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When Is The Best Time To Buy A Car

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The Last Day Or Two Of The Month

Heres Why Now is the Best Time to Buy a Car

The best day of the month to shop for cars will be the last day or two of the month. This is when the dealership will do everything to finalise new car deals.

Take advantage of the car dealers desperation! They wouldnt think twice about doing the same to you when it comes to getting the most money out of a sale!

Buy At The End Of A Model Year

Along with buying a car at the end of the calendar year, keep an eye on when vehicle models reach the end of their model year. This is the time when car companies start bringing out new versions of their vehicles. And, when the new versions roll out, dealers want to offload last year’s models as soon as possible, which means offering discounts and other incentives on the rest of the inventory they have on the “old” model.

Best Holidays To Buy A Car

Holiday deal events are a great time to buy a vehicle. These occasions offer exceptional rebates and special financing offers. Besides the Christmas season, sellers also heavily promote New Year’s Eve and New Years Day. When the end of the month falls on a holiday, which New Years’ always does, salespeople get an extra day of business. If the holiday also happens to fall on a Friday, merchants get three additional days added to their monthly numbers.

A lot of promotional hype surrounds three-day holiday weekends. Dealers promise Labor Day “blowouts” and “huge” Labor Day savings, but is it all just an empty tactic? Is President’s Day a good time to buy a car? It certainly can be. Memorial Day, the Fourth of July, Labor Day, President’s Day, and Black Friday offer buyers ample saving incentives. But prepare yourself for busy showrooms and sales agents.

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When Is The Best Time To Buy A Car

Under normal circumstances, the best time to buy a car is at the end of the month and at the end of the year. But these days, normal has gone out the window. Sure, you could still find a great deal on a car on September 29 or December 27but just know that the game has changed thanks to high demand, supply shortages and low inventory. In March 2021, car inventory at dealerships was down 36% compared to 2020.1 Still, if youre in the market for a car, its worth it to go shopping around these times and give it a shot.

If youre buying from a dealership, those sales people are staring down the barrel of meeting their quota by the end of the month. That means theyll be more likely to cut you a deal as the end of the month inches closer. And if you can hold off until the end of the yeareven better. New cars start hitting the sale lots in the last half of the year, and once they arrive, that means theres old inventory that the dealership needs to ditch pronto.

Why Are Used Car Prices So High

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Believe it or not, that microchip shortage spills over and impacts used car prices too. Why? Used cars are in demand because people cant get access to new cars because of the microchip shortage. So theyre having to shift gears and set their sights on buying used. Yeah, its a pretty tangled web here.

Still, that would all be fine and dandy if there were enough used cars to go around. But there arent. See, a lot of used cars on the market come from rental car companies selling cars that have barely any mileage and wear on them. And theres been a shortage of rental cars ever since the pandemic, when companies sold off 770,000 cars to keep their businesses up and running.4

Since June 2020, the price of a used car has spiked 45%.5 That might be music to your ears if youre ready to sell your used car, but its bad news if youre in the market for buying a used car right now. Used car prices are higher than ever, and the price paid for pre-owned vehicles just hit an all-time record of $25,463.6 Thats the first time the price has even cracked the $25K mark. Who would have thought wed be living in a time when the value of your used car would actually go up? Lets just say itthats weird.

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What Is The Best Day To Buy A Car

Even if you forget everything else, remember this statement: The best time to buy a car is the last couple days of the month. Manufacturers set monthly targets for car dealerships. If car salesmen and dealerships meet their monthly sales goals they can earn bonuses. So if you time your car purchase towards the end of the month you could end up buying from a car salesman who is close to hitting his quota and earning a bonus payment. This bonus may be much bigger than the loss he takes on a single sale and as a result he may be willing to provide a bigger discount to you in order to earn that bonus.

If the end of the month is a weekend, just make the dealership is open on Sundays as many states have restrictions banning car sales on Sunday.

And interestingly enough, the second best time to buy a car is the first couple days of the month. Because the end of the month trick is widely known, salesmen are usually pretty busy with buyers that have waited. As a result, the first couple days of the month mean fewer buyers and idle salesmen may be willing to deal. Salesmen may also want to get a jump on their monthly sales quotas so theyre not under as much pressure at the end of the month.

