How do YOU price your car for sale?

[RANGEREST]

Originally Posted by trublu

I always sell mine for more than what it is worth, always a sucker some where willing to pay.

Really? , let us in on your secret. Ive got my Ranger on carsales, 2nd or 3rd cheapest PX XLT at $39500 but with lower ks than the others, cant even get a nibble, should I put it up to the $50000 that I paid for it? Yeah, that'll work.

[HULK_I6T]

when selling a nice car for above average value you will get the lowballers. They look on ebay for the cheapest roughest example they can find and then make a like for like offer.

I was lowballed on my xr8 but laughed off the offer. Obviously he wasnt really in the market for a quality car. The lowballer thought he was the only buyer in the universe and tried a few tactics. I didnt even respond. I was busy out with the eventual buyer taking him for a drive.

The lowballer tried again but by then the buyer gave me a cheque for $25500 and had driven off to albury vic. the lowballer had his roughie ebay xr8 to go back to.

[40RDT]

Originally Posted by HULK_I6T

I give my car an honest assessment against the cars available for sale. IF mine has less km and is in better condition, I ask a higher price than any other car available for sale. If my car is comparable to the average car available for sale then I price it accordingly.

Buyers will likely look at a few examples of a model so Im always confident mine will stand out. Yes buyers always try and lowball you with other cars on carsales but ill say go and buy that car. I keep my cars immaculate at all times, looks wise and mechanically. If a buyer cheaps out, he gets a lesser car and he knows it. ive sold heaps of cars and every single buyer has been overjoyed with the car and happy they paid a little more to get the 1% things right. I tell them all the little blemishes of the other cars will annoy you and ultimately cost you to get them right, pay a bit more now and just get it right to start with.

Ive sold cars at high prices and sometimes people say "how did you do it", well thats easy, its because my cars are mint condition. A buyer will pay overs for the right car. When I buy a car, ill pay overs too but Ill get the best available, no compromises.

I sold my BA XR8 a few months ago for $25,500, buyer was as happy as can be, it was a fair price in my view too. He still messages me saying how awesome the car is.

How the hell did you get 25k for a BA XR8? It must have been heavily modified or something? I think I would be lucky to get 25k for my FPV

[HULK_I6T]

Originally Posted by 40RDT

How the hell did you get 25k for a BA XR8? It must have been heavily modified or something? I think I would be lucky to get 25k for my FPV

It was worth it. Buyer is very happy. Tasteful Mods enhance the value of xr8 but probably kill the value of a GT. All mods were brand new, never tracked or abused.

[Windsor220]

They don't double/triple its value though.

[40RDT]

Originally Posted by HULK_I6T

It was worth it. Buyer is very happy. Tasteful Mods enhance the value of xr8 but probably kill the value of a GT. All mods were brand new, never tracked or abused.

It must have been one very special BA XR8 to have sold for that much

[Professor Farnsworth]

Originally Posted by HULK_I6T

The lowballer tried again but by then the buyer gave me a cheque for $25500 and had driven off to albury vic.

ignoring the first part of the sentence which is extremely hard to believe, last time i checked Albury was in NSW.

[HULK_I6T]

Originally Posted by Windsor220

They don't double/triple its value though.

Your base price is obviously for a roughie ba xr8. The buyer wanted a mint xr8 with tastful mods not a high km roughie.. The fact is that it sold for $25500, therefore that is what it was worth. You dont have to like it but its true, thats what a free market paid for it.

[HULK_I6T]

Originally Posted by Professor Farnsworth

ignoring the first part of the sentence which is extremely hard to believe, last time i checked Albury was in NSW.

My bad, albury near victoria is more accurate. The point i was trying to make is that buyer drove the car almost 1000km home (im in sydney) by the time the lowballer came back with another charming effort.

The lowballer was from the forums as i understand.

[nothin suss]

Originally Posted by HULK_I6T

My bad, albury near victoria is more accurate. The point i was trying to make is that buyer drove the car almost 1000km home (im in sydney) by the time the lowballer came back with another charming effort.

The lowballer was from the forums as i understand.

Probably closer to 500klms. Unless he went home via Melbourne.
Keen either way. He must have really loved it!

[deesun]

So many times on here I see the question asked "whats it worth". Most often the answer is " what the market will pay". Well the market paid 25500 so I guess thats what the car is worth. But I would add, thats what the car is worth "to the purchaser".

[rag top]

Simple - if I need to sell it, then I price it according to my local market.

If my wife wants me to sell, and I want to keep it, then i price it according to the highest comparable example nation wide, and add 10-20%. if it doesn't sell, cool!!

[Crazy Dazz]

And on a related topic, one of the concepts I find impossible to fathom is that of "must sell."
I'm a fairly literal person, so when I read "must sell," I assume I know what it means, but clearly I don't. It seems to fall into the same 70's sales-jargon category as "first to see will buy," and other such pearlers.
I love a bargain as much as the next bloke, and don't want to miss out, but its got to the point where I'm actually timid to approach such sellers.

