How to Pay Half Price for Cars

An automobile is an important investment and a frequently expensive one. A car is a person's freedom as far as getting to and from work and other places without having to rely on someone else or wait for public transportation. Unfortunately, even used cars are usually costly and may be out of a buyer's pay range. If you want to get a car for half-price or cheaper, you really need to do your research and know where to look.

Instructions

1

Know the value of the cars you are looking at. Kelley's Blue Book and Edmunds are two free resources that can help you estimate the market value of a vehicle. This helps you figure out how much of a discount to shoot for.

2

Visit as many private sellers as possible. There are numerous ads for privately sold used cars online, in auto trade publications and in the classifieds of any local newspaper. While these vehicles could have more mechanical problems than those found at a dealership, you're more likely to get the steep discount you need as a result, depending on the needs of the seller and why he is selling the car.

3

Sign-up for an advertising program. These "Free Car" or "Get Paid to Drive" programs either give you a car to drive that has advertisements on it or place ads on a car that you provide but they pay you for it, which helps cover the price of the vehicle. You then drive around and they get advertising while you get transportation. These programs are most common in larger cities or near university campuses and they can be competitive to get into.

4

Visit public car auctions. This is probably where you'll find the best deal on a car unless you locate a private seller looking to unload a car very cheaply. The auctions consist of cars that were repossessed and the car companies simply want to get rid of them and recoup some of their investment. Police seizures are also included in these auctions and some very nice cars can be sold more then 50 percent below their resale value.

5

Contact rental car agencies to see if they are selling any of their inventory. Rental agencies frequently turn over their stock so their cars never have too high mileage on them that would make them unattractive to renters. The vehicles are normally well-maintained and could be sold at bargain prices if the renter hasn't been able to sell a car to a dealer.

6

Lease a new car. While you don't get to keep the car as your personal property, your car payments can be 50 to 60 percent less than the payments required to buy the car outright.