It is always wise to be informed before getting into any big decisions. One of the biggest decisions that we may encounter in our lives is whether or not to sell or which car to buy. And the Kelley Blue Book is a valuable tool which ascertains the best returns for your cars in the market.
There are many ways in which you can get returns for your car. One of the more common methods is trading it in. This allows you to avoid the use of money in its physical form and just gets you something in return once you return the car that you have been using to the same dealership or manufacturer. In fact, you may get another car in return of the same value. But if the car you traded in does not equal the value of the car that you wanted, you may only need to add what lacks in your cars value.
Again, before getting into these things it may be best to study up. This way you may walk away if you are not getting the best deal that you know you can get. Never settle for anything less than what you are expecting. This will save you a lot of effort and a lot of money which you may get.
It is easy to gain access to this convenient information. First is to log on to the Kelley Blue Book’s web page. Once in, you click on the link which read Used Cars to start processing the value of the car that you are planning to trade-in. KBB is also a great resource for RV and offer Kelley Blue Book used RV values. It is necessary to look for the specific manufacturer, model, and the year that the car was produced to get an idea of KBB trade in value. This will help the system narrow down the selection.
Next is choosing the correct valuation. The web page will provide you with three values of different ranges. These options are Trade-in, Private Sale and Dealership. Choose the option that read Trade-in.
Pick the deeper detail of the car you are looking for. In simpler terms, you are looking for your car’s trim. This is Kelley Blue Book’s method of distinguishing your car from other cars of the same model and make. You should be certain that the trim you choose is the right one because this can also affect the value that its system comes up with.
In addition, you may also enter the accessories that you may have added while the car is in your hands. This is important because this will definitely increase your car’s value. You should not settle to what the Kelley Blue Book’s page gives you because these are still standard value for standard cars. The equipments you add are not incorporated into a car’s original design and each may have its own value. When stacked together, it may help in valuing your car even more.
In addition, you should also include the car’s mileage. This will be a good estimate regarding the car’s wear and tear.
After providing all the necessary data, the KBB system will generate a number which could be an estimate to your car’s true market value. Again, this is just an estimate and if your car’s condition is still in top shape, it may value even more.
The Equation
It is true that Kelley Blue Book has the same source point with Edmunds. They collect their data from auctions and dealerships across the country. But the equations that they use in coming up with an estimate is different. So, do not expect the values to be exactly the same in every resource point.
Categories
The two may also differ in the number of categories that they use in classifying the car’s overall condition. Edmunds has five while KBB has four. In addition, the criteria used in classifying may also vary.
The Dealership’s Way of Use
Dealer’s use the guide provided by KBB because its valuation of cars is lesser compared to the one that is being provided by Edmonds. This is in no way biased towards the dealers. KBB defends that this is a result of the algorithms that they use which was mentioned earlier to be different among the two.
Way in Getting the Full Trade-in Value
The values reflected in the blue book are those which were derived from the price guide provided by KBB. This enlists the different values for trade-ins, private party, and dealership prices. You need to specific depending on the method you are planning to get rid of the car.
When studying the blue book, you may need to focus on the following: Familiarizing with the KBB trade in value of the car, your car’s details, and the vehicles fluid levels and tire pressure. You may and must ask questions when you are in front of the dealer. In addition, you should not rely solely on the values which are reflected on the blue book because these are just estimates and may value higher or lower when it comes to actually inspection.