Wait Until May For The Best Car Deal

Some months are better for car buying than others. for buying a car because it marks the start of summer the busiest buying season for auto dealers. The beginning to middle of May is also when Memorial Day sales will start to be advertised, and you can often take advantage of this sale well before the holiday actually arrives.

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Worst Time To Buy A Car

The worst time to buy a car is early in the month or on a Saturday when the dealership is at its busiest. Dealers typically arent in a rush to hit sales targets when they have a whole month ahead.

Some exceptions to this timing are when holiday incentives continue early into the following month, like New Years Day and sometimes Memorial Day.

Saturday is a popular time to shop for a car for obvious reasons: most people work during the week when the dealership is open. Its hard to get a good deal on a car when the sales staff is busy, and the finance office is bottlenecked. Not only does the salesperson not have a lot of time to give you undivided attention, but if you dont buy the car youre looking at, someone else likely will. These factors combined make it tough to get a good deal on a car on a busy Saturday.

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What If I Cant Wait For December To Buy A Car

What’s The BEST Time To Buy A Car?

Sometimes, you cant wait until the end of the year to buy a car. If this is the case, you can still get a great deal by buying on the last day of another quota.

The next best thing to the end of the year is the end of the quarter. For those of you who dont think in financial quarters, this basically means:

  • And of course, December 31st

Youll get a good deal on a car anytime during the last week of a quarter, but its best if you can go on the exact last day.

If thats still too long to wait, then the next best thing is to go on the last day of the month.

According to Mike Rabkin, owner and founder of From Car to Finish, the end of the month is great due to the aforementioned quotas that car salespeople have to hit.

When a vehicle needs help selling, the end of the month is a good time to buy if negotiating the vehicle yourself, he says. Because sales managers at dealerships have a monthly quota to hit and get compensated on whether they hit it or not.

If you cant wait until the end of the month then you need to take a hard look at your life! Going on the last day of any given week isnt going to be much more beneficial than normal, if at all. In fact, Sunday is one of the worst days for savings.

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End Of A Models Design Cycle

A models design cycle is the amount of time between the manufacturers periodic redesigns. Generally, it takes around five years for a model to be completely redesigned.

At the end of the design cycle, buyers have a chance to lock in a discount on the previous model. After all, most shoppers are looking for the latest and greatest design. If youre comfortable with the older model, most dealers will offer a discount if you ask.

Does It Help If I Buy My Car At The End Of The Day

While there are exceptions to every rule, experience shows that you are more likely to get a great deal on a new car towards the end of the day, just as the salesperson is about to leave the showroom. This is because the salesperson is probably less likely in the mood to negotiate, and might just want a quick and hassle-free sale and give you a great price right from the get-go. So be sure to get your sleep the night before and prepare yourself for an after-dinner negotiation session that gets you a great deal on your car.

Check out more tips on how to outsmart a car dealer.

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Worst Times To Buy A Car

Just as there are great days to negotiate a deal, there are other days when you should avoid car shopping. If you can wait a while before making your purchase, the following times may be best to avoid:

  • Early in a model year. If you have your eye on a brand new car before its even on a dealership lot, consider tempering your expectation for a deal. Dealers have less incentive to try to get freshly minted cars off the lot compared with their older inventory. Conversely, early in a new models year is the best time to negotiate for a leftover model, since dealers want to make room for the new vehicles arriving.
  • Immediately following a new models launch. Manufacturers spend fortunes marketing their newest models, and thats intended to spark demand. Deal making is unlikely, so wait or check out a prior model.
  • At the start of a new month. If the end of a month is one of the best times to shop for a car, then the opposite is true about the start of the month. The beginning of the month resets a salespersons monthly sales goals, and theyre less likely to push their managers for leeway on a deal. You might still negotiate a better deal, but be prepared to put in work ahead of time to prove how serious you are about making a purchase.

When Not To Buy A New Car

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Generally, one of the worst times to buy a new car is in the spring. During this time of year, youll see more people on car lots looking to soak up some sun and cash in their tax refunds. Other bad times to shop for new cars are whenever a particular vehicle is popular among consumers and whenever a new car model has been released.

