How Do You Know If A Vehicle Has Been Stolen
Go to the National Insurance Crime Bureau. You can check up to five vehicles a day here. Have the VIN number ready. This number is like the car’s birth certificate. It was given to the car when it came off the assembly line and remains with the car until the day it dies.
Don’t accept the owner’s word for what the VIN is check it yourself, physically, on the car.
You can find the VIN in the following places:
- lower left corner of the dashboard, in front of the steering wheel
- inside the driver-side doorjamb
- in the rear wheel well directly above the tire
- in the front of the car frame, near the container that holds windshield washer fluid
- the front of the engine block
- underneath the spare tire
What Else Could You Flip
Nicks Notes: Another flipping business that might be worth exploring is simply buying clearance items locally, and . This is known as Amazon FBA clearance arbitrage or retail arbitrage.
It may not be as flashy as the sneaker business, but may be easier to source inventory and begin to multiply your money. , or listen in below:
And head over here to join Jessicas free 7-day course on getting started selling on Amazon.
The other flipping business I want to share is my friend Robs he runs Flea Market Flipper and Flipper University.
The guy has some crazy awesome stories about the random stuff hes found and then re-sold for big gains. And hes turned it into a full-time, 6-figure business!
Check out my interview with Rob to learn more, join his free webinar, or listen with the player app below:
And finally, theres an entire industry set up around flipping books. One guest of mine reported earning up to $4000 a month re-selling used books.
What Am I Looking For
There are hundreds of car brands, models, and styles out there so this may be difficult for someone starting out. Picking which brand or model or year is based on your own preference and over time youll get more and more familiar with what you have selected.
The easiest is to start with what you know. If youve owned a Civic or a Malibu for years, youll probably know a thing or two about them. These would then be cars you would start with. The problems youve faced, the maintenance routines, the quirks that others wont know aboutyou will. Use this to your advantage when looking and when negotiating.
Once you feel like your comfort level reached a certain point then feel free branch out. For example, say youre familiar with Toyota 4Runners since youve been driving them all of your life.
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How Do I Inspect A Car
After you show up at the sellers place , make sure you test every little thing on the car. Every power window, every button, every feature, every light, etc..
Trust me buyers are going to be picking out every flaw from you when you try to sell it later on so this is your opportunity to do the same.
There are a lot of things that can be hidden but there are a few obvious things you can look for. Visually inspect the car for rust, dents scratchesand then move on to under the hood and driving.
Put Yourself Out There
Invite car deals come to YOU! You can post on your social profile, in buy/sell/trade groups and even on Craigslist. That will also help you to build some word-of-mouth publicity, too. Although sellers may not be browsing a classified site for a place to sell their car – they could still see it, or it may connect you with someone who knows someone. Grab the attention of users by making a post similar to the one below:
Title: DONT TRADE IN YOUR CAR! SELL FOR CASH TO ME!
Description: Dealing with car salesmen and dealerships are exhausting and you will get trade-in value, which is oftentimes way lower than what the car is worth. Let me make an offer for your car and I will pick it up and pay in cash. I am looking for cars under and under . If interested, message me with the make, model, and mileage of your carand if picture if availableand I will make an immediate offer.
It is helpful to reply to emails as quickly as you can, and including the Kelly Blue Book pricing for the car in comparison to what you are willing to offer is a great way to show possible sellers that you truly are giving them a good deal. If the KBB price is 800 and you offer 950, the side by side will encourage the owner to sell.
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Do I Need A Dealer’s License If I’m Going To Be Flipping Cars
In many U.S. states, the Department of Motor Vehicles allows individuals to buy and sell three cars a year. Find out if this is the case in your particular state.
There are two ways to get around such a restriction.
After you sell the first three cars in your name, ask a family member or good friend if you can buy and sell cars in their name. They should get part of the profit.
After youâve bought and sold six or seven cars, then youâll have a nice little business on your hands. I can tell you from my own experience that when you involve others, theyâll want a piece of the pie. If you started off offering your sister 20% of the profit, after she sees a few successful, easy sales go through, she may want 50%.
So, once you’ve sold six or seven cars and built up your confidence, become a licensed dealer.
