For various reasons that is probably about to change. I have a car that I no longer need. My mechanic describes it as “basic transportation,” and he’s exactly right. It’s 14 years old, it’s pretty high mileage, it’s got some issues with rust…on the other hand, it runs fine, and it passed its inspection last month with no issues whatsoever. Anyway, the mechanic thinks I should “easily” be able to get a thousand bucks for it, maybe a little more.
But having never sold a car before I’m a bit uncertain as to how to begin. I live in a fairly high-traffic area of my small city…plunk it down off the road with a “For Sale” sign? Craigslist? I hear there are some very strange people haunting Craigslist–does it matter? Are there still want ads in the daily papers? Anything else that makes sense? I’ll certainly notify people I know, word of mouth and all that, but as a neophyte at this business I would love some input from folks who’ve been there already.
Thanks much, and if more info is needed I will do my best to provide same.
*This is the case even though I am in my middle fifties. We tend to drive our cars into the ground, which means that we don’t have much turnover and also means that no one much wants our cars when we’re done with them. We typically give them to a charitable organization which gives us a small tax break and then sells the cars for parts. Until this one, we’ve only had one car that actually was in running condition when we finally parted with it, and it was on its last legs (so to speak)…thus, this is a new situation for us!
While I haven’t done so for 5-6 years I always found the best buyers (least hassles on shopping, kicking tires, bothering me after the sale) to be from the free-to-the-buyer “AutoMart” type papers handed out at markets and Sheetz and the like. It cost like $25 or so but its been well worth the money spent for me.
I advise against Craigslist. A friend of mine sold her car through them and ended up getting swindled because the person to whom she sold the car never registered it, then turned around and sold the car to somebody else for 3x the amount my friend asked for. She had to file a report with both the DMV and police.
I’ve sold boats on Craigslist, and a car should be even easier (no need to put a car in the water for a test drive). You’ll get 100 garbage replies for every solid reply, but you will end up selling it. List it as “first $1000 cash in my hand gets the car” and do not vary from that stance. Don’t bother replying to obvious trolls (who will be obvious).
Meet your buyer at a notary to do the paperwork, so that can’t bite you in the ass.
When a guy interested in buying my pontoon boat texted me that he wasn’t comfortable meeting me at the notary with a paper bag with eight grand in it, I told him I understood, and I’d sell to someone who was comfortable with my terms. He became comfortable.
I’ve sold five cars on Craigslist in two states without any problems. I usually insist on a buyer calling me rather than emailing. It eliminates a lot of spam. I only had one caller who tried to give me a sob story about his daughter wrecking her car and would I take $3,000 less than asking price, but otherwise people have been honorable.
Another option would be to take it to a dealer. You won’t get shit for it, but at least it will be out of your life.
Craigslist, hands down. Be informative in your listing and tell the story of the car. The more information you give, the more it shows that you care and are trying to be honest. It also limits the questions that you’ll get if you put more information down up front.
Here’s how I handle things on Craigslist. I don’t want a billion people calling me, so I never give my number. I don’t want people stopping by at all hours, which is what you’ll get if you put a car out front of your house with a “for sale” sign on it. I’m a busy guy. So, when I sell something on Craigslist I put the exact day and hours that it will be available for. First person to show with cash in hand that wants it gets it. Email me for the address. If you don’t want to use your home, meet people at a parking lot.
If you want, you can even stipulate that you and the person go directly to the DMV (or BMV here) to transfer title at the point of sale. That helps avoid the “jumped title” that someone referred to above, where a person buys a car and doesn’t register it because they intent to flip the car and resell it.
If you offer a decent running car that is clean, even if not perfect, for a grand or so, it will likely go very fast.
Park it in a high traffic area (if possible) with a ‘for sale’ sign and your phone number. I recommend Craigslist also, but use some caution. Since this is not a real expensive car, insist on cash only. Don’t fall for any sob stories. Also, don’t allow the prospective buyer to come to your home. Meet somewhere public. Have the title with you so you can sign it over. Also, deal by phone. If a craigslist relpier wont call you or give you their phone number, then don’t deal with them. If possible take someone with you to meet them. Use common sense.
I’m currently sitting on two cars I bought on Craigslist that I have not registered (I’m under no obligation to do so, either) and I’ll be selling them down the road for lots more than I paid for them. That’s called, “good business”.
