About the Expert
You might be asking yourself the same question that I always do right before I read advice or instructions on how to do anything: Why should I listen to you? What makes you an "expert" on buying and selling used vehicles?
As far back as I can remember, I have been obsessed with and fascinated by vehicles, specifically cars. I have bought and sold no less than 18 vehicles in the nine years that I have been licensed to drive them. Seventeen of those vehicles I bought and sold privately. All were mechanically sound when I bought them and when I sold them. I take pride in my vehicles and every one that I have bought or sold has been in perfect mechanical and driving condition, and every single one of them was a great deal. There was one exception, a motorcycle I purchased brand new. When I sold it I lost over $2500 and I was probably lucky that I didn’t lose more. It was an expensive lesson for any person to learn, especially for a 19 year-old. After selling that motorcycle, which was one year old and had only 6000 kilometers on the odometer, for $7500, I thought to myself: why didn’t I just buy a one year-old used motorcycle in the first place! And I have practiced this method of buying and selling used vehicles ever since.
It is my sincere belief that the free tips and advice on this website can and will save you thousands if you use them correctly whether you are buying or selling. I am an expert on buying and selling used vehicles privately, and believe me that expertise is the result of much frustration, trial, error, and money wasted. I had no guidance when I began buying used vehicles; had a site like this existed I would have saved thousands of dollars and much stress and frustration. May you benefit from my personal experience and mistakes.
By buying and selling used vehicles I have found a way that I can always drive a nearly brand new car that is still covered by factory warranty, all while saving thousands of dollars on depreciation. I usually buy and sell my used vehicles an average of one to two times every 12 months. Ninety percent of the time I get exactly the price I ask for the vehicle within two weeks of deciding to sell it. I have such a high success rate with selling because I choose my used vehicle purchases very carefully. I will explain exactly what I look for in the "buying tips" section of this site. I also buy and sell used vehicles because it is fun once you learn how. It’s exciting always getting a nicer, newer vehicle; and once you understand how to do so quickly and easily, it can become fun for you also.
I know that most people are probably thinking, "what if everyone starts buying and selling used vehicles and nobody buys new?" My answer to that is there will always be people who need the status of a brand new vehicle, and let them pay for it! There will always be people who couldn’t be bothered to invest a few hours in finding a great used vehicle, no matter how much it saves them. And there will always be people lured into dealerships by fancy advertising, zero percent financing, cash back give aways, and easy approvals. If you are visiting this site, I would bet that you would rather take the thousands of dollars you can save and spend it on other things instead of losing it needlessly.
The best part about this knowledge is this: buying and selling used vehicles is so easy that anyone can learn to do it! The main things you need to know are: what to look for when buying, and the fastest and easiest way to sell your used vehicle—information that is included in this site! This is the reason I published this site. I want to share my knowledge of how to buy or sell a great used vehicle and have the transaction benefit you and the seller or buyer. As long as you have integrity and disclose a vehicle’s full history, and you ensure that a seller is doing so also, then privately buying and selling used vehicles is mutually beneficial. No matter what price range, anyone can find a great used vehicle if they know what they are looking for. The methods, tips, and advice I present to the reader have worked for me, and I know they can work for you.
I want one thing to be very clear, however; I do not advocate buying or selling used vehicles for a profit. My tips and advice are intended to teach everyday people, like myself, how they can save thousands of dollars by buying and selling the vehicles they use for daily transportation. I publicly condemn all people and business involved in selling garbage or salvaged vehicles if they are not 100 percent upfront and honest about the vehicle’s history and current mechanical condition. Shame on anyone who sells a used vehicle under false pretenses, for it is they who deter people from buying and selling used vehicles. Fortunately the problem is self-correcting, these people and businesses are usually exposed as the frauds they are and go under, but unfortunately the story of the person who bought the lemon is a popular one and discourages some from buying a used vehicle. For this reason I share my personal experience, knowledge, tips, and advice—to help the average person find a great used vehicle and to avoid used vehicle "traffickers" who are selling garbage vehicles for profit. If you own a used vehicle and you know that it has major mechanical or other problems, sell it to a dealership. A dealership will often give you the same amount for a lemon as for any other used vehicle. This is because dealerships have professional mechanics who can fix vehicle problems for about half of what it would cost you personally. Think about it, would they charge themselves as much to fix a vehicle as they would charge you?
You may have been wondering: why all the Auto Trader and CanadaSuperSeller.com ads? It has become my personal mission to not only tell everyone about buying and selling used vehicles, but also to promote services that get results. Auto Trader may charge high rates and there may be some aspects about their service that people do not like, but their service gets the best results out of currently available sites. I promote CanadaSuperSeller.com because, while they are a new company, their customer service is incredible and they offer low rates and highly technical service. I believe their business has the potential to become the best way to buy or sell a used vehicle.
Should I find other services for buying and selling used vehicles that work and charge reasonable rates, you will read about them on this website. I am dedicated first and foremost to promoting buying and selling used vehicles. Therefore I will promote any business for buying and selling used vehicles that offers the most value for the least cost and gets the best results. If you know of or own such a service please feel free to contact me and I will investigate it. If I deem it to be one of the best I will include links in my "guides" text free of charge.
People often ask me if I am against dealerships. Absolutely not, the service that dealerships provide definitely has its place. Some people have money to burn and only want to drive brand new vehicles and dealerships make owning a new vehicle possible for them. Often dealerships offer the lowest rates on routine maintenance such as oil changes, etc. Dealerships also have highly trained technical mechanics that specialize in the make of your vehicle. They can usually fix your vehicle properly and quickly the first time.
What I am against, however, is giving thousands of my dollars to profit other businesses when I can put that money to better use. I am against any business or salesperson that lures the public with clever advertising and then finances them for vehicles they cannot or should not afford to purchase.
The problems are: advertising that makes you feel like you need the status of a new vehicle, zero percent financing, cash back giveaways, and other tricks to get you to buy new.
The solution is: being aware that buying used vehicles is not only possible but easy. It is using a deliberate, logical, and well thought-out plan to buy your next vehicle while avoiding losing thousands of dollars to depreciation.
It is my sincere hope that after reading the information on this site (or in my book), you will have learned how to buy or sell a used vehicle quickly and easily. I also hope that you will learn that buying and selling used vehicles is a great alternative to trade-ins or to buying new.
It is my mission to help those who are preparing to buy or sell a used vehicle avoid the costly mistakes I have made and that I have seen others make. Using these tips and methods has worked for me in the past and continues to do so. As someone who has been practicing what I preach for the last nine years, I take a lot of what I have learned for granted and sometimes forget that this is not common knowledge or practice. Most people do not have a clue where to begin when it comes to selling or buying a vehicle. They trade their vehicle into a dealership or spend hundreds listing it for sale with services that do not perform. Then, even worse, they buy a new vehicle. It is for this reason that I share my knowledge of buying and selling used vehicles in my book and on my website.
Happy buying and selling!
Jamie
