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How to Determine Used Car Wholesale Price
If you need to find a used car wholesale price, there is a strictly defined process to obtain it. And, before we get to the steps to obtain it, please be sure you are on good terms with a local new car dealer who will discuss wholesale pricing with you. Or, on good terms with a local wholesaler who will let you look at the weekly auction list.
Obtaining the Weekly Used Car Wholesale Listing
This step is not as easy as it might seem, as you will have to be on very good terms with either a new car dealer who sells vehicles at a local vehicle auction, or with a local wholesale car dealer who buys at that auction. Every week, local used car prices are determined by the weekly local car auctions that occur in every major city across the country.
Understanding what You are Reading
Assuming you are on good terms with a local new car or wholesale car dealer, you will have to learn how to use the information you may be able to obtain. You see, the lists that are generated are for all used car sales, and you must walk carefully through the numbers to even begin to understand what you are reading. This is the raw information on which used car prices are set.
There is no disrespect intended in this step, as it is quite difficult to interpret what the pricing you are seeing means. Let’s say you see a 2007 Honda Civic LX sedan that sold at auction for $4,360. That would seem like a great price and it might be a vehicle that you would like to purchase from a used car dealer. However, before you dial your cell with your credit card in hand, think about this. A Honda Civic LX is a mid-line vehicle that should sell in the $8,000-$12,000 range, even at wholesale auction. If one sells for $4,360, you have to ask “what’s wrong with it?” Is it a flood car? Is there a title problem? Is it a high-miler? What are the issues that have kept its price so low?
Understanding the Wholesale Process
This may seem like an oxymoron, but it really is not, because the wholesale process is quite removed from the everyday buy-sell market you may be used to at a dealership. For starters, it is based on the auction model. At any given time, you may find 25 cars for sale that suddenly become two cars, as dealers decide to wait until the market for their vehicle gets better. Further, since it is a wholesale process, it is priced at what the auction determines and not what you think a car is worth.
