Features How do price your car to sell or trade?

Sold a car recently for what I consider a good price which was a lot more then I had into it. There is still plenty of people out there with money to pay for a decent car. Forget about trades. Most guys looking to trade its usually something that can't give away.

Gary

 

The formula used to sell cars.

A. Take the amount of $ that you put into it.
B. Add the amount of $ that your labor is worth.
C. Add $ for what you think is fair for value appreciation.
Total A, B, C to find the sum.
Now, subtract 98% from your total sum and divide this total by 3. (3 equals the number of buddies who might have helped you on your build)
Now, multiply this number by 900%. (900% is your mark up)
Now, subtract $6.00 for your for sale sign and felt tip marker.
Now, add 25% of this total to your over all total. (this is for your wife/girlfriend laughing behind your back and nagging you)
You now have a ball park figure of what your car is worth.

A+B+C=T
T x 98%/3=N
N x 900%=P
P - $6=R
R + 25%=S
S = Total Value

 

Those flipper shows are dumb as hell. They dummy down those who watch them and give them a false sense of property value. People think that they are smart enough to negotiate a deal with a hot rodder while not knowing parts prices and labor cost. Of course you're only going to get what someone is willing to pay you but most people think that they are in Tijuana and can bargain you down to nothing.

 

I've sold one car on the HAMB at a fire sale price and half a dozen on Hemmings for fair money. Interestingly enough, the Plymouth would be of interest to me at that price if it was a stocker.

 

I sold an OT muscle car a few years back. I had it advertised for a few months at what I thought it was worth, which was also my 'ideal' dollar for it.
In the back of my mind, I knew my bottom dollar, which would guide me when negotiating with a potential buyer.
We rolled through August, September and October with no sale. Early November, I received an offer that was about $500 below my 'bottom' dollar.
I asked for 24 hours to think on it. Over that 24 hours, I realized that my cost to store it for the winter (6 months) was going to be +/- $500. So I sold it.
Maybe I could have sold it for more in the spring, but also, maybe I could have sold it for the same amount I did, and been out the extra $500 in winter storage.

Similarly, when I sold my 60 F100, I had it listed at my 'ideal' dollar, while also knowing my 'bottom' dollar. I had lots of interest in it, and ended up selling it for less than my 'ideal', but more than my 'bottom'. My bottom dollar was break even with what I had invested in the truck for purchase, parts, etc.

I don't expect to really make money on a sale. I can't put a price on the enjoyment I've gotten driving old cars. As long as I don't lose my shirt on the sale, then I'm more or less happy. It is what it is.

That's not too far off what I end up doing.

 

I had a couple of trade offers that I considered equal value but I need the cash not another car,both these cars were nice and desirable cars,I've also been offered a few things that were way overpriced trying to trade.

One was a non member that sent me photos of a bare metal 51 chevy 4 door full of rust with a junkyard big block and claiming he had 45 grand and he would trade if I gave him the difference,,what a idiot. HRP

 

I just bought my car so I can relate to a cash buyer's decision process. Pricing - I offered just below 'Low Retail' but ended paying sliver over 'Low Retail'. At 'Ave Retail', I wouldn't have considered purchase at all. In the long run for me, the emotion of buying my first car, won out. A the car is cosmetically perfect and I didn't see any negatives except a tune up, easily fixed minor issues. (There is always lack of seatbelts or some such thing).

My advise to you, in order to consummate a deal with someone like me who has cash, is to eliminate obvious flaws even at the expense of a thou or two. Not doing that you must settle for 1/2 Low Retail. Then advertise and hold out for 'Low Retail'. Especially with a car which has been modified. You surely realize your modifications are NOT a plus as the potential owner would likely not have made the same choices you did. But he must live with them. Don't expect him to pay up for them.

Bottom line, remove negatives, promote positives. And advertise widely.

One motto which must be understood - value decisions are based on buying right, not selling right.

 

OP, you are in California........have you tried the Pomona swap meet? I've taken a car over every year (the October show) for 7 years straight and come home with an empty trailer every time. Shame only one has been mine. More of the cars I've sold have gone overseas than stayed on the states, but they all pay in U.S. dollars.