This doesnât cost a massive amount of money and is fairly straightforward. It gives you independence to operate freely and legally to buy and sell as many cars as you like throughout the year.
Car dealer license
What To Look For At Car Auctions
Car auctions are my favorite place to find cars, as they are fast and the cars can be very cheap. They also often offer repossessions or dealer trade-ins.
At car auctions I pay special attention to dirty-looking cars. Everyone avoids a dirty car because they think it’s an old wreck. It might be, but it could also have belonged to an older person who left it outside under the trees and couldn’t be bothered to clean it.
I bought a six-year-old Honda a few months ago for $250 at auction. I was the only bidder even though there were a hundred potential bidders in the room. The Honda was sitting amongst the other cars, but had a flat rear tire and its dark blue paint looked incredibly dull, flat, and tired.
When I opened the passenger door, the inside was full of old McDonald’s wrappers and a ton of other rubbish. At least there wasn’t any bad smell. It turned out to be a repossession. The dealer must have taken one look at it and been so disgusted that he sent it straight to the auction.
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How Much Wind To Flip A Car
According to a Mythbusters episode it takes winds of at least 60 mph to flip a car. The episode tested various scenarios including a car driving along a highway and being hit by a gust of wind from the side and a car driving along a road and being hit by a tornado. In both cases the car remained upright.
In the case of the highway the Mythbusters team used a wind machine to generate a gust of wind that was strong enough to topple over a SUV. The machine was able to generate winds of up to 100 mph. For the tornado scenario they used a model car and a rotating drum to simulate the winds of a tornado. The model car was flipped over at winds of around 80 mph.
So it seems that it would take quite a bit of wind to flip a car. However there are some factors that could make a car more susceptible to being flipped over by winds. For example if a car has a high center of gravity it is more likely to be flipped over by a gust of wind than a car with a lower center of gravity . Additionally if a car is not properly anchored to the ground it is more likely to be blown over by winds.
So if youre ever caught in a situation where strong winds are blowing be sure to stay away from any cars that could potentially be blown over!
Clean The Interior And Exterior Thoroughly
While this isn’t actually part of the purchase process, it’s not a negotiable step if you want to maximize your profits when you flip the car. Most of the time, an auction car is sold as-is, meaning there might be more cleaning needed than you might think. If you don’t have the time to clean the car yourself, consider a detailing service. This can be pricey , but it’s well worthwhile, especially on high-value cars.
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How Much Money Is Required To Get Started
The magical question most people are curious about. In my experience, the used cars you can buy between $1,500-$4,000are the least risky and fastest to sell.
For some, this is a large investment. If you dont have the startup capital to do this then you should probably start saving. You should definitely start flipping smaller items and build up your bank. Luckily Flipping Income has a ton of ideas for you to explore.
Cars between the range of $1,500-$4,000 can net a profit of $1,000-$2,000 profit. That is serious money and serious profit margins for a single flip. This is why flipping cars is so popular. Compared to books, electronics, clothes or anything elsenothing comes close to cars with the exception of houses.
How Long Has The Car Been Sitting Undriven
The answer to this question could help you avoid a money trap. If a car has sat for too long without being driven, things can break shortly after you get it back on the road. Low mileage is normally a good thing, but if the car lacks mileage because it’s been sitting for any length of time, you might be looking at extra maintenance.
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List The Car For Sale
Once youve got the car fixed ready, its time to list it for sale!
Take a look back at how much you think the car will sell for, by looking at the fair market value.
You will also want to consider the lowest amount that you are willing to take for the car. You will probably get people trying to negotiate with you too, and dont want to lose out on too much profit.
Look at where other similar cars have been listed and selling in your local area, as this will give you a good idea of where to list it.
That doesnt mean that you should only list in one place, however, as it would be preferable to have lots of advertisements because then theres a greater chance that your buyer will see it.
Craigslist is a good one to start with because its free and very popular.
What You Need To Know When Flipping A Car
If you decide to test your meddle by flipping a car, there are a number of things you should be aware of when picking a flip candidate. It doesnt really matter if you are going to flip a 1929 Ford, or a 2007 Toyota Prius. There are some basic principles and balance checks you need to perform along the way.
