Selling your car privately
It’s always worth bearing in mind you’ll get more for your car if you sell it privately, as a dealership is always looking to make a profit – after all that’s their business. However, the less your car is worth, the less likely you’re going to see a big difference in the amount the dealership offers you versus what you get for a private sale.
Furthermore, there’s no telling how long your car will be sat around for. Because of this, you need to think about depreciation and wear and tear, and how this could affect the overall asking price of the car.
You’re also going to need to do some research before listing your car privately such as finding out how much it’s worth on the current market, list your car on relevant websites, take photos and write a detailed description. You also need to think about arranging time for buyers viewings and test drives, as well as sorting out any existing finance on the car. This can be a long winded process and if you’re looking to sell your car asap and get a quick sale, it may not be the right option for you.
Selling to a dealership
When it comes to selling your car, price is one of the biggest factors in deciding how you’ll do that. With the current new car shortage, demand for used cars is going up, and as a result used car prices are going up. Because of this, if you decide to sell to a dealership now, you could see yourself getting more back for your car than you thought.
As the saying goes, time is money, and people don’t have a lot of time to spare. This is especially true if they’re looking to upgrade and sell their existing car.
For ultimate convenience and to sell your car quickly for a fair price, a dealership is the best choice. They’ll be available to buy your car at any time, there and then. They’re business revolves around buying and selling cars. You may not get as much as you would from a private sale but it really is the time aspect that makes the biggest difference.
With a dealership you can also part exchange, whereas selling privately you don’t have this option. This means you can sell your old car and buy your new car from the same dealership all in one place at the same time. Meaning, you could save money on potentially costly advertisements and admin fees for paperwork.
Some car dealerships also offer to settle existing finance on cars- they’ll take care of all the paperwork and take the hassle and inconvenience out of having to do it yourself if you were to sell privately.
Our advice:
If you’re wanting to part exchange or sell your car, get an online valuation and see what your car is going for. Or, if you’re wanting to sell privately, have a look on private buying sites like Auto Trader to see the average price your car is listed for.
You can always choose to advertise your car privately for a month to gauge buyer interest, and if you’re having no luck, a dealership will always buy your car from you at any time, for a reasonable amount.