How to Determine the Worth of Your Trade-in Vehicle

My trade-in is always almost equal in value to the car I'm buying. Well, that's at least true in my head. Your trade-in has one of two characteristics. It's a piece of junk that you can't wait to get out of your life. Or, it's a part of your family with deep sentimental attachments. Come to think of it, both descriptions could be part of my family.

You pull onto the dealer's lot. You can feel the muscles tighten in the back of your neck in anticipation of the nose-to-nose dickering you're getting ready to take on. As you decided to trade the old car in on a new one, you prepared yourself to get top dollar for your car while giving the bargain basement price for the dealer's. Now, you're confidence is dropping as you see the shine on the new cars. Sticker shock will shake you even more. Will you be able to hold up under the strain?

This familiar scenario plays out thousands of times per day. It doesn't have to be that way. Do your homework before you go in for that wheeling and dealing. The internet has many resources to help you find out the fair market value of your jalopy. Your banker will be happy to work with you on not only the value of your car, but a reasonable price for the new one. Go to multiple dealers to find out what is the best trade-in price being offered. Good used cars carry a premium these days. Junkers do not.

When trying to find the value of your car, you will need to know the odometer reading, the type of motor, and all of the options on the car. This information along with an honest representation of the condition of the vehicle will get you a trade-in number. While we don't care if the dealer makes money or not, the dealership and all of its employees do. Don't expect the dealer to give his product away or to buy your car without some room for profit.

Car trade-in values are usually about 1/2 of their retail value. Sometimes if it is a difficult vehicle to move on the dealer's lot, the dealer will go even lower. Remember, the dealer's plan is to try to sell you car from the lot, sell it to a wholesaler, or sell it at an auction.