If you’re getting ready to take off on a digital nomad adventure, you may be wondering what to do with your car. In this article, we’ll list some top choices for how to easily sell your car before setting out for long term travel.
Your car’s value will be based on a variety of factors including: make, model, year, mechanical condition, current mileage, and the location in which you’re selling.
Check out the variety of options below for how to easily sell your car, depending on your priorities and needs.
Using a Private Marketplace to Sell Your Car
One option for selling your car is a private Marketplace. Here are a few to check out…
- Facebook Marketplace
- AutoTrader – you’ll pay for a listing, but draw more serious buyers
- Craigslist – free, but make sure to screen your potential buyers to weed out scammers
- EBay Motors – options for purchasing a listing at various price points to reach quality buyers
A private Marketplace will give you the option to find a buyer and get the deal you want.
Pros: you’ll likely be able to get a higher price from a private buyer.
Cons: you may spend time and energy finding a buyer and potentially haggling over the price.
Tips for selling to a private buyer:
- Make the time and effort to detail your car, so it looks and feels great!
- Take plenty of pictures, in good lighting, of the interior and exterior – this will help your listing get noticed.
- Be safe and smart – be on the lookout for scams, and screen potential buyers before meeting.
Selling Your Car with Carvana
If convenience and speed is your top priority, one option to sell your is Carvana. Many online reviews say that this is the most convenient. The folks at Carvana will even come to your home, do the paperwork for you there, and buy your car on the spot – so you don’t even have to go anywhere.
Personally, I considered Carvana as a top option, as I was looking for ease as a primary requirement. But, I found that Kelly Blue Book’s Instant Cash Offer gave me a better rate. Check out all your options to find out what works best for you.
Selling Your Car with CarMax
Carmax is another option. You’ll fill out your car’s details to receive a quote online, and then bring your car into a CarMax location for inspection.
Selling Your Car with Peddle
Another option is Peddle. This is a good choice if your car is older, or has significant mechanical problems. They’ll even buy non-running cars!
Using Kelly Blue Book’s Instant Cash Offer to Sell Your Car
Another option for convenience and a good rate is Kelly Blue Book’s Instant Cash Offer.
Once you’ve entered your info and received an offer online, you’ll be contacted by up to three local dealers. Bring in your car to be inspected to one or more dealers of your choice, and you have the option to sell your car on the spot to the dealership.
Which Option is Best?
When you’re getting ready to sell your car, you’ll want to consider: what’s most important to you?
Is the primary consideration getting the best possible price, and are you willing to spend some time and energy to make this happen? If so, finding a private buyer is probably your best option.
If convenience and ease are high on your priority list, and you don’t want to spend any time or energy finding and screening buyers – you may want to check out Carvana, CarMax, or Kelly Blue Book’s Instant Cash Offer.
And if your car has a lot of mechanical issues, then you may want to head over to Peddle.
What did I decide to do, as I got ready to take off for full-time travel? You can check out my experience and the outcome right here.
More Help for Your Digital Nomad Journey
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