5 winning tips for selling a used car for a good price

If you’re ready to change a car and purchase a new one with the upgraded features, you might want to find a good owner for your current vehicle and sell it for the best price possible. The market of the used car is so diverse that you need to put some effort toward preparing your vehicle for the sale in order to improve its condition, make it more appealing to the prospective clients, ensure that it’s able to win the competition with the similar vehicles on the local market without remaining on it for too long and receive the best money for its value.

Whether you want to trade it in to the used car dealer not to be personally involved in the pricing, negotiation process, car showing and arranging the legal side of the deal and save your time and nerves, or you’re willing to attempt selling it to the private party not to lose thousands of dollars of the price difference dealers and private buyers are ready to offer, you may apply a few tricks to increase the value of your vehicle and receive a better revenue.

These are the tips apprehensive owners of used cars, willing to get the best price for their vehicle, will benefit from when selling their beloved means of transportation to the next driver.

Tips to sell your used car for the best price possible

1. Give your car an advanced tune-up

Drive up to the auto repairs to get your vehicle examined and repaired so that the prospective buyers viewing a used car are able to obtain a valid professional verification of its perfect condition, approving the value of the vehicle and justifying the price you’re asking for it. The money you’ll spend to replace old parts and fix the flaws that influence the vehicle’s performance will be more than made up once you sell your used car for almost as much as they claim for a new one.

On top of that, an up-to-date examination along with the necessary maintenance procedures and repairs carried out not too long ago won’t allow the car dealers undermine the value of your car and unfairly lower the trade-in price, making the deal quite disadvantageous for you.

Most buyers won’t mind paying a little bit more under the condition that they won’t have to deal with the tune-ups or unexpected breakdowns right on the road shortly after they buy their vehicle. The experts point out that the sellers manage to double the service expenses in the resale price and get away with it without any issues.

To sum up, the more maintained and well-kept the vehicle appears to be, the better price for a used car you may reasonably ask for.

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2. Clean it up (but seriously, clean it)

Give your car a proper scrub and polish. Make it shine with freshness from the inside and from the outside. Wash and wax its exterior to achieve the brand-new look, polish the discs, scrub the tires, empty the boot, clean the windows inside and out, replace the windshield wipers’ rubber inserts, wash the mats, deep clean the upholstery, make sure that there’re no holes or stains on it, dust the surfaces and the dashboard, get rid of the rubbish, etc. Basically, remove all signs of the previous ownership.

Just think about the last time you went car shopping yourself and remember that you’re about to do another run. Would you appreciate someone’s coffee spills on the driver’s seat or old gum on the bottom of a cup holder? I don’t think so. Don’t distract/disgust the possible buyers with the leftover dirt and grime and make your car look inviting and ready for the next owner to take over.

3. Anticipate the negotiation

Again, go back to the memories of your last car purchase and the long hours you spend trying to lower the price. That’s exactly what every single buyer, who will generally like your car and will get serious about sealing the deal, is going to do.

Obviously, the buyers won’t agree to pay the price that’s significantly higher than the price of the same cars or vehicles with the similar characteristics, mileage, and flaws available on the local market. Thus, it’s necessary to scan the online offers to assess your options and figure out the most appropriate price for your used car.

At the same time, you want to up your price by a few thousands to ensure that after those fierce negotiations your buyers and you come down to the price you initially hoped for. And whose problem will it be if they don’t want to drive a hard bargain and take the vehicle without any particular negotiations or price requirements?

Just remember to stand on your grounds and use the counterpoints proving the value of your car and showcasing the benefits of the deal that meets your interests if the prospective buyers ask too much and strive to lower the price below your comfort zone.

4. Get all the paperwork ready in advance

Make a list of the documents required for the car sale (don’t forget about the service records, warranty if the used car still has it and the bill of sales) and complete the necessary paperwork to be able to hand it down when you come to an agreement with the determined buyers and decide to close the deal.

Essentially, be ready to make the full use of their excitement to get a new car and strike the iron while it’s hot.

5. Try selling at the car repairs

Some car repair shops offer great conditions to the owners of used cars willing to sell them without sacrificing thousands of dollars to the big dealers. Mainly, they charge for the time your car remains parked on their lot and take a few hundreds of dollars off the price (literally, $200-400) once the car is sold.

Surely, you’ll still have to deal with the paperwork on your own, and you won’t get the money the moment you leave your car at the repair’s lot, but your vehicle will receive greater exposure to the target audience and you’ll get better chances to sell it faster. As the longer the used car hangs on the market, the fewer people want to buy it and the lower its price gets.

You may find local car repair shops at HireRush.com and contact their owners to talk about selling your car. Set up the tune-up and car cleaning appointment right away as well to kill two birds with one stone.