Purchasing a used car is a fantastic way of shrinking the cost of your vehicle as many new cars lose a lot of their value in the first 12 months (40%), especially if you are looking for car loans for bad credit. There are risks so it is definitely crucial to take as much time as you require rather than rush into any old deal where you can get ripped off. Here are five things to keep in mind when buying a used car:
Older cars are way cheaper than newer cars
The average cost of a new car is currently around £28,500 which dramatically decreases to £21,000 after 10,000 miles has been put on the clock. A price reduction of 27% after just one year. If you decide to bag an older model you will be able to drastically cut the upfront cost (except when you pick popular, expensive brands like Mercedes and Porsche cars).
When is the best time to buy a used car?
Believe it or not, there is a right time to buy a car, and it can effectively slash costs of the car you want. Once you’ve decided on the vehicle you want to purchase, make sure you wait till the end of the quarter, a time when dealers are in a rush to meet their targets so they can claim that bonus at the end. Therefore, it might be best to wait till the end of March, June, September and December as the dealers will need get rid of their cars and will be more open to negotiations and offering better finance packages. This does not work with private sellers, of course, and there is therefore no good or bad time to buy a car from them.
How much will a used car cost me?
Before you start thinking at all about how much a car is going to cost you, you need to choose which car you would like to purchase first, you can then move on and start thinking about how much you are going to be forking out for your vehicle, upfront and ongoing. Make sure you have the following costs budgeted for before you purchase:
- Upfront cost
- Finance payments
- Gas
- Tax
- Car insurance
- MOT servicing
- Servicing
- Parking permits and tolls
- Other miscellaneous payments (tyres, repairs, cleaning).
Always haggle
You don’t have to be down a backstreet flea market to be able to haggle over a product or service. It all comes as part of the service and is part of a dealers bread and butter when dealing with car sales, and is almost expected of you by the car dealer. Make sure you bargain hard and do not relent unless you get at least some money off! Look up the cheapest web prices and make dealers contend for your custom.
You need insurance before you buy a car
Be sure to get your car insurance before you buy yourself a car. The same as when you are buying a house, you need to have insurance in place as soon as you are the legal owner – even if you’re not going to be using it yet. This is obviously in case anything happens to the car, it’s your responsibility. You may be taking additional care of your brand new car, but what if you get to the motorway on the way home from the showroom or seller’s home and someone drives into the back of you?
