Everyone wants to make the most significant profit on the vehicle they are selling. Yet sometimes we don’t know what to price the car at, we just know we want the most money possible and we will put the price what we think is right.
But that is not always the best way to do this, I mean it is a business after all, and people are putting money towards what they consider a significant investment.
So to make this process the easiest for them and the most profitable for you, we must know the right price but the best price for both parties.
So we are going to go through this list together and see how we can get you the highest price for the vehicle you are trying to sell, so let’s get started.
Clean Car
For this tip, I wanted to see if a clean car gets a higher price evaluation when being offered a trade-in at a dealership, so I went into a couple dealerships to ask them.
Sadly none of them wanted to be quoted for their pricing tactics, but they did disclose how they come to the prices that they offer. By the way, if you 
want to know what brands they were, it was Acura and Ford, but I can’t say which ones due to their wishes to stay Anonymous.
The tactics they use are Kelly Blue Book, Kelly Black Book (dealership version of the blue book), NADA (National Automobile Dealers Association), Carfax, maintenance history, and what that vehicle is selling for in that specific market.
So knowing this it tells us a few things; first, it tells us that we can understand their ballpark price if we check the trade-in value on Kelly Blue Book ourselves which if you do not have the website here it is.
Next, since we already know the maintenance history and information that will be on a Carfax ourselves. You just need to stay consistent with your vehicle’s maintenance.
Then if you want to know what vehicles are selling for in your area, go onto Cargurus and type in your cars make and model, then put radius for 250 miles and see what the average pricing is set at. This will give you a rough idea with what pricing he dealership will provide you for your trade-in.
When it comes to private party pricing, I suggest you do the same thing but instead of looking at trade-in value on Kelly Bluebook, select the Private party value that is on the right side.
I did find out while doing this research that a clean vehicle does change the value of your car. Due to the dealership and/or private party that is looking at the vehicle is going to look for scrapes, cuts, dents, etc. on the vehicle and if they see a bunch of dirt and grime, you will not get a good rating for your vehicle.
The trade-in value difference between an excellent vehicle that looks clean and repairs free. Compared to a perfect rated vehicle that has some knicks and scrapes on it and does not look new has a 7.14% decrease in price difference in the trade-in value!
If they rate your vehicle at a good rating, then that is a 14% decrease in price difference in what they would offer you for a trade-in value.
The factor that would change your vehicle from good to perfect and excellent if there are any cosmetic damages, repairs or noticeable repairs that are needing to be made before resell can occur.
Now the private party values were actually really close to the dealership trade-in value but still different. In the case that your vehicle is rated at an okay level, it would be a 6% decrease difference.
A good level would be a 12% decrease in the difference from the base number. So we now know that there is a method that the bigger dealerships use and now we can use the same process with our smaller car flipping business as well, why reinvent the wheel if we don’t have to right?
Have you ever wondered why the auto parts store wants to sell you the more expensive brake pads? Check out my article on the 6 reasons why you should pay more for your brake pads, you might be surprised!
Make Sure all Repairs are Fixed
When selling used vehicles to complete strangers, they know nothing about you, and you don’t know anything about them. But I can guarantee you one thing they are looking for a good running vehicle.
No one besides mechanics or someone with a mechanically inclined mind wants a broke and busted car.
If the engine light is on, you have less than a ten percent chance to sell the car to that complete stranger, or that is what I have seen in my car flipping business.
People want a good running vehicle, and they do not want to pay a lot of money for it either, so get ready to be low balled.
I have bought vehicles with the engine light on for $300 and have fixed them with $200-$300 in parts then have sold the vehicle for its proper value of $2,500 because it is running as it should.
So remember that when thinking if you should make a repair before listing the vehicle for sale, ask yourself would you buy it?
It is always vital to keep your vehicle running strong for you for years to come. Check out my article highlighting the 12 Crucial Maintenance Things to Check on your vehicle to keep your vehicle running strong for you!
Great Photos
Pictures can be the most helpful and the most deceiving things about the whole deal. You can make your vehicle look like it came straight out of a magazine if you want.
But if you don’t do them right, you can also hurt your chances of receiving the highest amount of profit from the deal as well.
So what you want to do when it comes to your vehicle’s pictures is get different angles, of course, after you spend a few hours detailing your car first.
You want to take angle shots then straight on shots as well. Make sure you get the interior and the trunk as well.
You do not know what the buyer is looking for, so you want to think ahead and answer those needs with your pictures before the buyer even asks for them.
Also, another great idea is to change the background of the picture. Instead of taking the pictures in front of your house, find a nearby parking lot to get some good photos.
Do not forget to either block out or take off your license plate, the world is an ever-changing place, but we must always protect ourselves and remain safe at all times.
Trying to improve your vehicle photography skills? Check out my article that has 12 easy tips to enhance your vehicle photography today!
The Price is Right
Price is always crucial in buying and selling a vehicle, think about it like you are the one purchasing the vehicle, would you want to overpay for a car?
