Hi all,
I've been checking out used cars on Craigslist and found one that I will likely go see this weekend. My plan is to take it to a mechanic for a pre-purchase check up and negotiate from there, provided no major issues are discovered. My issue right now is figuring out how to prep for the negotiation and deciding what I think a fair price is for the car.
The challenge is that there is a pretty significant difference between the Edmunds and Kelly Blue Book estimates for this type of car, and what every single listing on Craigslist in my area are for this type of car. Some numbers for same model car, same year:
KBB: $10-$11 depending on condition
Edmunds: $11600
List price: $14500
List prices of similar cars on Craigslist in my area right now: $15.7K, $16K, $16k (all private party)
I checked out a similar car a few weekends ago and tried some pre-negoatiating with the seller, pointing out the discrepancy between his list price and KBB. He basically said "Look, I've owned three of this type of car and they always sell for more than KBB. Just check Craigslist.". I checked Craigslist and all the listings I saw confirmed what he said.
How would you handle this?