Ca Craigslist Cars (2024)

FAQs

How effective is Craigslist for selling cars? ›

Getting your inventory listed on Craigslist is one of the most profitable ways to advertise your cars. It's proven that car buyers on Craigslist tend to convert much quicker than on any other classifieds. The conversion rate on Craigslist can be as high as 10%, and that's huge.

Always read and understand your purchase contract. Carefully review the vehicle's price, fees, and finance charges. Don't sign anything you don't understand. Make sure you understand the manufacturer's warranty or any extended warranties offered by the dealer at extra cost.

Avoid adding any personal information in the posting, including your name, real phone number or real email address. Always use the generated email address on your Craigslist posts.

Giving out your VIN is one of the best ways for a buyer to see that your car isn't hiding any nasty surprises for them. In some cases, particularly when selling to a dealership, it's virtually a legal requirement to give them access to the code.

CraigsList can offer some great deals if you know how to negotiate effectively. I've been compiling a list of best practices to help buyers get the best deal from Craigslist purchases. The bulk of this article is going to focus on a process for getting the best price on CraigsList items based on my experience.

Make a realistic offer, but one that's also bold enough to anchor the negotiation to a lower point. A savings of 5% or so below the market value (not the price they are asking) is a reasonable starting point for negotiations. Another way to look at it is to do about 15% to 25% below the maximum you're willing to pay.

Use cash — safely

If you're dealing with a local, the most secure way to pay or collect funds for a Craigslist transaction is with cash. To keep it even more secure, you can make the exchange in a safe place like your local police station or even at Acclaim FCU.

Can you sell a car for $1? In short, yes. But while selling a car for $1 will allow you to avoid capital gains and gifts taxes, the recipient of the car will have to pay whatever rate of sales tax your state charges on used vehicles when they transfer the title.

What to do before selling a car in California? ›

What is considered high mileage on a car? Often, 100,000 miles is considered a cut-off point for used cars because older vehicles often start requiring more expensive and frequent maintenance when mileage exceeds 100,000.

“The biggest mistake people make is if they go in and say 'I can afford $600 a month. '” Rather than laying out how much money you're open to spending on your car payment, you should instead determine what the dealership is willing to sell you the car for. “That's the first thing,” he said.

When negotiating, it helps to be able to justify what you're asking for, he adds: “Instead of saying, 'I want to pay this,' try something like: 'I've looked at five or six different cars that are similar to yours in the market. The price range goes from $19,500 to $20,700. I'm comfortable making an offer of $19,100. '”

Yes, you can negotiate on the price of a car. However, it helps to do your research on the vehicle's fair market value and out-the-door price beforehand so that you know how much room you have to haggle.