The value of something boils down to what exactly someone is willing to pay for something. When you’ve decided to sell your car you need to know exactly how much is your car going to sell for, so you don’t ask too much and never sell it, or ask too little and be screwed over in the process. Don’t go into your negotiations blind, make sure you do the digging you need to and be prepared. You certainly won’t regret it. 

Not sure where to start? Well…

Google is your friend

The internet in general is going to be your friend in this process. Start by googling the make and model of your car and see what happens. Once you sort through the webpages full of parts, you’ll likely come to Craigslist like listings of your car. Craigslist is by no means a technical authority over pricing, but it will give you the opportunity to see what people are selling your car, or a car like yours for.

Technical Authorities

After tootling around in the Google sphere for a while you’ll probably get rerouted to sites like Kelly’s Blue Book and other car buying websites, which are both great places to look. These sites use statistics and accurate market measurements to determine what your car is worth. Kelly’s Blue Book has long been the standard for research and has been around since the early 90s. Before you sell to anyone else, make sure you’ve checked what these sites say you should be charging for your car.

Dealerships

Like with craigslist, going to a dealership and checking out what your car is selling for is a good way to gauge the potential. Keep in mind when you’re going this route though that dealerships charge more for cars than private sellers can. Dealerships have quality guarantees and warranties and the like to incentivize people to go to them instead of to someone like you. So it is very likely that the price you see on the car is more than the price you’re going to get selling on your own.

Negotiations 

David, an automotive industry consultant has come forward to share his opinion on the best way to prepare for negotiations: “Go into price negotiations with all your research already done. The best way to find the true value of one’s vehicle is to check it across multiple sources. Sites like Craigslist and the local newspaper can tell you what people are selling their cars for”.

Being flexible in your negotiations is helpful too. But the biggest component in selling your car for a fair price is to determine exactly how much someone will pay. And if you’ve done your research correctly, you won’t have any problems.