Car Auctions Or Car Dealerships, Finding The Best Deals

The traditional method of buying a car is to either look in the newspaper or to visit your local car dealership. Both are great venues to find your new or used automobile but if you know what you are doing, you can find deals in both places. Whether you choose a car dealership or a car auction each site offers different benefits and drawbacks. You as an individual must decide which site offers the best opportunities for your financial situation and your happiness with your purchase. Weigh the options carefully and you will be surprised what kind of deals you might be able to get your hands on.

The car dealership does have some advantages over the car auction depending on how you look at it. The car dealership can offer incentives that will make the purchase of your car more affordable. They can offer rebates and other monetary incentives that can relive your initial payment or down payment. At the car auction there are neither incentives nor warranties. The car auction expects you to pay the price that you bid on at the moment you purchase with no discounts. The positive twist on this is the initial price is a lot lower than buying from a car lot. You really have to look at the difference in the initial price of a car auction and the initial cost of a dealership after you get your rebate or discount.

An advantage that the car auction of the dealership is that there is no hidden costs. The price of the vehicle will start low but will rise in small increments until the car is sold to the highest bidder. This is more realistic than having a high sticker price and then having to haggle to a lower price. This is again up for circumstance. The deal you get at the car lot may be better if you are a good haggler and are able to bring the sticker price down significantly. At the car auction you are at the whim of other buyers around you who can destroy your dream price by bidding higher than you wish to go. Either way, it is time and location that dictates your deal unless you are really skilled at making a deal no matter what barriers you run against.

The car auction is exciting as you deal and compete with numerous other buyers. It is kind of a carnival like atmosphere and can even become a social event type atmosphere. At the car lot you deal with one person and the financial arrangements are argued between you and just one other party. Either location is a great place to find a new vehicle. It is your choice to pick the best venue that will deliver the best car for the best price. Try both. Go to a car auction first and see what is available and what you can afford to obtain. If that does not work, the next day visit the local car dealerships and try to find the best deal.