Near the end of last week I ran into car trouble. I have owned the same car for nearly nine years and it has been good to me, but I decided that I am in a place in my life where it is time to purchase a new, more dependable car.
I also had the advantage of having a loaner car from my girlfriend’s parents that I am able to use as I look. So, I decided that I would advertise my car and see what happens.
I began by looking up the Kelly blue book value on my car. You can find the blue book value of a new or used car by visiting www.kbb.com. My car is a 1998 Ford Mustang with 130,000 miles on it. I was pleasantly surprised to see that if my car was in excellent condition it was valued over $3800, good condition was over $3400 and fair value was $2900. Although my car still looks very nice and is really in good condition, I considered the current state of the economy and the fact that I would like to sell it soon and I decided to price it at $2800.
I now had to determine how to advertise my car. I talked to a co-worker who I knew had recently sold his used vehicle using craigslist and he told me that he had two calls within 48 hours. Best of all, advertising on craigslist is absolutely free! I went to www.craigslist.org and clicked on “post to classifieds” in the upper left hand corner of the page. I clicked on the “for sale” link, then the “cars and trucks” link, and then clicked on “west valley” indicating my location. It then asked me for a posting title for which I wrote, “1998 Ford Mustang,” then a price, for which I wrote “$2900” and a specific location where I wrote the well known development/area that I live in. The ad then asks you to include a posting description where I wanted to highlight the positive aspects of my car, while maintaining complete honesty. I wrote, “It is still a very pretty car. New tires. New brakes. Over 130,000 miles. Call me at xxx-xxx-xxxx if you would like to schedule a time to come and see the car.” I received two calls within the first three hours it was posted.
I have two people coming to look at the car tonight and both sounded very interested. Today, I have been doing some research as far as what I need to do should one of my prospective buyers decide they would like to purchase the car. You can find more information about the necessary steps for selling a used car at the website for the Arizona Department of Motor Vehicles at www.dmv.org.
I have already decided that I will not take a personal check for the car. Instead, I will ask for cash, a money order or a cashier’s check. If a prospective buyer decides to pay cash, I will need to sign over the back of the title and have it notarized. You can usually find a notary public at a local bank if one is still open. Otherwise just google notary and you will find one. You also need to complete a sold notice on the back of the registration. Finally, remove your license plates.
You have three options with the license plates, but you must take action within 30 days after you sell you car. You can put them on another car that you will be driving, you can return them to the Department of Motor Vehicles where you may be eligible for a partial refund, or you can submit a statement saying the plates were destroyed. You should also contact your insurance company and let them know that you sold your car.
A few basic tips that I can offer is to always be honest about the condition of your car. You should also make sure that the prospective buyer is 18 years old or with a valid driver’s license before letting them take out the car for a drive. If the buyer is under 18 they will need to come with an adult. If someone makes an offer that is much lower than what you would like to accept, do not make a counteroffer, just tell them that is much lower than you are willing to sell the car for. When they get closer to the price you will accept, you can then make a counteroffer. When discussing your car, explain all any work that you have had done and include paperwork that details all of the work if you have it available.
I have been surprised so far at how simple of a process it is to sell a used car and I look forward to using the money from this sale toward the purchase of a new one.