 

Selling an altered car is different than selling a stock one. If it's been altered, the question in most buyers minds will be 'how well was it done?' Are they looking at a car where it's been done 'right', or is the seller trying to get rid of a mess? Both types exist (you see enough of them here), you need to clearly show that yours isn't one of the messes. Or if it is one of the messes, the price should reflect that.

When I bought my avatar (with similar mods to yours), I had the seller send me more pictures of the undercarriage than anything else, to satisfy myself that I wasn't buying a mess.

 

Put your price in the ad, adjusted slightly higher than what your lowest acceptable price would be (leaving room for prospective buyer to "talk you down a bit"), people want to feel like they are getting a good deal. Some people will automatically assume, you want too much for it, if you are afraid to post the price.
Full honest description.
Complete set of pictures.
The idea is to cut to the chase, and deal only with serious potential buyers.
Do your homework, know where current prices are on "like cars".
Regardless of what you paid for it, time you put into it, and your love for it, be realistic, you may have to put your pride aside.

 

That seems to be something that some guys can't understand. I don't care at all what you paid for it, or spent on it. Today, it's worth what someone will pay for it today. That's it.

 

$$$ talks, BS walks

 

Cowboy Ted, I agree with you about C.L. half of them don't have the $$$$ any way.Bruce.

 

THERE YOU GO!!!!good one mgtstumpy! Bruce.

 

Pre 1960 American cars seem to be in the toilet right now and I see little that makes me think that's gonna turn around anytime soon.
I go on prewarcar.com many times a day to see what's newly listed. They have a pre and post war section divided into subcategories. International exposure, cars seem to sell there. Just a thought.

Not sure if it's a violation of the forum rules to post about another site here if so sorry in advance
Good luck

 

Last spring @ Back to 50's (MN.) a car like your avatar (car for sale ?) went through the auction, do not remember if sold or did not meet reserve. A friend of mine is looking for one, but he wants a restored stock convertible as he has a hot rod coupe and a restored coupe, thinking he's stuck on old Plymouth's, it's his thing.

 

I will leave it in CL for a little while longer and then if I still have it- oh well I will enjoy crusin .

 

Few years back i put an add in the local news paper ( i said a FEW YEARS BACK)
ok it was a 55 Shell with clear TITLE no engine,tranny,er seats, with scab roller wheels ...you can see
that in your mind RIGHT.
ok
for sale 800.00 OBO , phone rang off the hook 20 25 people showed up.
not a single person made an offer, 3 week add expired, so i re upped the add
with long explanation ie: i said remember the ad last week saying 800.00 OBO well
its 1/2 off ---55chevy (blabla bla) 400.00 or best offer.
14 callers and 5 show ups still ALL tire KICKERS but the last guy
said he didn't want to OFFEND me , and i said don't worry you won't, but i'll tell you
if you say 50 bucks i'm gonna say NO and then if you up your OFFER to 100 i'm gonna say NO,
MY suggestion was to offer me as much as you are WILLING to pay , lets get this over with.
He said 160.00 and i said (it was already sitting on the car hauler) where would you like it delivered to?
he said how much to drop it off in his backyard 2/3 miles over in his neighborhood,
and i said IF you're paying me right now , the delivery will be FREE.
boom car SOLD.
there is more than one way to sell a car....

 

Maybe they dont know what you are expecting out of it.
https://inlandempire.craigslist.org/cto/5916522512.html

 

definitely gotta have a price, even if looking for trades. I check craigslist for trades often, and have completed a couple, but there was always a price on the ad.

 

My car isn't stock. Exterminator

 

Lots of opinions here, for me, c/l, kijiji are awful places to sell a car. Lots of guys there just hunt ads and got nothing better to do but waste your time, the ones that actually come by are looking for a garage tour or they got nothing better to do.
I hate both. Your car is valuable to you, to me, a $20,000 32 is the same car as a $90,000 32, more likely to be driven lots and built to drive rather than show, the value is in your eyes. Hang on to it till the right guy comes, he'll love it like you have and the sale will be easy, it's what I do. I sold a T bucket years ago to a friend for a satisfactory price, later that summer, at a car show, a fella walks over to my friend, asks about the car and offers him twice what he paid for it. You just need the right guy.