How about if you do not know anything about vehicles, would you feel good about the deal if you knew you overpaid?
The answer is no, you wouldn’t feel good about the deal at all. You would probably get buyers regret and want to return the vehicle I know I would.
So it is critical to do your homework, in the beginning, to prevent this from happening. If you are flipping vehicles, you want positive feedback from your sales and customers, that way in future purchases those customers can become spokespeople for your vehicles, which will make the selling process much easier and faster for you!
So the tool that I use is Kelly Blue Book online and here is their site so you can find them too. This is a free tool to use, and many people use it during a vehicle sale process.
I have found the information and prices on there to be pretty precise and spot-on for the market.
Prevent yourself from being stranded on the highway with an overheated vehicle. Here’s my article on How often should I replace my car’s thermostat?
Know your Market
Knowing your market is key to not only sales but the price of those sales as well. I spoke to my brother about this because in my car flipping business I look for quick transactions and the amount of the vehicle can decide the speed of the sale.
So here is the example I gave my brother because he wanted to know more about the business one day.
He asked why don’t we pick up newer vehicles from the auction and sell those we could quickly sell them for $10,000 to $15,000 a piece and that is over $8,000 to $12,000 in profit!!
I told him yes that would be great and more money is always great and all but how many people do you know that want to pay $10,000 to $15,000 in cash to a private party?
Most people will just go to a dealer where they know they can take their vehicle for repairs and warranty work. So you could sell for a higher price, but the sales would be slower and fewer because of the cost.
Now if we pick up a vehicle for a few hundred dollars and sell that vehicle for $2,000 to $3,000, let’s say up to $6,000 depending on the car then that is a much better deal and you will find more people that want to do that for that price.
This means faster sales processes, and more of them as well due to the market is more prominent.
Modifications don’t mean a Higher Price
I know you thought the Cold Air Intake would have increased value in your Honda Civic or those great Hoosier Racing slicks on the back of your Ford Mustang, but sadly they do not.
Now if you have an upgraded sound system, maybe we can talk about adding a couple hundred bucks onto the asking price. But sadly modifications do not grab as much extra money as you would think.
Performance modifications say one thing to me when I am looking at a vehicle to buy, and that is that this vehicle has been running hard. That means this vehicle will not have the same standard lifetime mileage as other vehicles would that are the same make and model but have not been
modded out.
Now if you are having some work done to your vehicle to make it look like it did when it was brand new, then this will increase your vehicle’s value depending on the mileage that the vehicle gas.
The average mileage that a vehicle should have is 12,000 miles per year (Immihelp). Of course, some cars could be more and some less, but this is a good average number.
I know that for my business, I will not even look at a vehicle if it is over 150,000 miles, and I don’t care what year it is. No one wants to have a vehicle that is over 50% of the way to its end of life.
Most vehicles have an average lifespan of 300,000 miles (consumer reports), depending on the maintenance intervals that were performed on the car, some vehicles can go more or less depending on how it was cared for.
Buying a used vehicle can be difficult at times if you do not know what to look for. Check out my article 11 Critical Things to Look for When Buying a Used Vehicle.
Emotions VS. market price
This is key when it comes to buying and selling a vehicle. If you have not run into this yet, then this hopefully will prepare you for the situation that it does happen to you.
Emotions can be quite a sticky subject to deal with, but one you must always be ready for.
If you are buying a vehicle from a private party, and the sale price is higher than the market value for that vehicle in its current state, then always try to negotiate with the seller, but if you are noticing from the words the seller is using when speaking about the car to be more personal than business.
This is a clear indication that you are speaking with the one owner to this one-owner vehicle. You need to be ruthless in your business, yes it would be nice to give someone an extra few hundred dollars because their family member owned this vehicle, but the family member is no longer with us, make sure you provide the person your condolences but then regretfully say you cannot change your offer.
This might seem like a cold-hearted thing to do, but sadly it is not.
This is business, and you must treat it that way because there are people out there that will use the late family member story to pull at your heartstrings just so you will pay higher than market value for that vehicle.
So stay firm with your price when negotiating! When you are selling the vehicle, and you have emotions and a history with the car you need to wake up, my apologies I have to say it so frankly but as I already stated this is business and no one wants to pay $5,000 for your 1986 Volvo because you changed the tires on it and took it to school with you in New Hampshire okay?
Make sure you check the market value on Kelly Blue Book and follow all of these steps to get the most you can for your vehicle!
In Conclusion
So what did you think? The sales process can be complicated at times, then the easiest with others; it all just depends on the buyer and seller. So remember these 7 tips on your next deal and see how well they work for you.
Please share this article on social media so we can help all of our friends online and in-person so their next car sale or purchase can be the best deal for them and their needs.
There is nothing more aggravating than having buyers remorse when purchasing something you really wanted, everyone just wants to be treated fair. I know I do, wouldn’t you?
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