A Guide to Selling a car in Ireland.
I suppose for every person that buys a car, there’s someone on the other side selling one. Hopefully this will take the woes out of selling a car privately for the first time.
Where to start?
Well firstly you are going to have to choose where you want to sell your car. There are loads of options for you to take on board, the likes of adverts.ie, gumtree.ie, donedeal.ie and carzone.ie and some of the ways in which you can sell your car online. After that there are the more simple options of sticking a sign on the window of your car, posting a bulletin in a local supermarket and of course word of mouth (Make sure to tell everyone and anyone you meet that you’re selling your car. May sound funny, but it’s a great way to sell a car)
Making the ad
So, every ad needs pictures. If you do not have pictures in your ad, very few people will ring. The joys of the internet allow us to view a car before we go to see it, albeit not in great detail but it’s a start. “First impressions are everythingâ€. So, taking that on board, there’s no reason why your car should be dirty in the pictures, inside or out. Take half an hour to give the car a wash and a hoover inside. (If you’re lazy bring it to a Valeting company who can do a mini valet from €25-€35. But just remember these are all costs). So once your car is cleaned, park it next to a fence or a wall (not on top of a mountain with 100 miles of scenery to be seen, remember, it’s the car you are selling), and take pictures from every angle. Most websites allow you 9 pictures there abouts, so allocate three of these to the interior, (front seats across, back seats across and boot) and the rest at various angles around the car. Don’t get artsy, it’s distracting. Get good clear shots of the car.
So, once you have your websites picked, the car is cleaned and pictures are taken it’s now time to work on your “descriptionâ€.
This is relatively easy, I find a very good way to do this is to get a pen and paper and walk out to the car. Start from the outside and write down everything you see that you think will add value to the sale. Examples would be fog lights, alloys, parking sensors etc. Etc. Take note of the tyres, if they’re new, make sure to mention that, if they’re borderline illegal, it may be time to head to a tyre outlet and ask for some part worn tyres. Leaving a bald tyre on the car only gives more reason for the buyer to bargain. Once you have your list for the outside sit into the car and write down all the extras, ie. Cd player, cruise etc. Make sure to stick to extras.
After that make sure to include any relevant service history, recent work like timing belt and servicing.
Pricing
You probably have an idea in your head already of what price you want, but to save you wasting time, make sure your car is priced competitively. Having your car priced too high means it won’t sell and you’ll be getting your hopes up. So go onto the likes of donedeal, gumtree etc. And price your car likewise. (Dealers generally ask more, because they provide a warranty etc. So price yours a bit under these). Once you have your price, it’s time to put your car online.
Going Live
Once your ad has go live, all you have to do it sit back and wait for the phone to ring.
Timewasters vs. Genuine buyers
How does one differentiate? Simple.
An example of a text from a time waster will be “Hi, what’s the best price on the car?â€
There is one simple reply to this, “Come and view it and we can talk on the price thenâ€.
99% of the time you will never hear any more from this person.
If someone rings you about the car make sure that you have all your information for them, so they can ask any question and you will know the answer. If it’s something too technical or something you don’t know the answer to, don’t lie, just say you honestly do not know.
DO NOT under any circumstance budge on price on the phone, if someone is serious and plans to give you something near enough the asking price they will gladly come to see the car first. It’s then you can talk price.
Organizing a viewing
This involves common sense, don’t meet someone down a dark alley at half ten at night. If you have to meet someone at night, meet them in a petrol station that is well covered by cameras. Always have someone else there when you are meeting someone, don’t ever go alone.
Some buyers will ask you to meet half way, to me it’s not worth it, if they want your car they will come to you. Besides, meeting them halfway is completely out of your comfort zone, especially when it’s a car you’re selling, and money that you’ll be taking.
Most buyers will want to come to your house, to prove you are the owner and that it isn’t a scam. This is fine, but don’t let the buyer in around your house. Limit it to one room of the house. There’s no reason why they should be wondering through your house, after all it’s the car they are buying.
Meeting someone
Before meeting someone at an agreed time make sure to have the car cleaned and have all the relevant documentation at the ready. Once they have arrived give them time to look around the car and ask the questions they want to ask.
Test drive
Most buyers will want to test drive the car before they buy it, always go with them or send someone with them, never trust someone irrelevant to what they tell you, this is your car and you do not know these people. Also ask for proof of insurance, it sounds simple at a 5 minute test drive, but if something was to happen, make sure you’re covered.
Price
Once they have looked at the car and are happy with it, it’s time to discuss price. You shouldn’t of already told them your bottom price, and don’t do it either, make them make you an offer. A simple line is “The car is advertised for x amount, what do you think it’s worth?â€
After that, every situation depends. It’s now up to you to decide what you are willing to accept for the car, but remember to fight hard.
For example, you’re selling the car for €5,000 euro, and you are offered €4,500. Now, if €500 less is completely out of the way, just laugh off the offer. It’s now time for you to stand your ground firm about €100 above what you were willing to accept for the car. So lets say you were willing to accept €4750, tell the buyer you were hoping to get €4850 and leave room to bargain that extra 100 euro. That way you get what you want and the buyer feels he is after getting a good deal.
Completing the deal
Once you both have agreed on price, it’s time to complete the deal. The buyer now pays you, and you in return let them fill out the logbook with their name and address.
These are a few
DON’Ts when completing the deal. You have been warned.
Don’t let them take the logbook (registration cert) with them, post it yourself. Do not listen or believe any excuse they may have.
I cannot stress this enough.Don’t take a cheque!!! For obvious reasons.
Don't accept part payment, it's all or nothing.
To me the only way to deal is cash, and at that make sure the cash is real. That or completely the deal outside your bank where you can lodge a bank draft straight away.
Once the cash has been handed over and the logbook has been signed, bring it to the post office and send it.
The deal is now complete and it’s time for you to buy your next car
Best of luck
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