Know the Value of the Car You’re Buying – and the One You’re Selling

. Chances are better than even that they’ll offer you even less, or as far down as they can get before you threaten to walk.

“Private Party” is the approximate price you should expect to get should you sell it yourself. At the beginning, price it a bit higher than the given value from Kelly Blue Book or Edmunds and be prepared to negotiate.

Dealer retail is the highest of the three values given for your car, but it’s highly unlikely you’ll succeed in selling it at this price. It is the price the dealer is likely to sell your car at to another buyer, regardless of how little he paid you for it. However, selling cars is his business and he’s probably a lot better at it than you are, which is why he’s able to get a premium price.

Critical caveat: if research into the value of your current vehicle indicates that you are ”upside down” on it–meaning you owe more on the car than it’s worth—you shouldn’t even be looking for a new car. Put the new car bug back in the cooler, spend some time paying down or (better) paying off the loan on your car, then come back into the market when you have some equity established.

Forewarned is forearmed when buying a car, and the more you know about how much your current car and the one you are buying are truly worth, the better your chances of getting a fair deal both ways.

Do you do your homework by researching values before buying a new car, or have you mostly relied on dealers’ representations?

( Photo courtesy of Beth and Christian )

Article courtesy of Kevin Mercadante with OutOfYourRut.com