Things to remember when trading in your car

If you haven’t traded in a car before, you probably will at some point. If your current vehicle is in decent shape, you should be able to get at least a few thousand bucks knocked off of your next automotive purchase by trading it in. Basically, how it works is you give the dealership your old car when you buy a new one. If the dealer values your car at $8,000, for example, you will get that money taken off your new purchase. Check out some tips to follow next time you trade in a vehicle.

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3 tips for trading in a car

Do your research

You will hear the word ‘research’ over and over again pertaining to car buying. Enter all of your trade-in’s information on a car valuation site like Kelley Blue Book. This will give you a rough estimate to go by when the dealer gives you a trade-in offer. If they low ball you, you can tell them what KBB valued it at and go from there.

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Do some maintenance

It’s not a bad idea to fix some dings in your car before you try to trade it in. Even taking a half hour to buff out some scratches can help your chances of saving more money. A dealership’s service center is going to fix up any cars traded in anyway, but by doing some of that yourself, you make your car more presentable and seemingly more valuable

Keep receipts handy

Make sure that the dealer knows what maintenance your trade-in has had done. Prove to them that it has brand new brakes. Receipts are concrete proof and they will only help you. Even if it’s just a few, let the dealership know you have them. These simple tips should get you at least a little more money for your next trade-in!