriately. Vacuum the trunk. Use a
spot remover to remove spots from seats and trunk carpet if it
is possible. Don't spend money fixing the car for any mechanical
and electrical repairs, unless it is very minor like replacing
the fuse or a bulb etc.. Be honest to the buyer if you have any
mechanical or electrical problems with your car. Take the car to
a quick oil change place for oil change and topping of other
fluids. Most quick oil places will also fill up your
anti-freeze, transmission fluids, power steering fluid if you go
for their 20, 21 or whatever point inspection. They will also
inflate your tires pressure to the recommended level.
When prospective buyers call you, answer all questions they
might have about your vehicle. Answer them honestly because you
want to turn an appointment into a sale. Make appointment at a
specific time. don't be vague like "come after work", because
your "after work" and the buyer's "after work" may not be the
same. Ask the buyer to come during the day and not at night.
This may be a problem during the week-days in Winter months when
days are shorter but in the Summer it should not be a problem.
You can also schedule your appointment during the week-ends in
the Winter months. Get the cell phone number of the prospective
buyer if it is possible. However, don't get upset if the
prospective buyer does not show up or shows up late. Remember
that a prospective buyer is your customer and "customer is
always right."
Before the buyer takes the car for a test drive, check his/her
driver's license. You should accompany the buyer during the test
drive and direct the buyer to roads you are familiar with. Don't
allow him/her to take the car wherever he/she wants. During
price negotiation, don't be extremely rigid in your price.
Depending on the resale value of your car, you should be able to
accept a couple of hundred dollars less than your advertised
price. Take only cash; do not take checks or registered checks.
If you receive any inquires from prospective buyers to your
online advertisement, be very cautious. There are lots of scams
going on online. If the online buyer proposes to send you a
registered check for more than what you are asking for and tells
you to send the difference to a shipping company, than you know
it is definitely a scam. The check is forged and they will take
your money and run. Have fun with your extra money.
|
|
Article Source: http://www.PopularArticles.com/article7542.html |
Article: Selling Your Used Car to Get Top Dollars
Author: Dr. Deepak Dutta
Total Views: 14
Word Count: 721
Category:
Home /
Automobiles / Cars / Used Cars
|
|
|
|
|
|
Categories 
