Wondering how to sell your car?
With so many options to choose from, selecting the best way to sell your used cars can get confusing. You could go for the most convenient methods, like selling it within minutes online, or go old school and wait for the best deal from your network.
Here’s a guide to walk you through the best ways to sell a car in 2023 and a few expert tips to help you bag the best deal in town.
Overview: The Best Way to Sell Your Car
Depending on the condition of your vehicle, your location, and a few other factors, the best way to sell a pre-owned car can be different for everyone. It is best to first assess your situation by asking yourself:
- How long can I wait for the perfect deal?
- Do I have a strong network locally?
- Am I going to purchase a new car immediately after selling the old one?
- What’s the condition of my car?
These questions are just the tip of the iceberg. But, to start, you need to first determine how much time and effort you want to put into selling your pre-owned vehicle, and which mode of selling suits you the best.
Sell to Someone in Your Network
Selling within your private network is one of the best and easiest ways to sell your car. One of the most important factors in this mode of sale is your networking and people skills. Getting the best deal can be really easy depending on how well you communicate with your family, friends, acquaintances, and colleagues.
But, keep in mind that you will be interacting with these people on a regular basis; so, you wouldn’t want them to keep coming back to you with complaints about your vehicle. Hence, it's best if you address all the mechanical problems and safety recalls by checking your VIN number and getting it all resolved.
If you are the go-to person in your community and can easily get the message across by word of mouth, selling your used car to someone within your network might be the best way for you.
Trade-In
If you wish to upgrade your ride to keep up with the times, then a trade-in is the best option for you. By opting for a trade-in at a dealership, you can save time and pay less in taxes.
Plus, it’s as simple as driving in with the old car and picking up one of the new cars on sale in a single visit. Also, dealers usually accept most of the cars because they want to do business with you and make some extra dough by flipping your old car via a wholesale auction.
Dealers take approximately 30 minutes to properly evaluate a trade-in. The salespeople at the dealerships are smooth talkers with a number of marketing tricks up their sleeves. Hence, if you aren’t thinking on your feet, you might end up with trade-in prices that are only 60% to 80% of what you might make in a private sale.
Private Sale
Private sales can be the most profitable, but they demand the most work and patience of all the methods. You need to steer clear of lowballers on day-to-day bases and keep an eye out for scammers too.
Once you are on the same page with a buyer who’s taken a liking to your car, you’ll need to meet up with them to complete the sale. While private sales put you in complete control of the entire transaction, you also have to work out all the paperwork on your own too.
Remember that while private sales can get you top dollar for your vehicle, you have to handle the marketing, customer relations, and more on your own. Even after all that, there’s no guarantee that you will bag the car’s max value as a reward for all your hardships.
Sell to a Dealership
Used car dealerships are the quickest and easiest way to sell your vehicles. All you need to do is send in a few basic details about the car like the VIN, mileage, features, and so on.
It always helps to make a call beforehand and check if the offline dealerships are interested in your vehicle’s year, make and model, else the visit will end up being a waste of gas and time.
Also, if you are still paying off the loan on your car, you might want to visit some of your local dealerships as they are better equipped to process cars that are still under a loan.
5 Expert Tips on How to Sell a Car
Before you head out to sell your car, there are a number of things you can do to maximize the value of your car. For example, polishing off the minor scratches, getting the dents removed, and getting rid of all the squeaky noises if any.
Here are 5 expert tips on how to sell a car that’ll help you fetch the best deals for your vehicle:
1. Fix It or Disclose It
Finding a car with zero problems in the used market is next to impossible. Hence, you should either get all the mechanical trouble sorted out in your car or disclose it to the prospective buyer. This will help establish trust and avoid any future problems with the buyer.
2. Demonstrate Your Care for Your Car
You will make a much more convincing case for yourself if you are able to demonstrate your care for your vehicle. Anybody buying a used car looks for reassurance that the car hasn’t been put through the mill.
The paper trail of how frequently you took your car to the garage, and what parts have been replaced over the years is the most straightforward way to show how meticulously you have maintained your car. Getting the best deal in the market will be child’s play if you convince potential buyers of the immaculate condition of the car.
3. Make the Advertisement Look and Sound Great
Looks matter. You need to make sure you put in the time and effort needed to make your advertisements look and sound great. Capture the best angles and jot down a top-notch description of your car highlighting all of its best features. Look at successful examples on the official websites of manufacturers, for example, Chevrolet's Official Website.
The goal is to make sure your advertisement is convincing. The more prospective buyers you attract, the more likely you will be able to sell your car for a greater profit.
4. Qualify Prospects and Keep Safe
Ensure you keep yourself safe when you are heading out to meet potential buyers in person. There’s no harm in giving a buyer a hands-on experience, but it’s best to do it in the safest manner possible. Try meeting prospective buyers during the day at public places. Moreover, find out how the buyer is planning to pay for the car to make sure they are serious.
5. Secure Payment
Don’t hand over possession of the car before you secure the payment. When you are making a private sale or selling to someone in your network, accept only cash or a cashier’s check in payment. Whatever you do, do not accept a personal check under any circumstances.
Once you make sure the cashier’s check is good to go, you can sign over the title of the car to the buyer and give them possession of your used car.
At the end of the day, it is your decision on what’s the best way to sell your car. Depending on how much time and effort you wish to devote towards selling it, you can go for whichever method suits you the best.
How can I avoid being scammed when selling a car privately?
First off, here’s a list of things you can do to sell your car safely:
- Visit dealers and websites that are well-known and trusted.
- List your car on websites that require VIN numbers.
- Ask the buyers lots of questions.
- Avoid getting too personal.
- Select a test-drive route that you are comfortable with and already agreed upon to avoid surprises.
Here are a few warning signs to look out for when you are selling a vehicle online or in person:
- Fraudulent ACH Transfers
- Fake Mobile Deposits
- Promises of Future Payments or Payment Plans
- Intentional Overpayment
- Escrow Accounts
Frequently Asked Questions
Bank transfers are the safest payment method when selling a car. With a bank transfer, you have a clear and verifiable transaction record that’s traceable. It offers you a higher level of security against all kinds of scams and frauds. Moreover, both parties can access the bank records for future reference.
There’s always room for some negotiation. Before driving off to the dealerships to sell your used car, use online car valuation tools to find out the fair market value of the car. That’s the starting point of your price negotiation.
Here’s a list of documents you can offer the potential buyer:
- Title
- Odometer Disclosure
- Maintenance Records
- Emissions Documentation
- Vehicle History Report after checking a car of a specific brand using services like Kia VIN decoder
- Warranty Documents
- As-Is Document
- Bill of Sale
You can sell a car with an ongoing loan, but you need to pay it off to transfer the title to the new owner. Here are a few ways in which you can sell your car with an ongoing loan:
- Sell your car to a used-car dealer
- Trade the car in at a new-car dealership
- Sell the car through a private-party transaction
The number of cars you can sell within a year varies from state to state. While most states limit the number to around four to six vehicles per year without a dealership license, others allow you to sell up to twelve cars.
The best way to sell a broken-down car is to head over to the trade-in dealerships. But, if your car has a full-blown engine, and you are having trouble finding a buyer, you can consider contacting a junkyard.
Trusted websites and automotive dealerships are your safest bet for selling your used cars. Since they have been in the business for years and built a reputation for themselves, you can strike a deal with them without the stress of scams and fraud.
