Top 10 Sites to Buy and Sell Used Cars

Selling or buying a new car might be something you constantly wonder about if you're planning to get a newer model or simply make additional income. Luckily, nowadays there are thousands of options available when it comes to buying or selling a vehicle. In a digital world, there are no excuses for not being able to buy or sell your car. Here, we show you the top sites to do it online. 

Factors affecting car value

Before heading to our top sites list, let's check what are the main factors that affect a vehicle's value at the moment of selling it. There are 5 aspects that contribute to the final price:

1. Brand: Your car's brand can affect selling or buying time and final price. The reason for this is because some brands lose value quicker than others. Brands such as Audi, Porsche or Mercedes Benz, are considered luxury and lose less value than brands such as Chevrolet, Mazda or even Peugeot.
2. Age: As time passes, your car's value will start dropping. This means that older used cars can probably get a lower selling price than newer models. But there are some cases in which vintage luxury cars or highly-demanded ones can fetch increasing prices despite the year.
3. Mileage: More miles mean more wear. This means you can sell your car for a higher price if there are fewer miles on the clock, and vice versa.
4. Interior and exterior conditions: Getting your car painted, repairing cracks, corrosion or any other type of damage on the inside or outside of it, can increase your resale value. 
5. History and registration: Whether it's fixed or not, damage such as a collision can affect your vehicle's value. That means that if your car has no history of damages, buyers are willing to pay more than if it had.  

Now let's jump to the top sites to buy or sell your car online

1. Cars.com -  The site has a wide range of cars for selling and is a traditional trustable online channel for buying or selling. If you're buying, you can make quick sales to dealers.
2. Auto Trader - Auto Trader brings out quick search mechanisms to find any model you want with specified characteristics. Also, there are some benefits such as guarantees, faster sales or instant cash offers. 
3. eBay Motors - eBay Motors is the perfect channel for those who have been buying on eBay for a long time. However, if you're new around here, you'll notice how easy it is to buy or sell your car locally and safely. 
4. Hemmings - Classic or vintage cars are usually looked for in Hemmings. This site is perfect for those who want to sell their old, collection car or buy one. Hemmings is considered as the premier site for classic vehicle lovers, and you'll discover hundreds of customers that share your passion for these antiques.
5. Facebook Marketplace - If you're a big fan of social media or you'll like to sell your vehicle locally, Facebook Marketplace is a good site for doing this. Throughout your Facebook account (if you don't have one, you should create one) you can post your car or look for one, check prices, photos, location, extra details as well as chatting with the seller or buyer directly. If you want, you can enter the user's profile to check if it's legit. 
6. CarMax - CarMax will make you an online offer for your car, but you must visit one of their locations for a face to face evaluation to finalize the purchase. You won't earn as much money for your car as you would in other kinds of places or platforms, because they are purchasing your vehicle in order to resell it, and you are eventually accepting a cheaper price in exchange for the convenience and time saved.
7. Carvana - Carvana is a good option for buyers who want to browse offers from all over the country but don't want to deal with the hassle of arranging their own automobile shipping. What's even better is that customers may pick their automobiles from one of the company's car vending machines. Carvana, which, like many of the sites mentioned above, buys vehicles and trucks, is also popular among sellers. If you sell your automobile to Carvana, the procedure is quick and simple.
8. TrueCar - TrueCar's objective is to bring transparency to the purchase process.  They evaluate and publish timely and accurate price data from vendors in a simple format. Buyers may view TrueCar Certified Dealers with confidence now that they have the knowledge they need to obtain a great deal. TrueCar, on the other hand, is a useful tool for sellers who need to sell a car quickly. Their True Cash Offer method is simple, and you may obtain an offer immediately on their website from a Certified Dealer.
9. CarGurus - This site allows sellers to create different listings without paying anything in advance. However, if you sell it through this service, you'll be charged an additional fee over the final cost. 20 million buyers find their perfect car each month through this online platform, but some others prefer sites where no other price adjustments are accrued.
10. Cars & Bids - Launched in the summer of 2020, Cars & Bids became the favorite platform for many buyers and sellers. You're likely to find new models and luxury brands such as Mercedes Benz, BMW or Audi. So, if you're a new-model and brand lover, this site is perfect for you.

Private Selling

Selling to a buyer at their own bank is the best method to sell a car privately. By doing this, you can make sure they have the finances they need for payment.  Do not release the car's title until the balance is fully paid. Wait until the money is deposited in your account before handing over the papers if the transaction is pending through a third-party provider like PayPal or CashApp.

How does the car transport process work after sale?

Car buying can be made either from a long distance location to your own neighborhood. Most of the time, sellers and buyers wonder how the transportation process works if the shipping ends up being long-distance. Fortunately, doing this is quite simple and quick. 

First, you should start up by searching for an auto-transportation company that is trusted and counts with qualified experience on vehicle shipping. Some of them, like AmeriFreight, provide excellent transportation services with multiple shipping options, long or short distance transfers and personalized customer services. After that, you can request a quote to know how much the estimated shipping cost will be, and proceed to the transportation process.

Take into consideration that each of the sites listed above, have different selling or buying targets, methods and characteristics. All of them are trustable and helpful if you're looking for an easy and quick way to buy or sell your vehicle. It's just a matter of choosing the right one for you based on your needs. Hopefully, you'll have a successful experience!