Determine the true value of your car

You look at your car and see a slightly used, great running vehicle. The buyer looks at your car and may see a high mileage, gas guzzler and wonders what’s wrong with it. On top of that, everyone who calls or looks at your vehicle wants a deal.

Before you put a price on your car, do your homework. The first stop should be kbb.com, the online Kelly Blue Book. It’s virtually the same resource as car dealers use. Enter the information about your car’s condition, mileage and options and voila! – You get the private sell price and trade in value for your location. Just be careful not to overestimate the condition of your car. Use their guidelines and be honest with yourself about your car’s condition. Note the difference in value between Excellent, Good and Fair.

Getting ready for the car show
If you’ve ever been to a car showroom or a car show for that matter, you’ll quickly notice that the cars there are in pristine condition. The reason is simple. A spotless car sells for top dollar. And while you can’t return your car to showroom condition, you can come very, very close with a good detailing and some basic repairs. The cost of doing these things can easily be offset by a higher selling price for your car.

Here are just a few of the things you should look at to see if they can boost the sales price:

Exterior
Fix chips and door dings. Try using your bottle of paint color-coded for your vehicle. If you don’t have it anymore, it can be ordered from a dealer. Next, look for dents. Paintless dent removal is less expensive and if done correctly is almost invisible when repaired. Does your windshield need replacing? How’s the convertible top looking? Are your tires tired? Is your trunk clean and empty of everything? Remove any stickers from the windshield and bumpers and your custom license plate holders.

Interior
Clean out the glove box, front seat console and door pockets. Make any minor repairs to upholstery if it warrants a better price. New mats are inexpensive and make a big impact. Leather seats should be cleaned and conditioned. For the engine consider an oil change and verify with a mechanic that your car is basically sound and identify what might need to be done.

Gather your records
Hopefully you have kept all your records of oil changes, repairs and maintenance records. It makes an impressive show to pull out a file folder with your vehicle’s history. Order a CAR FAX report to determine vehicle maintenance and status. Show documents by a certified mechanic. List recent improvements and upgrades. Get a Smog Check and a certificate of passing if you don’t have one less than 90 days old. Secure your title.

Now, you’re ready to sell
Advertising is better than ever because of the Internet and specialized publications. But there are other sources as well and the sky is the limit for creatively getting the word out that you have a vehicle for sale. Begin with this list: Friends, Newspapers, Internet, Auto Trader, Flyers, Window signs, Cars.com, Edmunds.com, Krr.com.

Anticipating questions
Now for the fun part. Your car looks its best. You have the data to support your price and can justify it. You know why you are selling and you know your bottom line. Role playing is the only thing you have left to do. You want to anticipate the questions buyers may ask and practice your answers. Practice with a partner the various scenarios and typical dialogues you may encounter. Play both the seller and the buyer roles. Here are some questions to get you started.

What will you take?
What’s your gas mileage?
Your price is too high. Why are you $800 more than everyone else?
What do you estimate the cost to repair your body damage?
Why are you selling?
How long have you had the car?
What’s wrong with the car?
Has this car ever been in an accident?

You don’t want to lie about accidents, prior ownerships or anything related to the history of your car. These days, the buyer can enter the VIN number into a website and get a full history of your car, including accidents and how many prior owners the car has had.

At this point, if your answers are satisfactory, the buyer will ask to test drive it. Decide ahead of time how you will handle that. If they have a car they are leaving behind, that should be sufficient collateral. If they don’t, you may want to ride along with the potential buyer. Remember, you’re responsible for the car until you sell it and you don’t know if the buyer has insurance or if their insurance covers them driving around in car they don’t own.

SOLD! Now what?
First, be sure your Bill of Sale for the vehicle contains the vehicles VIN number, sale price and the very important phrase, “Sold As Is”. This protects you if you were to ever end up in court about the state the car was in when you sold it.

Determine how you want to receive your payment. Usually a certified check or cash is best. It takes 10 days to transfer the tile. There is a $15 transfer fee and DMV will assess a registration fee. You need to notify your insurance immediately and cancel it. Check the odometer reading if it is less than 10 years old. AAA of CA can answer questions and help with transfer of title as well as the DMV.

Article provided to the La Quinta Chamber of Commerce – GEM Publication January 2009 page 17.

 http://www.lqchamber.com/pdf/gem-jan09.pdf