Buying a used car?

I will soon be buying a car for the first time. I can really only afford a used car max $12,000. How should I go about financing(pay for it all at once, or in payments), where can I get the best deals, should I get it certified, and what kind of car would be best to purchase?

Buying a used car?

Your best bet would be a Honda, Toyota, or Nissan. The Honda may cost you more but they have a great reputation, and great resale value. I see a lot of recomendations to go to Carmax. Carmax is supposed to be a one price store. But shop around and compare prices before you buy. If you can pay cash that%26#039;s the best way to go, and not have any monthly payments. Remeber that a car is a depreciating assett, so don%26#039;t go overboard and waste your hard earned money.

Some tips on buying, don%26#039;t tell the salesman how much you want to spend, do some homework first and you%26#039;ll have an idea of what the cars should run. You can always check car prices at Edmunds.com but I would just use them as a guide.

Don%26#039;t tell the salesman how much you just love the car. Act like you don%26#039;t really care and that it might be a second or third choice.

Don%26#039;t say I have to have a car right away because I have something I have to do.

Don%26#039;t be afraid to get up and leave without buying if you don%26#039;t like the price.

And if you are a payment buyer, don%26#039;t tell them your max payment amount, or the car you get will be at your max or above.

That goes something like this.

Hi welcome to ABC Motors, what can I show you today, Oh hey I%26#039;m just looking, %26quot;that%26#039;s great were you looking for a two door or four door?%26quot; A four door, %26quot;great, you looking for a lite or dark color? A lite color, %26quot;Was there a particular model you were thnking of?%26quot; Well a friend of mine has an accord, %26quot;we have some of those over here, lets go look.%26quot; Will you be paying cash or do we need to help you arrange financing?%26quot; I probably need financing, great we can do that, what kind of monthly payment were you thinking you could afford?%26quot; Oh I was thinking about $400. %26quot;Ok so from around $400 up to?%26quot;

Right there is where they get you. You were thinking $375 but said $400, now he%26#039;s gettin you to bump yourself by saying, I guess I could go $450. At about $25.00 per thousand, they can increase the price of your car by $2000.00

Remember a good salesman sells about 20 to 30 cars a month so they have lots of practice, you may buy a car once every few years.

Hope my thirty years of car experiance helps someone.

Carguy

http://buy-here-pay-here-dealers.com

Buying a used car?

Visit Carmax where their sales consultants will help you get into a car for $12K. Remember to include taxes, tags and extended warranties (if any) in the car purchase.