Your closest friend can be a sales manager. You could enter your mileage and options exactly right on the look for Kelley Blue Book trade in value cars. There’s a dissonance between the quote you get initially and the price you’re offered when you’re ready to make the deal. Why? Is there something wrong with the car value estimator?
You’re getting lowballed. It happens all the time. Your bestie, the sales manager, still has to show profit for everything they do. Because a car dealership is a business, they have to find ways to generate income. One way is by offering you a little – or a lot – less on your trade in value for car deals. The difference between the Kelley Blue Book value and the dealership’s appraised value can be hundreds of dollars, or even thousands. In many cases you may not be getting what your car is truly worth. Then what the dealership does is recondition your trade, jack up the price, and sell it on the lot. Essentially, they double down on the money they can make from one used car.
It’s not worthless, but it’s worth less. When you use online valuation tools, the value you’re provides is an estimate based on the condition and options you input. That’s where being human gets in the way. You see, you’re connected with your car. You’ve made memories. You’ve had pride in your car. There’s a good chance you think a little more highly of your car than someone else – everyone else – does. Or maybe you mistakenly select options that your car doesn’t have.
When the results from your NADAguides car valuation come back, you think your car is in ‘Average’ condition when in reality, it’s in ‘Rough’ condition. Then when you get to the dealership fo your car trade in, you think, “The trade in value of my car should be much higher!” Here are a few ways to help get true car trade in values and receive the best price or your car.
Instead of manually entering details into the form, use your car’s VIN. It’s the 17-digit Vehicle Identification Number, and it holds the key to being incredibly accurate. For example, visit CarGurus.com to find a vehicle appraisal tool that pulls your vehicle value by VIN. It decodes the information in the VIN to get the right options, engine, and other variables so you don’t get blindsided at the dealership.
The mileage makes a big difference in what you’re willing to pay when YOU shop for cars, so it makes sense that it makes a significant difference for trade-in values too. Instead of ball-parking the mileage on the KBB.com or NADAguides estimators, run out to your car and get the exact mileage. A difference of a few thousand miles can affect your value by hundreds of dollars – even thousands if it’s the difference between your car having warranty or not.
When you go to the dealership to trade in your car, have your research printed. Bring supporting documents using accurate information from everywhere you compared pricing. Look up local used car listings from private sales, your NADAguides estimate, and your Kelley Blue Book valuation.
If you go to the dealership armed with this information, there’s a better chance you’ll get a fair price for it.
It costs a few bucks, but a Carfax will help you get the best price for your car. It shows you’re not trying to hide anything from the appraiser – collision records, title information, and service history are all on there.
Dealerships are in it to make money on every deal. Be prepared to get a lower offer than the prices you have printed out. And be prepared to accept a price lower than your research. But the offer is going to be better because you’re prepared, helping you get closer to the true car trade in value.
It’s a headache to deal with trading in a car, especially if you have body damage or you try to trade in a car with mechanical issues like a blown engine. If you want to avoid the rigamarole associated with trading in a car, the car value lookup process, the haggling, and all that jazz, then sell your car to CarBrain.
What’s CarBrain, you ask? Simply put, it’s the easiest way to sell your car. Request an offer online, and enter your information into the proprietary software. Like a car value estimator, you’ll be given the true car price based on the information provided…and maybe a few pics. The difference is that it isn’t just an estimate – it’s an offer.
If you like the price you see, just accept the offer. CarBrain will pay you cash for your car and pick it up from your location. As they say, ‘easy peasy lemon squeezy’. You can get started now to see how much your car is really worth.