Doesn't everyone like things for Free?

Throughout this next post I will talk of different cars I have found in the Michigan Auto & RV magazine. This magazine comes out about every Tuesday or Wednesday and they are FREE! Yes that's right! Another way to look for a deal without having to spend a single penny (until you find a car that is, you have to pay for those). I have two magazines that I looked through and have found a few Bonnevilles and they were very hard to find.

First I found a 2004 Bonneville with 41,000 miles on it for $21,000. On Kelley Blue Book's site I found that the Trade-In value of this car was $11,475, the private property value was $14,345, and the Suggested Retail value was $17,390. Since we are learning to be smart shoppers we would know that a car worth only $14,345 being sold for $21,000 wouldn't be a very good deal. Since learning this I moved onto the next Bonne I found.

Next we have a 2000 Bonneville SSEI with only 76,000 miles that is being sold for $8,100. I have no concept of car value, although it is getting better, but I thought there is no way this car could be worth that much. This car had almost all available options, chrome wheels, and some other really eye catching options. When I went to look this car up on kbb.com I found that the Trade-In Value was $7,675, the private property value was $9,860, and the suggested retail value was $12,050. This car is a deal by about $1,700 and if the upfront money is available to purchase such a car, you will not only get reimbursed for your payment, you will receive nearly $2,000 in profit.

The second magazine had just about as few Bonnevilles as the first one I searched. I will share the few good examples that really surprised me and some that were deals. First there was a 2000 Bonneville SLE with 130,000 miles on it priced at $6,250. Once I researched this car I found that the Trade-in value is $4,375, the private property is $6,375, and the suggested retail price is $8,460. This car made it as a deal by only $125, but as I have talked about before and will constantly restate, is that you can always negotiate the price you buy it for. This car could gain a small profit margin, but if you negotiate a bit, get it looked at by an expert and point out things that turn you off. Then make your offer and be able to walk away if the owner does not except. Another good piece of advice is don't overthink it and push your limits. If you think you're asking too low of a price, just ask anyway, what's the worst that could happen? He says no, and you can either negotiate between the two given prices (the owner's and yours) or you can walk away from the deal and keep trying.

I found another Bonneville in here that I was compelled to share because it was so close to being the kbb.com price, which made me think that someone has maybe done some of the same type of research that I have to earn a profit. This 1999 Bonnevile has 112,000 miles on it and was being sold for $5,600. The car looks like its in wonderful shape and when I did my research I found that the car's trade-in value was $3,775, the private property value was $5,560, and the suggested retail price was $7,445. This was such a close buy that it just drew me back. This car was only being sold for $40 more than it was worth, now a little negotiating could really help you in this situation, but this blog was just another example of how you can find deals anywhere and the research material can be free! Now who doesn't want that? Hopefully in the next entry there could be actual material on looking to purchase a car, or actually purchasing one, but we'll see what little step is taken next.

Is this auctioneer crazy?

I have looked at two different websites to look for cars within a reasonable price and distance, but there is one site, the mother of all sites, that I hadn't looked yet. EBay is one of the biggest sites that helps you to get what you need cheap, but you must fight for it. Today I was given the task to look up auctions for Bonnevilles on EBay that were already over and look the deal that was given up on kbb.com. As I got onto EBay my stepdad showed me that the best way to search is to go to Ebay Motors (a link in the left column) and search the make and model. Then once that comes up you can go to a little special, advanced search in the bottom left corner. This helps you specify the type of auction and how far away the car is. In my case, I specified it to completed listings, so I could see what had already sold, instead of what was being sold then and there. Once I specified my search and got my results, I found 11 cars that were in good condition and looked up the price they were purchased for on kbb.com and found some pretty interesting conclusions. I am not going to share all 11 cars, but I will share a few good deals and some not-so-good deals.



First I found a 1994 Bonneville SSEi that had 103,000 miles on it and was sold as a Buy It Now for $1,500. When I looked up this car I found that this was a really good deal! The Trade-in value was $1,825, private property was $3,085, and retail value was $4,840. This car was sold for half its value and there was no negotiation or need to fight. With Buy It Now you, well, do just that! You can buy it before the auction ends and get it before you auction up to a more outrageous price. That is one thing about EBay, you can't really negotiate with the seller and you could have to bid up to a higher, unworthy price, but as long as you pay attention to the highest price that would still make it profitable and not go over, you will be just fine. Being able to stop bidding is the equivanlent of walking away from a deal in this case.



Although that car was a deal I found a '94 Bonneville with 142,000 miles that was sold for $2,425. The Trade-in value was $1,075, private property was $2,040, and retail value was $3,510. This car was sold for $400 over the private property value, so I know this seller made a profit off this Bonne. You just have to be able to look at the value and know when you are bidding too much, because the more you bid, the less profit you will gain from buying the car. Some cars also have a method of delivery, or sellers have downpayment requests, you must take these into account also with the price, because if you buy to get the car delivered then that is an added, maybe even uneccesary, cost. Just one more thing to consider on EBay.



