Now that I bought a car, I had to sell my good old Camry, a 2008 model which had just exceeded the 100k mark. That truly was a dramatic experience. I came across a variety of people or should I say amusing "characters". Each to their own agenda I guess. I myself had to transform what can you my stand a few times as the conditions changed from aggressive "take it or leave it" to "what can you really offer". Eventually made the "deal" yesterday without compromising too much on the car's value. Camry being my first car in Australia I had not known or should I say I did not bother to do certain things that will impact the value of the car when it comes to selling it off.
One huge lesson for me is to maintain "log books" aka service history. I didn't find this as so critical in the US market, but here that seems to be the bible. If the service history is not maintained that brings down the value of the car - regardless of the current running condition. While I did get the car serviced regularly I was not perfect in keeping records. A good time to sell is when you still have a few months left in your car registration and preferably before you have to pay your next insurance payment.
As in most markets, the 2 ways of selling a car was to sell it to a private party or to a dealer. In Sydney I found a 3rd category of car "buyers" who apparently give a "fair" value for your car. I read somewhere on the web that when I was buying a new car not to discuss a trade-in as that will dilute the negotiation / bargaining possibilities on the purchase. Hence I kept that out of the equation during the buying process. The so called commercial buyers tend to bring the value down by almost 60% of what you could get from a private deal. I found it easier to be in a position not to be under pressure of time to sell the car off. Less pressure - more power I guess (and vice versa).
Now that I concluded on selling it off privately, I had to advertise the car's availability. I first started with my immediate group of friends using social media - Facebook and Whatsapp. I posted an ad via my friendly cab driver who shared the photos over their network. There was some traction through these channels but not much. Then there are paid and free public channels. I didn't go for the paid channels - maybe I would have if I was not lucky by now. I chose the Gumtree site which did attract attention and sometimes in ways more than what I would have wanted.
Initially I tried posting an "asking price" which was really what I was expecting (maybe slightly more), but human psychology meant that one should always start with a few thousands less. Eventually I started advertising with a much jacked up price (withing reasonable limits of course) and then went low once they started negotiating. My car was not in the best possible shape especially with respect to external features. There were some scratches around and the seat upholstery was a bit soiled (family car eh!!) etc. While I couldn't do much about the paint work, I did get the interiors cleaned to make it more presentable.
One key lesson to remember was to ensure the seriousness of a buyer regardless of who it is. There was this prospect who was a friend of my friend. He was quite keen on buying it, price point agreed upon etc. etc. All I had to do was send my bank details for him to transfer. Being an acquaintance I did not bother to get any token advance which would sort of "seal the deal". Because this guy "agreed" to buy it I took the car off the market and told other people who were interested that the car was sold. After a few hours the guy got cold feet and wanted an "assessment" made for the car. Long story short...he ended up not wanting to buy.
There were a few interesting conversations where one wanted to know which part of India I was from maybe so he can change his bargaining position accordingly. I made some mistakes too being overly aggressive initially. I had to bring myself down to reality and have realistic expectations of what I could get.
One of the best experiences was from a scammer. It first started with an SMS with the address as "Gumtree" which made it look so legitimate. Then on the conversations happened over email. Someone was trying to buy a car from New Zealand for his son in Australia. The conversations went back and forth and eventually became too good to be true. Thankfully I did a little bit of research and found that to be a scam. Apparently such scams are common when one posts an advertisement in those websites like Gumtree (equivalent of Craigslist).
Facebook has some interesting characters as well. I did get a few interested parties. The best was when someone "Liked" my Ad and asked me what Camry meant when I reached out to him post his "Like".
Eventually one Punjabi guy contacted me after viewing the Ad on Gumtree. 2 guys came over, had a quick look, a short test drive and we agreed upon the amount. This time I took a token of $50 to seal the deal. Thankfully they turned up next day as promised with cash and took the car. Long Live Gumtree!!
So long folks. Until next time.
C
One key lesson to remember was to ensure the seriousness of a buyer regardless of who it is. There was this prospect who was a friend of my friend. He was quite keen on buying it, price point agreed upon etc. etc. All I had to do was send my bank details for him to transfer. Being an acquaintance I did not bother to get any token advance which would sort of "seal the deal". Because this guy "agreed" to buy it I took the car off the market and told other people who were interested that the car was sold. After a few hours the guy got cold feet and wanted an "assessment" made for the car. Long story short...he ended up not wanting to buy.
There were a few interesting conversations where one wanted to know which part of India I was from maybe so he can change his bargaining position accordingly. I made some mistakes too being overly aggressive initially. I had to bring myself down to reality and have realistic expectations of what I could get.
One of the best experiences was from a scammer. It first started with an SMS with the address as "Gumtree" which made it look so legitimate. Then on the conversations happened over email. Someone was trying to buy a car from New Zealand for his son in Australia. The conversations went back and forth and eventually became too good to be true. Thankfully I did a little bit of research and found that to be a scam. Apparently such scams are common when one posts an advertisement in those websites like Gumtree (equivalent of Craigslist).
Facebook has some interesting characters as well. I did get a few interested parties. The best was when someone "Liked" my Ad and asked me what Camry meant when I reached out to him post his "Like".
Eventually one Punjabi guy contacted me after viewing the Ad on Gumtree. 2 guys came over, had a quick look, a short test drive and we agreed upon the amount. This time I took a token of $50 to seal the deal. Thankfully they turned up next day as promised with cash and took the car. Long Live Gumtree!!
So long folks. Until next time.
C
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