How To Really Buy A Used Vehicle

I want to talk about the steps you need to know when you're buying a car and recently I covered very heavily new cars I want to talk about where most of the marketplace is and that's used vehicles and I recently read data that a third of car buyers are doing something you absolutely should never do when you're buying a new vehicle so somewhere 75 80% of vehic are used vehicles because the cost of new vehicles even though they've come down quite a bit from their covid Peak they're still crazy amount of money and most people either won't spend it or can't afford the cost of a new vehicle the used vehicle Market went crazy during Co where prices went up 60% 60% for the average used vehicle because the distortions that happened because of the the issues that happened at Avis Enterprise and Herz weirdly the car rental industry is what had so much to do with demolishing the used vehicle Market there were other factors as well well but it was crazy what happened so the used vehicle prices are on a steady downturn and the new vehicle prices are on a downturn but not as deep and steep because they don't have as far to fall as the used vehicle prices to so I said that a third of people are doing something absolutely horrific for their wallets but survey data shows that one in three people going to buy a vehicle do no research and go straight to a car dealer okay so I want you to think about that obviously if you heard my podcast recently on buying a new car you know about all the pricing data that's available and the ways to shop online and that all you're really doing at a dealers doing a test drive and taking delivery of a vehicle if you do everything right you're doing everything else online Ed cars that works differently and remember this is most of the market is the used vehicle purchaser but with a used car purchase what you want to know is that each used car has a history and many times that history is not going to be great so it's up to you to follow the steps that I found work over time if you don't like my steps somebody else because there are lots of guides to how to buy a used car but I love what we have for you at clark.com but we've distilled it down into a methodical process of 10 steps you should do when you're buying a used vehicle and number one is the one thing that used vehicle buyers virtually never ever do and that is arrange their financing in advance overwhelmingly use vehicle buyers do financing at the dealer and dealers of used vehicles are expert at driving massive profits through the dealership through writing the loans and marking them up so they might wholesale the money at let's say your credit is okay but not outstanding they might wholesale the money at 8% and tell you oh man oh it's been so hard to get that money for you I mean I I've tried lender after lender I can't believe it though I was able to get you a rate below 20% I was able to get you 18.9% now remember they wholesaled it at 8% they're charging you 18.9 and acting like they're your hero don't let this happen to you very first step when you're buying a vehicle and I've said it before about new it's even more Critical with used arrange your financing in advance with a credit union a local bank an online lender uh but normally Credit Union is going to be the cheapest the one place you don't want to go is one of the big Banks because they're going to rip you off on an auto loan so arrange that financing ahead of time and then start researching the vehicles that are in your funnel what's your funnel it's the brands the model that you're excited by cuz I could tell you all day long that the best used whatever best used midsize SUV is blah blah blah but if you're not interested in that brand that's not going to mean anything to you it's got to be the the vehicles that make your list of the ones that speak to you I know that's a weird thing to say if you're not a car person you don't care and you just want Transportation then you do my stuff where you make make sure you're buying the most reliable But first you start with your funnel and then you research them online you want to look at consumer reports and see the ones that have been the most reliable used vehicles of the ones that are on your funnel list you want to research their values online because if you go to a used vehicle dealer they're going to have a price on that vehicle except for CarMax or carvana where it's an already transparent clear price they're going to have a fake price on that and they're going to try to fake you out when they're trying to sell you one at $88,000 more than it's worth and then they say oh well I mean you know if you'll buy it today we'll mark it down $4,000 and you think you stole a deal and you're paying $4,000 above what fair market value is for that thing so you got to do your homework and with your phone with you cuz people sleep with their phone now they're with you all the time you're able to look at real time data when you're at a dealer after already having done your research and you're able to see wait wait wait Edmund says that's actually retail value for that vehicle is this that or the other not what you're saying arm yourself with research shop around online contact the seller and check the vehicle history report if that vehicle's been in a bad accident and they're not disclosing it to you they don't have to you want to know if it's got a bad history that's clear from a title report you're done but even if it passes that once you've made a deal always make it subject to you having it checked by a mechanic of your choosing with CarMax and carvana you take delivery and then you have it checked out and if it doesn't pass the mechanics test you take it back they give you your money back with others they don't have those friendly return policies for a refund so you have to make part of the purchase that you're having the vehicle checked out by a mechanic of your choosing be very aware as you're negotiating prices they may try to slip in all kinds of extras that you didn't ask for you don't want etching the VIN number on a window uh selling you some kind of paint protection package selling you some kind of piece of garbage extended warranty on the vehicle remember the only extension of a warranty you can trust is one from the manufacturer of that brand itself not any third-party paper usually the it's not even worth the paper it's printed on so know this and look at our full guide when you're buying a used vehicle to make sure you get it right and you know what's interesting right the longest uh information pods I ever do are always about cars I know why is that well it's so it is a complicated process and once you once you buy one particularly used you're stuck with it yeah even if they lied to you yeah cuz they're allowed if you read the the white label on a used vehicle even says on there that the dealer is free they say it in government speak but the dealer is free to lie to you tell you anything they want to tell you and you have to know you can't rely on anything you are told all that matters is there will be an X through something that says as is no warranty even if it's checked with warranty you need to know the terms that is that 30 days 60 days 90 days is it multiple years and what does it cover because no the truth is no the truth is not required under the law of a car salesperson

Channel: Clark Howard: Save More, Spend Less

Views: 7,093

Keywords: clark howard, clark, money, financial literacy, finances, money podcast, podcast, financial podcast, consumer, consumer advocate

Id: 9ArgNi6dV7w

Length: 10min 10sec (610 seconds)

Published: Sun Jun 02 2024