How To Buy A Car On Craigslist, Wisely

As a long-time auto auctioneer and professional car buyer I have found some surprisingly good deals on Craigslist. Everything from an old 1979 Cadillac DeVille with a wrench sticking out of the carburetor for $500 that now runs fine, to a late-model Jeep Grand Cherokee that I bought for peanuts because the owner didn’t have the title. (For that one I just verified that there was no lien, and applied for a bonded title which took a couple of months.)

And I wouldn’t trust a seller on Craigslist with the time of day.

Most “individual” sellers on Craigslist are not actually owners; they’re dealers. These folks blow their thin cover by using the same corny clichés that were around 30 years ago—"RUNS GREAT,“ “CLEAN TITLE!,” and “PRICED TO SELL!” (What isn’t?) Certain car dealers also love to tweak the pricing in their advertisements so that a $2,000 car is $1,995 and a $5,000 car is $4,995. Old habits, even dumb ones, are hard to break.

But it gets worse once certain unscrupulous individuals are added to the mix. I can’t tell you how many times I have seen pictures on Craigslist that are not of the actual car for sale. An awful lot of Craigslist sellers Google their pictures instead of taking their own. Other times you can get a stunning lack of pictures for all the wrong reasons. Some are lazy, while others are simply trying to hide that big dent and the ratted-out interior.

All this deception often leads to a big waste of time once you see the car in person. It’s a sucker’s game. If all you do is view the listing, call, ask basic questions, and then drive out to see the car, you’re likely going to waste a lot of free time and spin your own tires. (Not to mention put yourself in danger; any CL meeting should take place in public—like, say, a police station parking lot.)

This is how you break that cycle and find a vehicle worth buying:

Get The VIN First: I buy over 500 vehicles a year and I research the vehicle’s history report on every single one of them. A lot of folks believe you should just simply avoid those cars with accident histories and try to buy those that were dealer maintained, but most accidents are minor and many new-car dealers don’t report their service records. The VIN is useful because it allows you to begin constructing the vehicle’s real ownership history.

Figure Out The Owner: The main reason why you want to know the basics of a car’s history is so that you can figure out if the person you are speaking on the phone is capable of being truthful with you. When a seller tells me they owned the car for six years and the vehicle history shows they only owned it for six months, I know not to waste any more of my time. Also, if I see areas where there is no maintenance history at all, I can ask the seller directly and have them fill in those gaps. Most sincere sellers are happy to provide this information. Scammers and bad prior owners will all too often dance around this simple question if they can’t provide the details.

Be Conversational, Not An Interviewer: Nobody likes to be asked 17 questions about a car. The Sherlock approach of constantly asking, "How are the tires, radio, wheels, etc.” can be downright brutal. I prefer to ask open-ended questions such as: "I like to catch up on maintenance whenever I buy a car. Can you tell me where the car was serviced and what you’ve done to it lately?”

This is a good time to be quiet and have a strong ear. Let the owner tell the story of the car and write this information down. Once they’re finished, you can offer a related follow-up question such as “Is there anything else I’ll need to do it in the next year or so?” I try to keep the question to no more than three and let the owner explain the real history.

Be Nice And Polite: Words like “can” and “would” are far less confrontational than “Tell me” or “I want to know.” It’s non-threatening, and the polite approach encourages the owner to provide additional information. Remember, it’s better to engage in a sincere casual conversation with the seller than constantly barrage them with questions. If they loved the car and took care of it, you’ll know soon enough. If all they tell you is a short answer, "I just changed the oil.” or “it won’t need anything,” that’s a red flag that you’re talking to a dealer or an opportunist.

Don’t Fall Into The CL Price Trap: Buyers all too often see cars on Craigslist that have hidden problems and are priced so that the seller can quickly pass them onto you. The existence of these lowball prices often encourages buyers to lowball perfectly good vehicles that are worth a lot more. To avoid this habit, I use publicly available private-party values and adjust for the condition. If I want to buy a car in excellent condition, I price it out that way.

Condition Is Always Your Priority: When it comes to older used cars, it’s not the model of the car that usually matters the most. It’s the driver who kept it on the road and maintained it all this time. You’re always investing in a person on Craigslist and as the car gets older, that person has by far the biggest impact on your long-term satisfaction.

Never negotiate over the phone: One question you never ask the seller is, "What’s your lowest price?” Nobody likes to be shaken down by a stranger. If you’re smart, you’ll also have the vehicle looked at by an experienced mechanic before even discussing the final price. If their price seems high in this beginning, you can leverage this by mentioning that you plan on taking the car to the mechanic and asking if they are negotiable on the price. By the way, you would be surprised how many Craigslist sellers refuse to let their cars be looked at by a mechanic.

Craigslist can work for you, but you have to work at it. Focus on the prior owner of the car and the history behind their ownership. The spammers, the trolls, the curbstoners, and the con-men will all lie on multiple levels, and they’re definitely out there. But if you choose to arm yourself with a healthy level of knowledge and watch for the tell-tale signs, you can find your next best car at a perfectly fair price.