First you have to determine for yourself what a great deal is. If it is solely based on the price of the vehicle then that will rule out shopping at used car lots. If your factors include financing and service then buying privately will not be a possibility.

There are several places which you can find used cars advertised including:

Classified ads
Online advertisers
Car dealerships
Local auctions
Repo. sell offs
Word of mouth

Once you have outlined for yourself what a great deal includes then you can eliminate places you are unlikely to find a great deal. For most of us this eliminates car dealerships.

One of the main reasons people use car dealerships is because they can’t afford to buy a car which is reliable enough, or new enough to last some time. Since dealerships and used car lots have relationships with lenders they provide a service which other used car sales options don’t or can’t provide.

If you don’t want to use a dealership but still can’t afford the car you need then there are other options.

You could go to the bank yourself
You could go to a private lender
You could look online for car loan specialists

It is a good idea to approach lenders before you go shopping. This will give you an idea as to how much you can afford to pay. Which will save you time while looking for a car.

Once you know what funds you have available then it is time to start narrowing the field of available cars. Check out the article Find The Right Used Car For You to give you some focus on what to look for. Once you have found two or three possibilities then start doing some investigative work.

Begin by Downloading the Used Car Buying Checklist and printing two or three off. Then call each option you have and ask the qualifying questions. Then if there are any left set up times to look at the car and take it for a test drive.

Some places you will have to go to personally to see if there are any cars you are interested in. places like auctions and repo. Sell offs. The drawbacks of these options are that you will get no history of the vehicle, can’t take it for a real test drive, and you have no idea what the car will eventually sell for.

The benefits are that you can often get a really good deal on a car if you know what to look for. If you haven’t any experience with repairing cars then it would be best to shop where you can have the car inspected by a registered mechanic.

This leaves online ads and the classified ads. Both are places where you are dealing directly with the owner of the car. This option has its pros and cons as well. If the car has been well taken care of and maintained then sometimes the owner is not willing to shade his price. They have first hand knowledge of how much money they have put into the car and want to get as much back as they can.

If you are patient and willing to wait you can often find a great deal by watching the ads to see if any vehicles are advertised over a period of weeks or if the owner is moving and needs to sell the car before a certain time. All these situations are in your favor.

For you to get a great deal you will need to know what the car is worth in the first place. You can find this out by watching the classifieds for cars which sell fairy quickly. Such cars are priced appropriately and give you an idea of what people consider the car’s worth. Then if you can negotiate a better deal then what the average car of that make and model then you would have gotten a great deal

To make sure you aren’t buying a project use the Used Car Buying Checklist and when it comes to negotiate you will have some ammunition.

Negotiating is where you will either make or brake your great deal. Your goal is to not be the first one to mention a price. In negotiation whoever mentions price first losses. Talk about the car, what you liked and what you found wrong with it, ask them what there bottom line is, look mildly interested.

Most of all be willing to walk away from the car. If you appear to want it then you may as well pay them there asking price. If you are willing to walk away and they need to sell the car or if they have had the car for sale for some time then they will make you a deal. If they are unwilling to bend on there price then they really don’t need to sell the car. Move on and find another one.

Author Bio: Are you looking to purchase and maintain a used car over the long run? Want to avoid the depreciation experienced when buying a new car? Learn how to buy a used car for less and maintain it for years at Mike’s website http://benefitsofusedcars.com/

Category: Automotive
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