I generally take the view that its a free country, and if somebody wants to be deluded and price their car 50% above market that's their prerogative.
But when they then say "must sell, I'm joining the army," I get very confused.
Are they asking for lower offers inline with market value?

[Poetic Justice]

Unless you ask them, how will you know?

Way too many variables in the questions you're asking. Some people might do it because it's a genuine concern but others may do it because history says people should add that crap to their posts.

The best bet you have is to have top notch photos of the car to begin with. Without these, your add is just another brick in the wall. If you want to continue on with that it is best advised to write a very descriptive blurb about the vehicle, it's features focusing on the best ones and any modifications/additions to the vehicle. Focus on the car and in what ways you might be persuaded to be flexible on what you're asking.

Desperate ploys like you say "must sell" or "going away" or "joining the army" are things that potential buyers have read time and time again and it simply doesn't work with effect.

[PridenJoy]

Half the battle is getting someone to show interest in your car for sale to begin with, price it right, have lots of clear pictures and a decent description and you will get plenty of interest. If you have plenty of interest then you can choose who to ignore and who to take seriously, then once they come to see it and it's a good car it will sell itself after that.

[Franco Cozzo]

Originally Posted by PridenJoy

Half the battle is getting someone to show interest in your car for sale to begin with, price it right, have lots of clear pictures and a decent description and you will get plenty of interest. If you have plenty of interest then you can choose who to ignore and who to take seriously, then once they come to see it and it's a good car it will sell itself after that.

I like it how people try and sell something worth $10K+ on Carsales and the ad is like:

GOOD CAR NEED GONE ASAP 10K CALL PAUL

Theres 4 crappy pics taken at night time on a camera phone from 2003 with the ad.

If you expect something to sell you need to write it up and lots of good clear photos.

[Crazy Dazz]

Whilst most of what members have posted here makes sense, I am still surprised that so many people out there just don't have a clue.
They jump onto carsales.com, find similar cars to theirs priced from say $35k to $40k at dealers, and price theirs at $39k "FIRM."
Firstly (and assuming a decent sample size) if "identical" cars are priced at $35~40k (in the same market,) its a safe bet that $35k is a fixed-price discount dealer and the guy at $40k is still offering a $2k minimum trade-in and is willing to negotiate. So pricing your car "cheaper" than his is nuts.
Secondly, even the discount dealer must make the car roadworthy and provide a statutory warranty, and in most cases they have inspected the car and attended to basic items including detailing.
Landed in Perth, my TTG has cost me less than $26k. Substantially less than people were wanting privately for cars with higher k's. Its been inspected and serviced, its guaranteed to pass roadworthy, and it still has a statutory warranty.

People also don't seem to understand that if you undercut the best dealers price and manage to sell, you've actually had a win.
There's a car that I'm looking at for myself, the dealers have offered him $29-30k. I'm interested at 31~32k, but he's stuck at 35, and yet "must sell".

[Morexbs]

I have just sold my FG XR6.
I started on Car Sales as the cheapest one with similar mileage.I dropped a grand each week until I got to about $500 more than I would have got at auction.Not one phone call.
I walked into a dealer last week and sold it to them directly on the spot.Thankfully I bought the car wholesale so I didn't lose as much as I could have.
2012 VEII Commodores with 90000kms are now selling at auction for under 10k.
The big car is dead and anyone selling one that isn't anything special is going to really struggle.

[P6LTD351]

What the market says it's worth and what 1 individual purchaser pays for it are 2 very different things.

The market worth is what you can expect to get for it all day every day with a number of people preparing to pay that price. That is the REAL market worth.

An individual paying an exorbitant amount for a BA XR8 doesn't mean that the car is worth that much.

For example, if, because of sentimental reasons i pay $40000 for a particular EL XR8 (apart from being stupid with too much cash), as that's the one my dad drove in the past doesn't mean that EL XR8s are worth that much.

This is a distinction many people fail to make when valuing cars.

[P6LTD351]

Originally Posted by Morexbs

I have just sold my FG XR6.
I started on Car Sales as the cheapest one with similar mileage.I dropped a grand each week until I got to about $500 more than I would have got at auction.Not one phone call.
I walked into a dealer last week and sold it to them directly on the spot.Thankfully I bought the car wholesale so I didn't lose as much as I could have.
2012 VEII Commodores with 90000kms are now selling at auction for under 10k.
The big car is dead and anyone selling one that isn't anything special is going to really struggle.

Correct.

