Buying a used car is not as straightforward as turning up at a
dealer and buying the first car that catches your eye. You need to
decide, new car or used car, private seller or dealership, loan or
finance, the make of car, the model of car, so it definately pays
to do your homework before setting out. The article below will help
you with your preparation.
Buying a Used Car
Before getting your own car, it pays to do some homework. Think
about what you need, what the car will be used for, and your
budget. Look in books and online and think about repair costs,
safety tests, mileage etc.
All this research can save you some serious money and help
you avoid being ripped off.
Once you've chosen the car you want, you have to decide how you
are going to pay for it. You can pay the whole amount upfront or
you can finance the purchase over time. If you do use financing,
you should be aware that this increases the total cost of the car
as you must pay for the car plus the credit.
Once you have decided on how much you can put down, you can look
at the annual percentage rate (APR) of the loan and the length of
the loan and see how much your monthly payments will be. Generally
speaking, the shorter the term of the loan, the higher the APR.
If you are in your teens, cosigning with your parents will help
you to get a better rate. You may also want to think about paying
in cash for a less expensive car.
Dealer or Private Sale?
This is an important decision to make. If you buy from a dealer
you will generally pay more. But you will benefit from knowing that
if there is a problem you can return to the dealer to complain.
Many dealers offer warranties and guarantee the quality of
the car.
On the other hand, buying from an individual will offer less
security as the car will generally be sold as is, which means you
must bare the cost of any problems that later arise. You also
cannot go back and complain to an individual if something they told
you turns out to be untrue. That said, buying from an individual
can often offer very good value.
First of all, they will not add a mark up on the price, which is
what a dealer would do if he had bought it first. Also, if you
bring along your own mechanic, or someone who knows about cars, you
can have it checked out to make sure everything looks ok.
Before you buy the car, make sure you examine it with an
inspection checklist. Get a good test drive over varied road
conditions and be sure to get the car's maintenance record. It is
also worth having the car inspected by a mechanic if you have
serious concerns about it.
Finally, before you buy, make sure you are ready to meet all the
associated costs of having the car. These include insurance, fuel,
maintenance and repairs.