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Buying and Selling Cars

Tick Tock: When is the Best Time of Year to Buy a Car?

When you buy your new car at the right time of year, you’re looking at saving up to thousands of dollars!

This is great news, right?

Before you run out to buy your new ride you want to make sure you know all the details about the best time of year to buy a car.

Keep reading to ensure you go at the perfect time.

When Is the Best Time of Year to Buy a Car?

Knowing when to buy your car to save money is something that is not spoken much about, but knowing this information will come in handy whether you’re buying your new vehicle from this dealership or any other. Once you have done your car research and found the perfect one for you, it’s time to choose when you will step into a dealership.

Best Month

Let’s cut to the chase the best month to buy a car is in December. This is the end of the year, and dealerships have sales quotas to meet and exceed. If they exceed their goals by a certain amount, the dealership might get a nice bonus check, and therefore they want to get you into a new car.

This means that even if they lose money off their asking price, they are fine with it and more willing to negotiate in order to gain that bonus right at the beginning of the new year.

Best Week

Out of the four weeks in December, the best week is the last one of the month. This puts you right at the end of meeting sales quotas. Salespeople, sales managers, and dealership owners are all working together to end the year with a bang with it comes to their numbers.

Your negotiations will all be taken into consideration granted they are within reason.

Best Day

Let’s take it a step further. The best day to get the lowest car price is the last day of the year. Yes, December 31st can mean saving a couple of thousand of dollars.

If you can push your new car purchase until this date we recommend it – why not save some money?

Can’t Wait Until December?

If you find yourself not being able to wait until December because it’s either too far away or you need a new vehicle like yesterday there are still other days that are better than others to save money. Going into a dealership right at the end of the quarter is another great savings day.

In case you’re not familiar with the annual end of quarter days they include March 31st, June 30th, September 30th, and December 31st.

Any time during the last week of the quarter will give you negotiating power but going that last day of the quarter puts you in the best-negotiating seat.

Best Day of the Week

If you can’t wait until December 31st the best day of the week to buy is Monday. The average person goes car shopping during the weekend because it is normally the days they have off. Very few people go into a dealership on a Monday because it is the start of their workweek.

Go in on a Monday, and you can save up to 8.10% off the new vehicles MSRP. If you can’t go in on a Monday, then Thursday is another good option. If not then Wednesday is third in line, then Friday, then Tuesday.

Basically, the worst days of the week are on the weekend. Many people think that weekends are the best because they see so many people at the dealership, but the truth is your power to negotiate lessens because they have people there ready to buy.

Do’s and Dont’s

When you’re buying a new car, you do want to buy a car that will last. The last thing you want is to invest your hard-earned money into a vehicle that is not reliable and breaks down on you.

If you invest in a car that will last you at least ten years, that is a great investment where you won’t find yourself upside down on a vehicle. Nothing worse than knowing you owe way more than your car is worth because no one wants a piece of junk.

Don’t go in over your head when it comes to finances. You want to make sure you set yourself up with a realistic budget when it comes to your car payment. You do not want to put yourself in a situation where you can’t repay your car loan.

Don’t forget to take into account other expenses that come with car ownership. You have to take into account budgeting money for full liability insurance if you are financing, plus annual registration renewals, oil changes, new brake pads, and don’t forget gas.

Also, after a few years, your car will require extra maintenance to ensure that it’s driveable. If you live in a state that requires vehicle inspections, then you will have to add that into the budget as well.

Ready for Some Car Shopping?

There you have it the best time of year to buy a car right down to the exact date. They say knowledge is power, and in this case, knowledge will save you money.

Now is the perfect time to research and find the perfect car for you to go buy in December (if you can wait until then). Make sure you show up with your negotiating hat on and make your car salesman a reasonable offer that they can’t resist.

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