Hey, did you know? Dealers are looking for cars in the same platforms that you are searching in, and they snatch good deals, usually within minutes of it being posted.
Due to the disturbances in the car market, namely, the delayed deliveries of new vehicle, there is a shortage of used cars.
The purchasers of new cars must wait for months, and in some cases, years (depending on the brand and model) for the delivery of their new car, so they need a car in the interim, they usually decide to keep their current car, or buy a cheap used vehicle until the delivery date.
A lot of used car dealers are temporarily (started during the COVID pandemic and will probably last for few more months) focusing their attention on searching for good deals, on the same platforms that you use to search for cars (Kijiji Auto, Facebook marketplace, Autotrader etc.)
They find good deals (via notification set up on those platforms), and pay via interac e transfer to reserve good used vehicles usually within minutes of posting the vehicle by unsuspecting private sellers.
So if you are planning to sell a car soon, and want and want it to end up in good hands, here’s some tips:
- Mention in the ad “first come, first serve”
- Don’t accept payments via interac: some dealers play a dirty game where they pay a downpayment, and then arrive at the car, and negotiate the price further, causing you to loose money, and other potential buyers
- Ask the person contacting you if they are a private buyer or if they represent a car selling lot.
- Don’t give too much information on the phone or by text. Ask the potential buyer to come and see the car.
- Did you know that it’s not mandatory to sell the car with winter tires? So you can sell them separately.
- Get the car inspected, which will help you identify a fair selling price.
If you are in the market for a used vehicle, here’s some tips to give you an edge over the car “flippers” or dealers competing for those good deals:
- Know what you want, narrow it down to 1 or 2 cars (yes that includes brand and sub brand, example, Honda Civic, and trim level if applicable, example: Honda Civic Touring)
- Know what’s the year range that within the budget you want to spend.
- Identify the maximum mileage you would be ok with
- Create an alert notification in the different platforms (auto trader, kijiji, Facebook, etc.), that way you will be informed as soon as a car that fits your search criteria is posted.
- Be aware of scams, there are some scams out there:
- If it’s too good to be true, then chances are, well, it is too good to be true.
- Don’t give out full name, phone number, email address etc.
- Don’t believe it when a seller says that they are “out of the country and have a friend that will show you the car if you pay a deposit”
- Don’t negotiate over the phone, it’s not fair for you or the seller.
- Get the car inspected by professionals before spending your money.
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