Some people seem to think that buying a car on a rainy day is a good idea. But that approach usually doesnt work. In fact, you can expect car dealerships to be filled with people when theres bad weather simply because people tend to believe that theyll find great deals on rainy days.

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The Best Time Of The Month To Buy A Car

If you dont need to buy a car within the next week, shop around for a full month to see when and where you can get the best deal. Many experts recommend buying a vehicle closer to the end of the month. This advice is based on the idea that salespeople may be trying to meet monthly quotas and will therefore be more likely to offer a good deal.

If youre shopping for a new car, KBB recommends checking the incentives on a vehicle early in the month. Once youve priced the vehicle online,head to the dealership between the 16th and 20th. This is the time to shop. Finally, negotiate and make your purchase during the last two or three days of the month.

The experts at TrueCar agree that you can expect to find greater savings after the 20th of each month. Exceptions include holidays that fall earlier in the month such as Presidents Day, Independence Day and Labor Day.

Unfortunately for buyers, sales reports arent necessarily always due at the end of the month, which means you may not always get the deal youre expecting after the 20th.

There may be certain situations where a dealer may be trying to reach a sales incentive level by the last day of the reporting period, which wont necessarily be the end of the month, says Clark. There may be an extra desire on their part to move a vehicle then. But as a consumer, youre not normally going to know what those specific needs of a dealer are.

Is Now A Good Time To Buy A Car

While weve identified a few tips to help you get more attention from salespeople or to shop during the biggest sales the bottom line is thisthere is no right time to buy a car.

Any time of the year if you need a vehicle and you see a good price jump on it. Even outside of a global pandemic, sometimes waiting around for that perfect moment can pay off, but other times it just lets an opportunity slip by.

To see how PNC can help you on your vehicle-buying journey, visit our auto lending page

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End Of The Car’s Life Cycle

Sometimes the manufacturer announces that it will stop making a car altogether. There’s potential in this situation for even bigger savings. You should know that the car will depreciate steeply if it’s being discontinued, but if you plan on keeping it for a while, it won’t affect you. It’s also worth looking into why the automaker pulled the plug on a given vehicle. Is it a matter of changing tastes, or was the car truly bad in terms of performance or reliability? In recent years, for example, SUVs have surged in popularity and many domestic automakers have discontinued many of their sedans. Going further back, vehicles such as the Nissan Murano CrossCabriolet never really found an audience and the Pontiac Aztek had a face only Walter White could love.

Is Now The Right Time For You To Buy A Car

When Is the Best Time to Buy a Car?

Knowing when to buy a new car is only half the battle. Timing tips won’t help get you a premium deal if you don’t have a well-laid plan. Test drive the cars on your wish list early so you can narrow down your choices to two or three favorites.

Don’t wait until your old car leaves you stranded. Having the ability to walk away strengthens your bargaining position. Learn what car you want, determine what you can afford, then show up at the best time, and you may just drive away with a bargain!

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The Best Time To Buy A Car When You Have The Cash

At the end of the day, the best time to buy a car is when you have the cash for it. Never take out a loan to buy a car. We know, thats pretty dang countercultural, but car payments zap you of money you could be putting toward your other goals. Plus, the interest alone will eat you alive. Dont believe it? Try out our car payment calculator to see the facts in black and white.

Lets say you borrow $20,000 for a car with a 5% interest rate and a term of five years. Youd be shelling out $377 a month for your car payment, andon top of that, youll end up spending an extra $2,645 in interest. And thats if you make all those payments on timea lot can happen in five years.

You know whats a better idea? If you save $377 every month for two years, youd have a little over $9,000 to buy a new-to-you car outright. Boom. No car payments. No interest. Youre free. Doesnt that sound a lot better than throwing away almost $400 bucks on a car payment every month? Yeah. We thought so to.

Ready to budget and save for that car? Give our free budgeting app, EveryDollar, a spin. It makes it easier to stash away money for any big purchase, really. And it’s free. Start budgeting. Start saving. And soon you’ll be driving that new car.

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