How To Sell Your Car in 6 Steps – Technologist

There are countless reasons why you might be ready to sell your car. And there are almost as many ways to get it done. While more options mean better chances at a great deal, it also can make the process intimidating.

But selling your car doesn’t have to be painful. In fact, the whole process can be done in six steps, including:

• How To Sell Your Car in 6 Steps
  • Get Your Car Ready
  • Figure Out Your Car’s Value
  • Choose Where To Sell
  • Gather Your Documents
  • Negotiate The Sale
  • Transfer Ownership

How To Sell Your Car in 6 Steps

Here at Team Clark, we’ve been helping people buy and sell cars for decades. Although the auto industry is constantly changing, you can always count on money expert Clark Howard’s advice to stay up-to-date so that you’re armed with tips to get the best deals.

With that in mind, let’s jump right into the steps you can follow when you’re ready to sell a car.

1. Get Your Car Ready

When you’re ready to sell your car, the first thing to do is prepare it for the marketplace. Doing this first has the benefit of letting you truly understand what condition your car is in before trying to figure out its value.

You save time down the line because you won’t overestimate its condition or sell yourself short as you get estimates only to have to start over later. And if you think it’s worth it, you can take time and small steps to improve your car and increase its value. So, how do you get your car ready?

Make sure any repairs, tune-ups and touch-ups are done. CarGurus recommends the following:

• Wash and detail your car
• Replace headlamps
• Clean foggy headlights
• Replace burnt-out bulbs
• Change or refill fluids
• Change wiper blades
• Repair windshield cracks
• Touch-up scratches or dings

But don’t go overboard or invest too much into a car you’re selling.

“If you’ve maintained your vehicle properly, you really shouldn’t need to do any repairs except for things that would make it unsafe for an unaware driver,” says Mike Bland, owner of the Atlanta-based auto repair shop, Motor City South. “For example, if your tires are unsafe, you should get new ones,” he adds. “Otherwise, let the new owner put their money into new tires.”

Once you’ve prepped your car, take lots of photos. You’ll use these to list your vehicle online.

Also, it’s worth noting that you might need to revisit this step before you sell your car. If, for example, you plan to regularly drive the car until it’s sold, or if a long time passes between your first touch-up and the time to make the sale.

2. Figure Out Your Car’s Value

Now, you have an honest understanding of your car’s condition. It’s time to price it. There are many places you can go to get a fair value estimate of your car. Here are a few that we like:

• Carfax
• Consumer Reports
• Edmunds
• Kelley Blue Book (KBB)
• National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA)

You can also get an idea of your car’s value if you start the selling process online. Even if you don’t plan to ultimately sell online, these sites have tools that will give you a sense of the market. You can see what online sellers have the best deals below.

For this step, the most important thing you can do is be honest about your car’s condition. If you aren’t sure what the difference is between “excellent” or “good,” each site provides examples to consider. So, for example, your car might be “good” on one site but “excellent” on another. Follow each site’s guidelines when getting estimates to get the most accurate results from their individual algorithms.

3. Choose Where To Sell

The next step is to decide where to sell your car. Buyers can be found through four main avenues:

• Dealerships: You don’t need to buy a new-to-you car in order to sell to many dealerships. Lots are willing to make a cash offer for your car and make sure all the necessary paperwork is done correctly. The positive is you can get cash quickly, but the negative is you’ll likely get less money for your car than you would selling it elsewhere. And don’t be surprised if there are pushy salespeople encouraging you to buy a car.
• Trade-ins: If you’re in the market for a new-to-you car, this is another way to sell your car quickly. Like the option above, however, you probably won’t get the highest offer for your car.
• Online car buying companies: Think Carvana, CarMax, Cars.com and more. This is another quick, low-effort option to sell your car. But again, you’ll trade convenience for cash because online companies often collect fees that cut into your coin.
• Private: You can always sell your car yourself if you’re comfortable, and a private sale will most likely get you the most money for your ride. The downside is this process typically takes more time. You also need to feel comfortable negotiating with people 1:1 and meeting up with strangers (often from the internet) to make the deal.

Where you live plays a role in what dealerships are around for you to consider selling. But let’s take a look at options for online car buying companies and private sales.

Online Car Buying Companies

If you’re a regular Clarkie, then you’ve likely heard Clark talk about CarMax or Carvana as good options for selling your car. In the past, these companies offered convenience and attractive payouts. Now, there’s new data that has changed the consumer champ’s mind.

