Are you in the market for a new car and you’re interested in saving money like 99% of people out there? Then joining a car auction membership site could possibly be for you. I’ll go over the whole process that I went through personally and some additional tips that I would do next time. I saved much more than I was expecting on my BMW 330 purchase and I know there are many others out there like myself.
First off, a lesson learned with buying anything online is to review the industry and check out personal recommendations. I rarely make a quick purchase and this is especially true with my recent car purchase. I’ve always heard about government auctions in the past but was definitely skeptical having known nothing about it. Naturally, I did some research and saved $5,200 off the Kelly Blue Book value. The first thing to look for on an auto auction site is to see if they offer a full money back guarantee with with the membership in case you’re not satisfied. It will show their confidence in their product which should be important to a buyer. Another factor which you should ask yourself is, “How large and widespread is their car database?”. After purchasing a few memberships this can be the most disappointing when searching through their auction database. Either they don’t have anything in my area or the cars are nothing I’m interested in. Luckily for me I’m located in a major city but maybe you’re not. Therefore, this is an extra important factor in joining the site. So what is the solution? Well, this is where checking out review sites can help. See what others have recommended and what they’ve been happy with. On many car auction sites you can test the database out beforehand to get a “teaser” of what is in the area.
Finally, once you get your membership keep a constant eye out for the new auctions and attend the public auctions that may be going on with less competition. This can be your bread winner here by jumping on local auctions where the competition isn’t as fierce. After reading up in forums I learned this and found it to be some valuable insight. Some things I would have done differently would have been to be more patient. While it may be tempting to jump on the first, second or even third auction you go to I think patients would have allowed me to save a little bit more.
With this basic knowledge you should be well on your way to saving thousands on your next auto purchase. If you’ve discounted auto auctions in the past getting a membership to one might end up being one of the smartest things you could do. Just remember to look for sites that offer that money back guarantee if you’re skeptical like many.