It doesn’t matter “who buys” your used vehicle; it’s “who pays” the most for it.
Selling your used-vehicle on your own to a private party almost always gets you the most money. However, many choose to avoid strangers coming to their home, and the time and hassle of selling a used vehicle on their own to a private party.
The problem with trade-in’s is the new-car dealer that has the lowest price on the new vehicle may not be the car dealer that pays the most for your used vehicle.
That is why you may want to consider treating your current vehicle as a separate transaction and selling it directly to a used car dealer; that in most cases, will pay more for your current vehicle than a new car dealer.
That being the case, how do you know you are getting a fair value for your trade-in? Car dealers are not going to pay more for your used vehicle than what they can purchase a vehicle “similar” to yours at an “auto-auction for car dealers only”. To obtain this price, we suggest you get two to three bids from used car dealers on the purchase of your used vehicle without an obligation by you to buy anything from them. Once you have obtained this information, just compare the bid from the new car dealer with the bids obtained on your own.
Whatever new car dealer we send you to will give you a “courtesy bid” on your trade-in. “Courtesy bid” means:
If you want to trade your vehicle in, you can do so. If you choose not to trade your vehicle in, you can do that also.
Either way, whether you trade your vehicle in or not, the selling price of the new vehicle “does and will not” change.
click here to go to Kelley Blue Book to view how to establish different values for your current used vehicle.
Definition of Kelley Blue Book trade-in value –> The Kelley Blue Book Trade-in Value is what consumers can expect to receive from a dealer for a trade-in vehicle.
Definition of Kelley Blue Book private-party value –> The Kelley Blue Book Private Party Value is what a buyer can expect to pay when buying a used car from a private party.
Definition of Kelley Blue Book Suggested Retail Value –> The Kelley Blue Book Suggested Retail Value is representative of dealers’ asking prices and is the starting point for negotiation between a consumer and a dealer.