 

Lots of good and varied input in this thread. One thing that really frosts me is an ad on the HAMB with no price. You have to PM to get the price. Seems like a sales tactic that limits your audience.
But then it occurred to me it may be a strategy to collect sales leads if the seller wants to circle back and reach out to those who were interested enough to ask about what they are selling.
Still bothers me but not as much as those that reply the price is in the ad. That really pisses me off, because now you're calling me stupid. Read your own ad before you submit.
And always state your price. It's the first level of prospect qualification.

Sent from my SM-T377V using The H.A.M.B. mobile app

 

I can't tell you what to ask for your car, but just by looking at the pictures you have posted and the other stuff I see for sale on the Hamb, and other places on the net, I would think that $7500.00 may be a bit low, but I can't see it in person and that could make a difference. Ask what you feel it is worth and go from there. if you do not need to sell don't be in a hurry, some one some where is looking for that car. If I did not have the cars I already have yours would interest me. I had a '41 Plymouth coupe in high school back in '68, and always liked the styling of the '40-'41 Plymouths

 

If you don't post your asking price, you have no right to complain when people offer you less than . . . less than WHAT? How much do you think it's worth? When the guy calls and asks how much you would take for the car, that is a logical consequence of the fact that you did not post any asking price. He shouldn't have to call you to find out the price in the first place. Your asking price is the most basic information that belongs front and center in EVERY advertisement.

Your Craigslist ad is a textbook example of how to write an advertisement when you WANT to be contacted by nobody but tire kickers.

https://inlandempire.craigslist.org/cto/5916522512.html

You've made no effort to sell that car, or to convince anybody they would want it. It needs mechanical work? WHAT work? What's wrong with it? Serious buyers need to know. What is its condition? That's what matters, and that's the information that belongs in an ad. Can a buyer expect to drive it home, or is that U-joint so badly in need of replacement that they won't get five blocks from your house? You've left everybody reading that ad to imagine horrible possibilities. Does it have ANY oil pressure? Any compression left? Just how terribly worn out is that fancy aftermarket suspension with the crazy expensive replacement parts?

When I sell cars on craigslist or ebay, I give buyers at least eight to ten paragraphs of describing the condition of the car. I don't mention a single word about what I do with the car, because it doesn't matter. Buyers care about what THEY plan to do with the car, and to know whether your car is suitable for them, they need to know its condition. We don't know, of course, how much you want for the car, but if you want more than a few thousand dollars for any car you're selling, clean it up and take some decent photos. Wipe the dust of those armrests, for god's sake. Did you really hope to sell a car with photos taken in the garage, lighted by the headlights of a car sitting in the driveway?

Everything about your ad suggests that you're simply not serious about selling the thing.

 

Without the PRICE listed = RED LIGHT to me. Its almost like you must be way too high (fishing ) and I won't waste my time. As previously stated with digital photography take many, many pics and include the price. If you are too high ,no real buyer will come forward. I sure don't know what your car is worth. If I see something I am interested in I call and ask the least they will take for it. If I think that is reasonable I go and look. However I never make offers without going and looking ,that's just CS to me.

 

Well, the private-party price for a '10 SS Camaro is about $13K, so I guess that's the upper asking price limit. Given the 'semi-project' state of your car and looking at the pics, that's in the ballpark but may be a bit high.

 

There's a difference in how you see the ads using the mobile app and how they look in a web browser. The app doesn't show prices.

Here's the first ad listed, showing in the app:



Vs the same ad, web browser view:



So the guy that tells you that the price is in the ad may not be at fault here. Took me a while to figure out that there was a difference in the display.



Sent from my iPad using The H.A.M.B. mobile app

 

No offense, but adds w/o a price are just fishin' expeditions IMO, add trades to that and it's no different than a tire kickin' time waster, only on the selling end. Price the damn thing, or move on.

 

Just saw the CL ad. Hate to say out loud but you've asked for input ... to me the ad says $3500, maybe $4k tops. car needs $10k+ to be a daily driver.
Fix the car and fix the ad or take the hit. Sorry