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One of the most important things to remember when you are buying a car is that both you and the dealer are trying to get the better end of the deal. As a buyer, you will likely end up on the losing end of the bargain if you don’t know how to ‘buy’.
An informed buyer is a happy buyer, and usually one that saves money.
Cars are no longer a luxury that only the rich have for their leisure. These days owning a car is necessary just to make the commute to work. If you have to buy a car anyway, you might as well get the most for your money.
The seven tips that you will find here will show you how to buy a car the smart way.
1. Buy during the Christmas holidays: so many people are looking to buy their Christmas presents, that not many of them are able to afford a new car purchase. Because of this, many dealerships are forced to up their sales strategy by offering better deals; and in many cases they are willing to break almost even just to close the deal.
2. Buy online: Shopping online is more and more popular these days. By taking your time and shopping around at various online resources, you can often get amazing deals on the car of your dreams. Just be sure to buy from a reputable company that offers testimonials and reviews and one that has been around for 5 years or more. The ones that have staying power must be doing something right. Just be sure that you read the fine print in their buying policies and bring in rebates or cheaper prices from other dealers once you have picked one. This is a great way to save even more money.
3. Bring copy of your credit score: You can speed up the buying process and get better finance charges if you have a good credit score. Having a good credit score will lower your interest rates and give you some haggling power.
4. Avoid dealership scams: bringing your credit score with you helps you avoid dealership scams that are commonly used to drive up the price. For these, dealerships will tell you that you have to pay more to get approved for financing. Don’t fall for it.
5. Avoid trade ins: Don’t bring in a car for a trade in if you still owe money on it because the dealerships will often make late payments (no matter what they say) and you will be charged plenty of late fees.
6. Be wary of requested deposits: You should never agree to pay any more than $500 or so on a car. Sometimes they ask for a deposit because they have to order a service for your car. Also pay with a credit card so that in case the dealership tells you that it will cost more than they thought, you can keep track of all amounts deducted; whereas if you pay by check, that money is just taken.
7. Don’t buy out of desperation: Buying a car when your desperate is a sure fire way to be taken advantage of. This means don’t wait until your car is dead before shopping because your rush will cloud your judgment