A trade-in is giving the car to a dealer so he can screw you up front and in back as well.
Title jumping is illegal in some (all?) states. You are avoiding paying sales tax on a purchase, which is tax fraud. You do have obligation to register them, as I understand. It can create a problem if I buy the car from you, as you don’t officially own it. If you sell it to me and there’s any issue and the person that you bought it from won’t cooperate, I’m screwed. You’re also leaving those people that you bought it from at risk. What if someone does something illegal in the car and it is still registered to them? It happens. You are only looking out for you and leaving everyone else at risk.
I believe that crossing your t’s and dotting your i’s is good business, neither of which you’re doing. Also, you’re putting your customers at risk, which isn’t good business. Now, if you’re a dealer you have different rules that apply to you, but you also register as a business and have many hurdles to jump to attain those benefits. Just like a reseller of any other product, they have to obtain a license in order to avoid paying sales tax. Otherwise they’re committing tax fraud.
Not here. If you aren’t operating it on public streets, you don’t need to register it. If I have the title, I own the car. The seller is responsible to make sure the appropriate agency is notified of release of liability. In Nevada, you turn in the plates. In California, you fill out the section on the title, tear it off and send it in.
But let’s not hijack this thread with motor vehicle laws from all 50 states.
Carmax will buy your car at the dealer wholesale price, with no hassle or haggling. You can always do better selling it on Craigslist, but for a car that old the extra money you earn might not be worth the time you’ll spend.
How many weekends and evenings do you want to deal with craigslist flakes, trying to sell it for a few hundred bucks above dealer wholesale?
I have, in the past, had a number of cars that I drove until I could not in good conscience accept any money for them. In such cases, I just asked around if anybody knew someone who desperately needed reliable transportation, and I just gave them the car. Sometimes they knew somebody who could cheaply do some of the fixup work.
If you don’t expect to get any more than a few hundred dollars for it, just do a good dead. If you do, be sure to outline exactly what the condition of the car is and all of its defects you know about, you’re not doing anybody a favor giving them surprises.
There are 3 sides to the car selling equation - time, money and hassle. Pick the one that is most important, this will determine the best way to sell your vehicle. If you want to maximize the amount of money you get for your car, don’t need to sell quickly and don’t mind some hassle then a park it in your front yard with a sign or go Craigslist. If you want to get rid of it quickly for less money and some hassle, go through a public auto auction. If you want absolute minimum hassle and short timeframe but are OK with less money then CarMax is your answer.
In any case, know your local vehicle transfer laws and protect yourself! In Georgia the buyer gets the signed and dated title from the seller and the seller gets (or should get) a bill of sale from the buyer - signed and dated with the time of day noted. That helps protect both parties from fraud. I have 2 steadfast car transaction rules when dealing with individuals or independent dealers:
No clear title in the sellers name in hand at purchase? I won’t buy it, period, ever. I’m sure you are selling it for your relative/friend as a favor and there is no way this car is stolen or has a lien, but I’ll pass, thanks.
Seller won’t sign a bill of sale with date and time of purchase? I won’t sell it, period, ever. I’m sure you are not intending to use this as a cheap getaway car for your crime spree and then abandon it while it’s still in my name, but I don’t need the money that badly, thanks.
Thanks for the suggestions, even the conflicting ones regarding Craigslist (which I will admit I had half expected). I liked the Carmax idea but was disappointed to discover that the nearest Carmax location to me is 2 hours away–so that probably is out.
We may wind up giving it away after all; we had wondered about the possibility of doing something like** jtur88** suggested, and as it turns out our church is likely to be sponsoring a refugee family in the very near future, and a working “basic transportation” car could prove very useful to them. In that circumstance we might be willing to sacrifice some $$ in exchange for less hassle (thanks btw to those who clearly spelled out the tradeoffs of money/time/convenience…). So at the moment we are waiting to see what happens regarding the family and whether a car would be helpful. Should know within a week or so…
As a final note, while you may not like soap yourself, giving the car a shower does help the retail value.:eek:
And thank you Dr. Jackson. I’m currently working with my mother on taking care of her estate and this is exactly the same thing. Very well put: tradeoffs between time, money and hassle.
