Sellers today know that in order to sell any car in Dubai easily, safely, and fast, they need to go to a dealership to cash their cars.

Ok, now that you’ve sold your car, you’re going to want to buy a replacement car. In this case, you’re wondering, “should I go to a private seller, or should I purchase my new used car through a dealership as well?”

Read on to learn which option works best for you and how to make financially smart decisions when you want to buy a used car:

Price

When you decide to purchase a used car, you already know it is going to be cheaper than a brand-new car.

However, you are still going to find a difference in the asking price between dealerships and private owners.

A private owner will usually have a lower asking price than a dealership. They might even sell you the vehicle you want for less than what they’ve asked for at first if you negotiate with them. This is either because they’ve taken into consideration that you will bargain the price, so they already set a high number to leave room for negotiation, or because they’d rather sell the cars they have and get them off their hands as soon as possible than wait for the perfect car buyer.

Also, keep in mind that, unlike dealers who need to make a profit on each car they sell, private sellers don’t have the same concern. Most of the time, they want to sell their old car so they can buy a new one.

For dealerships, they usually have a little bit higher asking prices, but that’s because they have many costs to cover from the extra profit they earn on the cars that they sell.

On the other hand, dealerships give you the option to trade in your current car for a new used car that they have, whereas private sellers almost never do that.

Financing Options:

When you purchase your new used car from a dealer, you have the option to pay the whole thing upfront, but if you cannot afford to do so, then you can make small payments over a period of time.

This is called in-house financing, where you are allowed by the dealership to make payments on a weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly basis.

If you choose to take the lower price from a private seller, you must be prepared to pay the full asking price upfront with no option for installments.

However, what you can do in this case is to get financing from another source, like take a loan for example, and that can be turned in installment payments.

Vehicle Condition

Making the decision to purchase your used car at a dealership gives you some peace of mind and a sense of security, especially if you’re buying what’s called a certified pre-owned vehicle.

A certified pre-owned vehicle is a used vehicle that has gone through official inspection and had all parts that need replacement to be swapped for original equipment manufacturer (OEM) parts. It comes with the CARFAX report of ownership, accidents, and repairs, along with a warranty to guarantee that it’s functional and reliable.

Additionally, dealerships have reputations to uphold, and they won’t compromise it by deliberately selling a defective vehicle. 

However, when buying your vehicle through a private sale, you have three keys that will guide you in determining how confident you should be in closing the deal.

First, assuming the seller is the first and last owner of this vehicle, ask yourself how do they seem to be caring for their car? Have they shown signs of trustworthiness?

Second, buy your own vehicle history report that shows you all the repairs, accidents, unfixed safety recalls, and whether there is still money owing on the car.

Third, take the car for a test drive, and take notes beyond how comfortable you feel sitting on those leather seats. Pay attention to how smoothly does the car shift from park to drive mood, for example. Ask yourself, did that feel ok? Did the car make any noises?

Open and close each window. If they glitch, then the car could have electrical problems, and we don’t want that.

These are all necessary steps to make sure that the value of the car fits with the asking price and whether it is really going to be an investment that you’ll appreciate later rather than regret. 

There are always going to be pros and cons, advantages and disadvantages. Determine which option is better for you, a dealership or a private seller, and regardless of what you end up choosing, there is no harm in having a mechanic inspect it for you and give you green light. Happy car shopping!

Author: Muhamad Omari from CarWise.ae