I tried a new way to sell a car and am a big fan.
In the past when I have needed to sell a car, I have sold it myself on Craigslist. It’s been a huge pain, with lots of no-shows, scams, and low ball offers. Truly miserable experience.
Things are busy right now with young kids, so I was tempted to just trade in our old car and accept that I would get a little less than usual. I went ahead and got a quote from the dealer we were buying from, as well as a “Sell your car” offer on Kelley Blue Book. They we about $5000 less than I thought I could get selling it myself. I decided that was too much and geared up to sell it myself. As a follow-up, I got offers from CarMax, Carvana, and Vroom, all online. CarMax and Carvana were about $1500 more than the dealer. Vroom was a whopping $4500 higher, very near my best guess of where I would be able to sell the car. The quotes from each service varied quite a bit day-to-day (volatility in the car market?). I was skeptical of Vroom since I had had no experience with them, but went for it. It was super easy. They have you do an online notary service with a power of attorney, send in the title, pick up the car, and direct deposit the funds. It was super easy and painless, and a huge money savings compared to trading the car in and a huge hassle saver compared to selling it myself. Highly recommended.