Barron’s shared data from the most recent (July 2024) “Sell Your Car Pricing Survey” by Marvin Fong, which says CarMax and Carvana no longer top the list for best offers. The survey looks at CarMax, Carvana, Cars.com and CarGurus. Here’s how the companies ranked:

1. Cars.com – best offer 56% of the time
2. CarGurus – best offer 31% of the time
3. Carvana – best offer 7% of the time
4. CarMax – best offer 6% of the time

Carvana is down two percentage points since the last time this survey was conducted (January 2024). And CarMax is down 23 percentage points! Clark says:

“They have really decided that they are reining in what they offer for your car when you go to them to sell it to them. And there are specific market reasons why CarMax and Carvana have reined in what they’ll offer for your car.”

“It’s all about this thing I’ve talked about for the last year: how the price of used vehicles has been going down. And they’re down roughly 30% of where they were at peak. And so, think about if you’re Carvana or CarMax and you buy inventory. Then, as it sits the value of that inventory’s been steadily going down, down, down till they get the vehicle sold,” explains Clark. He adds:

“Both of them — in order to maintain profitability and in Carvana’s circumstance, to become profitable again — have reduced what they’ll pay you for your vehicle in order to maintain profitability at a time that the prices are going down on inventory.”

Private Sale

As mentioned, you can probably get more money selling privately than to a dealer. But a private sale requires you to do more work. This can include making multiple listings for your car across several sites and meeting with several people until you find someone willing to buy at an agreed-upon price.

Fortunately, when it comes to listing, you can usually just copy and paste the exact same ad for your car into several online sites for free. Here are some of the most popular, free places to list your car:

• Craigslist
• eBay
• Facebook Marketplace
• Nextdoor

Remember: With a private sale, you do all the work for the sale. That includes fielding emails and calls about your car, scheduling meetups with potential buyers, facilitating any test drives, and handling all paperwork to finalize the sale.

4. Gather Your Documents

There are several documents you need to transfer ownership of your car. So, in this step, you’re going to get everything together ahead of time. The documents you need depend on where you live, since each state has its own requirements.

At minimum — regardless of where you live — you need your car’s title. The title shows you are the legal owner. So, when you sell your car, you sign the title over to the buyer and they become the new legal owner.

Other documents you might need include:

• Paperwork showing any financing is paid off (if you financed the car)
• Service records and/or emissions papers
• Vehicle history report
• Bill of sale

You should check your state’s DMV to know your responsibilities before you sell your car. I’ve put together a list of DMV websites for all 50 states to get you started.

And if you need a vehicle history report, we’ve got a guide on how to get a free VIN check. It’s a good idea to have a VIN report ready if you’re selling privately. This shows buyers how your car has been treated and can help them feel more confident buying from you.

5. Negotiate The Sale

At this point, you already have a good idea of what your car is worth. Now — no matter how you plan to sell — it’s helpful to arm yourself with an idea of how much buyers are willing to pay for your car. You can do this easily by using online car buying sites to get quick offers.

This info helps you negotiate with dealerships and private buyers. Just like potential buyers likely have a maximum price they’re willing to pay, you should have a minimum price you’re willing to accept before you meet with buyers.

Just don’t start your sale off with your minimum price. There’s a good chance the buyer will want to haggle and ask for a lower price. If they do, you can accept their offer or ask for more. You might go back and forth a few times. Use what you learned about your car’s value in step two to help justify your price.

And if you can’t reach a rate that feels fair, it’s okay to find a buyer who agrees with you about your car’s value.

If you’re selling privately, this step requires you to meet with people in person. Here are a few safeguards you can take:

• Meet buyers in safe, neutral locations
• Get an ID from buyers if they will be test driving
• Insist on wire transfer or cashier’s check for payment (for cashier’s checks, verify in person at the buyer’s bank/credit union)

If possible, go with someone else to meet any potential buyers. Otherwise, it’s a good idea to at least tell someone when and where you plan to go for the meetup.

6. Transfer Ownership

Now, you have an offer that you’re happy with and it’s time to close the deal. If you sell or trade in at a dealership, you won’t need to worry much about this step. The dealership will handle the required documents and all you need to do is sign over your title, turn in your keys and take your check!

But if you sell privately, you need to know how to transfer ownership before you make the sale.

Where you live plays a big role in your responsibility as a seller. Here in Georgia, for example, a seller must transfer ownership and cancel the car’s registration. As always, be sure to check your state’s DMV to know your responsibilities before you sell your car.

Final Thoughts

When you’re ready to sell your car, how you choose to sell can make a big difference in your outcomes. If you want quick cash and convenience, look into dealerships and online car buying companies. If you want the biggest payout, be prepared to sell your car privately.

Once you’ve sold your car, we’ve got great resources if you’re looking to get another ride. Check out our used car buying guide and our new car buying guide. And of course, make sure you don’t keep insurance on a car you’re not driving. We’ve got a guide on how to cancel your coverage here.

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