PS, your avatar is awesome

[Focusfan]

Just a note in defence of the dealers. When they buy a car that is registered they have to pay the transfer fees. When they sell the car they
again have to pay the transfer fees. That is twice on the one car. Now if a private seller sells the buyer is supposed to pay this unless the seller
offers to do so in their ad. Now on a $20,000 car this would be about
$600 in Qld so take this into account for a dealer. $1,200 to process a sale plus any work needed for safety certificate, panel and paint work.
Now take this to calculate a dealer buys a car for $20,000. Add on cost
for government transfer fees, say $800 for mechanical and paint touch-ups
and the retail value of the car is $25,000. Now how much are they making
after they pay the salesman wages and commission for selling.??
Still think they are ripping off the seller.?
All said private selling is best way to go if you have a car that is popular in the market or have a lot of patience if it takes a while to sell.
If you have a car that is a slow seller trade or sell to dealer and
just get the pain over with. Longer you wait the less you get.
BA XR8 not sure if worth the amount paid for it but each to their own.
Good luck to the seller.

[Crazy Dazz]

Originally Posted by Focusfan

Just a note in defence of the dealers. When they buy a car that is registered they have to pay the transfer fees. When they sell the car they
again have to pay the transfer fees. That is twice on the one car. Now if a private seller sells the buyer is supposed to pay this unless the seller
offers to do so in their ad. Now on a $20,000 car this would be about
$600 in Qld so take this into account for a dealer. $1,200 to process a sale plus any work needed for safety certificate, panel and paint work.
Now take this to calculate a dealer buys a car for $20,000. Add on cost
for government transfer fees, say $800 for mechanical and paint touch-ups
and the retail value of the car is $25,000. Now how much are they making
after they pay the salesman wages and commission for selling.??
Still think they are ripping off the seller.?
All said private selling is best way to go if you have a car that is popular in the market or have a lot of patience if it takes a while to sell.
If you have a car that is a slow seller trade or sell to dealer and
just get the pain over with. Longer you wait the less you get.
BA XR8 not sure if worth the amount paid for it but each to their own.
Good luck to the seller.

I don't know about every state, but in the ones I do know, Dealers pay NO transfer fees. There is only ever ONE transfer fee, from the previous owner to the new owner, and that is always paid by the new owner.
That said, people are stupid and have no idea of the costs involved in running a dealership. I like watching Pawn Stars because of the interesting stuff they feature, but its amazing how many times the expert will say "ok your antique gun may fetch upto $10k at a specially auction," and the boob then turns to the pawn-broker and says "ok I want $10k for it."

[HULK_I6T]

I know of a ford xe fairmont ghia for sale..

About 22 years ago this guy wanted $12,000 for it. It was a really nice car in bright red but only a 6. My brother really liked it but they were going for around $9000 at the time. My brother made repeated offers but he declined. He ended up buying a XF fairmont ghia for around the same money.

A few years back I seen the car in the same front yard still for sale, looked completely weathered this time, now he wants $2500 and won't move on it lol. Incredible.

It's a neighbourhood joke that car... He will never meet the market.

[johnydep]

It's not what it's worth, it's what people are willing to pay.

Sellers go on Carsales and have a look at what the prices are & then ask for the same, without looking at the market that they're selling in or the overall conditions -car & economy).

Last week two different customers told me about the difficulty they're having trying to sell their car. One an 2006 Pulsar auto, the other a 2009 Maxima. Both are asking near top Carsales prices & won't budge, even though they've been trying for 2 months.

Private sellers need to realise that they can't price their car just under a dealers price, and expect a quick sale.

[Focusfan]

Checked with a friend who has worked in sales for many years and apparently when a dealer buys a car they have to pay the GST.
Then when they sell it they have to pay GST again. Bloody explains a lot when it comes to trade in value compared to retail car price.
Thank the government for that one.

[RANGEREST]

Originally Posted by Focusfan

Checked with a friend who has worked in sales for many years and apparently when a dealer buys a car they have to pay the GST.
Then when they sell it they have to pay GST again. Bloody explains a lot when it comes to trade in value compared to retail car price.
Thank the government for that one.

Not quite, I can see why your friend is not in sales any more.
If the dealer buys it from someone with an ABN and is registered for GST, they pay gst, but they also claim it back.
If they buy a car from a private seller there is no GST,on the purchase,
When the dealer sells a car there is GST charged by the dealer for the government at (10%)1/11th) of the sale price, that has to be paid to the government.

[johnydep]

Originally Posted by Focusfan

Checked with a friend who has worked in sales for many years and apparently when a dealer buys a car they have to pay the GST.
Then when they sell it they have to pay GST again. Bloody explains a lot when it comes to trade in value compared to retail car price.
Thank the government for that one.

Not entirely true.

A business claims the purchase GST off of the sale GST - BAS Business Activity Statement. One of the many red tapes to wade through.

[Pube Fury]

Is Redbook a reliable guide to a car's value?

[blueoval]

Originally Posted by Pube Fury

Is Redbook a reliable guide to a car's value?

I have found it mainly used by car sales men in an attempt to undercut your trade in value.

Redbook is purely a guide based on a common km system. But everybody knows that there are a number of factors revolving around a vehicles value other than km.

[HULK_I6T]

Originally Posted by blueoval

But everybody knows that there are a number of factors revolving around a vehicles value other than km.

such as? cars decline in value with use/age/wear and tear.

Km tells most of the story.