Lets look at whats important to know ahead of time, and what you need to research.
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Getting Started Learn The Art Of Car Flipping
Most people think car flipping is really nothing more than buying low and selling high. While that’s a general explanation, it’s superficial at best. Car flipping is actually a bit more complicated. There are several aspects a successful car flipper must get right, such as:
- Having a basic understanding of state and local vehicle laws, such as how long you can hold a vehicle without registering it and when you’re required to get a dealer’s license to sell cars.
- Knowing where to find the best undervalued vehicles for sale and how to get them.
- Understanding your local market for used cars.
Do I Need A Car Flipping Business Plan
When you are planning on making money, its always a good idea to have a business plan.
In fact, its the first thing I recommend doing whenever someone presents a money-making idea.
Even if you are planning on doing this casually and on a small scale, you still want to make money from it. That means that you need to have a proper plan for it.
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Check The Vehicles History
If youve found something youre interested in, use the cars VIN , to run a quick check on the car through a couple of different databases. You can do this on-site, and its easiest to keep the websites pulled up on your phone even before you look at a vehicle.Running the VIN helps you avoid cars that wont sell well and will help you sell a safe car.Youll want to run the VIN through the National Insurance Crime Bureau to ensure it hasnt been stolen or reported as a salvage vehicle. Having a salvage title means something happened to it flooding or severe damage that has caused an insurance company to deem it a total loss. Even if its restored, a seller probably wont get damage coverage on it. Plus, according to Kelly Blue Book, vehicles with a salvage title sell for 20-40% less. That might be good when youre buying it, but not when youre trying to flip a car.The other database you should check is SaferCar.gov. Youll learn if the car hasnt been repaired as part of a recall in the past 15 years.Those first two are free, but many flippers also like paying for a Carfax or AutoCheck report, which shows a vehicles history, including ownership and accidents.
Set A Budget For Your Efforts & Each Flip Candidate
You already know that we are big fans of budgeting here on The Savvy Couple!
You will need to make sure that you have a budget for this side business idea.
Start-Up Costs To Consider
Pretty much all new businesses will have start-up costs. What do you need in order to start flipping cars?
It goes without saying that you will need to have some money to start with to buy the first car.
Youll likely want to buy a used car in really good condition, so research and the cost of the car are both a part of your budget.
The amount of money that you allocate for this will depend largely on how much money you have and want to put into this.
Something to think about is how many you want to do at once. When you are just starting, it may be best to do one at a time so it doesnt get out of control.
Hidden Flipping Costs To Consider
Whenever you are starting on a new venture, its really important to prepare for any hidden costs.
The main one could be making sure that any repairs needed arent more extensive than you originally thought. It may be worth taking a mechanic with you if possible.
Buying Flip Cars With Cash vs. Financing
Another thing that you may be considering is if you should buy the cars in cash or with financing.
As the plan is to make money from this venture, the best thing to do mathematically would be to buy in cash as then you are not paying any interest on it.
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Estimate Costs Of Repairs And Prepare Your Budget
After you’ve uncovered any problems the car has, estimate how much it will cost to fix the issues yourself or at a local trusted repair shop. Prepare a budget for the entire fix and stick to it. AAA has a handy repair cost estimator that can help you find out approximately how much your repairs will cost on any make or model across the United States.
When creating your budget, remember these factors:
Negotiate A Final Price
Once youve done thorough due diligence, cut to the chase.
If youre buying at auction, bid on the car when it comes up. Remain unemotional: The quickest way to destroy your margins is to get into a bidding war that pushes the sale price past your top dollar. If other bidders want the car more, let them have it. There are plenty more on the lot, no doubt.
In a private party sale, try to drive the seller down to their bottom dollar . This is where knowing how to spot motivated sellers comes in handy, even without a clear giveaway like OBO in the listing. Ask the seller why theyre parting with the car. If youre lucky, theyll reveal that theyre trying to raise money or need to sell fast in advance of a long-distance move sure signs that theyre willing to budge on price.
While its harder to walk away from a private deal when youre face to face with the seller, the same unemotional logic applies here: Its better to abandon a transaction in progress than to get stuck with a bad deal. Youll find a better flip.
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