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Welcome
to AutoSpeakSM Helpful Hints for Selling Your Car There are five basic steps to selling your car. It is important that you follow all five of these to be successful and get top dollar for your car. 1. Prepare the Car A clean and well maintained car sends a visual signal that this vehicle has been well cared for and increases its market value. Preparation checklist includes the following items.
2. Set the Price The selling price of a vehicle is largely based on local conditions. Compare your vehicle to others that are the same year, make, model and condition. Use one of the Internet sites to figure out what the value is in your area. On our site, we have the Kelly Blue Book as a source for pricing. Using both the retail and wholesale prices and adding them together then dividing by two will give you your average value. It will be less than an auto retail sales lot but more than the wholesale value of the vehicle. This a good starting point. Here are a few items to consider that have an effect on the value of the car. Increase the value for:
Decrease the value for:
3. Writing the AD Write your ad copy to complete an image in the buyer's mind. Start by listing the year, make, model and body style of your vehicle. Then list the basics and options as well as why your vehicle is unique (one owner, low miles, extra clean, etc.). Be sure to state the price of the vehicle in your ad so that you help pre-qualify callers. You may also want to indicate your situation by writing OBO (Or Best Offer), firm or must sell. 4. Marketing the car One of the biggest mistakes most people make is to think that a buyer will find you. It is likely you will have to find the buyer and that can be lots of hard work. The truth about selling a car is that it is not easy. You are going to need to work at it for something to happen. Here are a few major points to remember Make a "For Sale" sign for the car. List on the sign details about the car. Equipment, mileage and asking price are some of the key factors. Put a telephone number on it that will be answered by you most of the time. It is important that the caller have someone to speak with that has information about the car. This may be the only chance you get to speak with some of the prospective buyers. Make the sign as attractive as possible and post it in the side windows and back glass. Drive the car as much as possible, so it gets seen in various places. Leaving the car parked on public property to sell it is not a good idea. Chances are that it will not get seen as much as when you are driving it and in some states it is illegal to park a car for sale on a public lot. Believe me when I tell you that driving it around will get it seen a lot more. Also, keep the interior clean and wash the exterior often so it looks good at all times. List it in the classified section of the newspaper. Don't count on this too much. Some things have changed and fewer people look in the paper to buy, in fact, readership by young people is nearly a negative number. I would advise spending wisely and placing a small ad if at all. Weekly papers are a better bargain and get more readership. Daily newspapers charge a high rate for most ads, unless you can find a special offer. Spend wisely and buy only what makes sense in terms of price. List it on the classified sections of the Internet. Most of the classified sections are free so do not pay for this service. You will likely reach more young buyers and that is good. But be aware that your e-mail address will be seen by a ton of spamers and that is not good. Set up an e-mail (Big Foot, Juno, etc.) account just for these ads and kill it afterwards. That way you will keep your real e-mail address out of the hands of those that would send you spam. List it in car publications. These usually feature a photo of the car. These ads can be expensive and you might want to try a few other things first. I have not seen these work all that well, but some small used car dealers hunt in these publications for people desperate to sell. They offer a lot less than the wholesale value. Just be careful who you are dealing with and ask them point blank if they are a dealer. 5. Selling the car This is where people have the most problem. Remember that you can sell the car provided you do a few basic things. Take your time with the prospective buyer. Set up a time and place to show the car. A public place is better than allowing them to come to your home. Meet at a mall, your office, their office or at their house. Have the car ready to show. Be honest and up front about the condition. You are legally liable if you misrepresent your vehicle in many states. Tell them the important feature and SHUT UP. They will ask questions, don't talk them to death. Often it is what you don't say that helps sell the car. Offer to allow them to test drive the car and be sure to go along on the drive. Allow them to drive it at highway and around town speeds. Encourage them to try the air conditioner, heater, radio, etc. They need to know if everything works. Offer to let them have a mechanic check it out. This is a plus for both of you. Be sure that the prospective buyer understands that they are paying for the test. Everyone likes to win, so leave a little room in your price for bargaining. Keep the negotiations open. Don't be too quick to turn down an offer, but don't say yes too quickly either. Be confident that price reflects market value. Buyers are going to quote a real low price to start with. Have your pricing worked out and learn to meet them half way. Allow them to think they are winning. Your objective is to sell the car. You will get the price if you start high enough (but not too high) and work your way backwards. Once you have a verbal agreement, get it into writing. Your complete name and address, the buyers complete name and address, the price of the car, a physical description of the car (i.e. brown 1995 Ford F150 Truck) and the serial number of the vehicle. Dates and signatures of both the buyer and seller. This will be a bill of sale. Check with your local Department of Motor Vehicles to see what else is required. Federal law requires a statement of mileage. Some states supply a form or build that into the title. Check this out before you start. Don't be surprised at the last minute by what is needed to finish the deal. You will give them the title and they will give you the money. These events should happen simultaneously A few do's and don'ts on this part of the deal. Do have the title ahead of time, if possible. If you have a huge payoff on the vehicle, you may want to work out the details with the lender. The buyer is not going to give you the money without the title and the lender is not going to release the title without full payment. Cash is OK, but it is hard to handle and can be a burden. Take a personal check only if the person writing it will go with you to cash it on the spot. Watch out for fraudulent cashier's checks. DO NOT RELEASE THE VEHICLE UNTIL YOU HAVE THE FUNDS IN HAND! Good luck on selling the car. It is not any harder than buying one.
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