As you waver asking yourself “how to fairly value my car”, walking in to meet a new prospect for the car you’ve been trying to sell for months now can be a stressful ordeal. Especially since the last two prospects raised an eyebrow once they heard your asking price, and were never to be heard from again. Now you want to decrease your asking price, but you don’t have the luxury of doing that gradually until you arrive at that sweet spot. You need cash, and you need it fast. Decrease your asking price too drastically and that can also attract the wrong kind of attention. Vultures circling overhead ready to make a quick profit from your inexperience will quickly swoop in. So what options do you have? How can you arrive at an honest estimate for your car? Read on as we will walk you through the process.
How to fairly value my car: the Different Options
Trade-in Value & Dealer Resale Value
Check if the vehicle you intend to sell happens to have authorized dealers in the UAE. If the dealer does trade-ins, then getting a car valuation from them may be a good idea. Toyota is a good example of this. And although the valuation they will provide you with will be a margin shy of the price the dealer will resell your vehicle at, it’s still a good reading to have. Alternatively, for a more generic estimate of your vehicles price, you can check if the said dealer has the same model on sale. Be sure to distinguish between “certified pre-owned vehicle” and normal resale vehicles. That is because certified pre-owned vehicles come with a warranty and were generally well kept by their previous owners. This makes them more expensive than normal resale cars.
Classified Sites
You might ask; how can classified sites help me to fairly value my car? Well, classified sites are online platforms that connect sellers with buyers. Sellers advertise their products on these sites and provide their contact details for interested buyers. Buyers have access to search toolbars where they can browse and compare the products/ services they seek.
The difficulty lies in finding two or more vehicles that share the exact same specs as your vehicle (model year & trim) to make the comparison with. Basing your pricing judgement off of a different trim, or even a different transmission from the one you have won’t yield accurate results.
It’s also worth noting the complexity involved in using this method. Old advertisements may be mistaken for new advertisements with a recent price reading. And due to the car market’s constant price fluctuation, a common mistake like that will give you an awfully misleading impression of what the car’s current value is. Be highly alert and privy to all the specifics when using classified sites.
Specialist Car Valuations
These are services provided either by car buying businesses, or providers of vehicle services. In both cases, the vehicle is taken to a testing centre and is evaluated by a certified professional who inspects the vehicle’s ins and outs. In the case of a vehicle service provider, a valuation certificate is usually given. This certificate clearly states the inspector’s monetary valuation of the vehicle. These certificates can be used as either formal evidence in car price negotiations with prospects, or as documentation when applying for a bank loan. In the case of a car buying service, an offer is presented to the car owner in exchange for quick cash.
Online Car Price Estimators
Out of all the above-mentioned methods, this is by far the fastest and easiest option. Online car price estimators are usually free tools that ask you to input several details about your car in order to arrive at a valuation. Inputs can include things like car brand, model, year, trim, mileage, condition, and even colour.
These state of the art tools use algorithms to factor in market and demand fluctuations as well as readings from dealer transactions to arrive at the estimate you are provided with.
Will Sell Your Motors help me fairly value my car?
With the Sell Your Motors Car price estimator, you can get an estimate for your car in under a minute. Here’s how our process works:
1) Try our free online car valuation system
2) Get a call from us and set an appointment
3) Drop by for a free car inspection
4) Give us the keys and we’ll give you the cash.
Prefer to talk over the phone? Call: 04 330 1030
