Trading in your car: how to get a fair value

Your current vehicle is often the second biggest number in a new car deal, right after the price of the car you are buying. Yet many people spend weeks researching the new vehicle and five minutes thinking about the trade. A little preparation goes a long way.

Start with what actually drives the offer: year, mileage, trim and equipment, the condition of the paint, interior and tires, accident history, and how much demand there is for that model right now. Local demand matters. A small SUV that sells quickly in South Florida can be worth more than the same vehicle somewhere it sits on the lot.

Gather your paperwork before anyone looks at the car. That means the title or your loan information, both keys, the owner's manual and any service records. Proof of regular maintenance tells an appraiser the car was cared for, and a missing second key is one of the easiest deductions to avoid.

Presentation counts too. A thorough cleaning inside and out costs little and changes first impressions. Small fixes such as a burned out bulb or a warning light you already know about are worth addressing. Large repairs, on the other hand, rarely pay for themselves before a trade.

If you still owe money on the car, know your payoff amount. When the trade is worth more than the payoff, the difference works like a down payment. When it is worth less, that gap has to go somewhere, and you want to see exactly where before you sign.

Most important, look at the trade and the purchase together. A generous trade-in number means little if it is recovered elsewhere in the deal. In Florida, the value of your trade-in is generally subtracted from the price before sales tax is figured, which is one more reason to keep both numbers on the same page.

Car Advisor gets a value for your current vehicle and coordinates the trade as part of your purchase, so you see the complete picture in writing. You can start with our trade-in form in about two minutes.