Here's another deal I was surprised with! A 1996 Bonneville SSE with 200,000 miles and was sold for $1,200 from Buy It Now. I imagined that the mileage might make this a fair deal, or not a great deal, but indeed it was quite the deal! The Trade-in value was $1,610, private propety was $3,000, and the suggested retail value was $4,780. That means that this car sold for less than half its worth. Its just little opportunities such as this that can make you benefit with a great profit.



Another not so good deal I found was a 2001 Bonneville SE with 83,100 miles on it and it was sold for $8,995. Now it is fairly new, so I felt a little naive about this one. I wasn't sure if it was worth it or not and eager to find out. The Trade-in value was $4,745, private property value was $6,925, and the retail value was $9,610. This car was sold for about $2,000 over its true sell value! If you shop smart, you could also make this great a profit, but this also shows how you should be careful not to be the one who got jipped the two grand.

These were the two main good and the two main not-so-good deals I found. All others were profitable endeavors, but only by a few hundred. A few hundred is great, but these two great deals I listed were the ones with the most profit attainable. Two of the unlisted deals were cars that had a bit of body damage, but were priced around $700 or a little over and could still be profitable. Searching for deals using different methods and different sites, as we've shown, is a great way to look and find the deal of a lifetime! You can just make some fast, easy cash by buying these cars for cheap and selling them for their true value. With EBay you do not want to sell your cars there, but it is a wonderful site to find deals that are fairly close to you and very profitable. You just have to be able to find the true value before bidding and make sure that you do bid as tactfully as possible.

Try, Try, and Try again

Once again I am searching for cars that are under the $3,000 mark and are worth selling. As I posted my last time, the actual value for the car is in the private property value of the car. This time I went searching I went to autotrader.com to search for Bonnevilles within 50 miles of where I was and I found quite a few more than last time.

The first one was a 1995 Bonneville SSE that was being sold at $2,995. This car has 147,098 miles on it, but is said to run well. This car did not have a photo, but its still good to look these things up. The Trade-In value was $1,225, and that's only in good condition. Then, the private property value was $2,465 and the retail value at $4,160. Now as we look at the private property value this car does not look like a profit maker, but the price may be negotiated once the car is looked inside, by a mechanic, and out, once you see it.



Another car I saw was a '93 Bonne at the same selling price with a higher mileage of 166,111. When I looked up this car on Kelley Blue Book I found that the Trade-In was only $575, the private property $1,230, and the retail price was $2,265. This car is definitely a deal that you could do without, this is for profit, not for charity. So far I have found no deals, but you must remember to just keep looking, because that oppurotunity will come, you just need to be patient.

Next, we have another car with no picture, but it is a burgundy 1992 Bonneville SE that is being sold for $2,895 and has a mileage of 112,000. This car being older, made me a little conspicuous of the prices I would get and was not shocked by my findings. The trade-in value was $575, as the previous one, the private property value was $1,125, and the retail value was $2,025. Some of these sellers are truly trying to make their moneys worth with these cars, but no worries! We will indeed find a deal soon.

Another piece of lacking visual aid, I am sorry to say, but this next find is a '95 Bonneville that is being sold at only $990. The mileage is not listed, therefore, I entered 150,000 to just make it high for such a low price. As I searched Kelley Blue book I was surprised to find that the trade-in value was $825, the private property value was $1,775, and the retail value was $3,140. Now this car, although it hasn't been looked at or inspected, seems like a great deal and its so close to home. This car is definitely going down in my archive to check out at a later date and maybe after looking at it I might be able to make some profit.

Even though I found this deal, I still have one more car to look at. You may find a deal at some point, but a better one could always come along and therefore, you still need to be open to keep searching after a deal is found. This next car is a blue 1990 Bonneville SSE and it has a mileage of 237,843 and is being sold for $985. As I searched I was hopeful for a deal and I found that the trade-in value is $575, the private property value is $1,150, and the retail value is $2,050. Looking at these prices, this car is another deal, but without a through look at this car, its hard to know. Here are two deals that we have come across today and they could be potentially profitable. I will mark these down and maybe soon we can start documenting the buying process that will soon lead to the big cash out at the end. This just shows that it is good to be hopeful and open to all the oppurotunities that you can come across. Its all about searching, not giving up hope and trying all over again.

There are deals everywhere

One step to starting to buy and sell cars is the searching process. You must first search for a deal and make sure it will be profitable for you. There are deals everywhere and you can find them all over the place, maybe even down your street. There many websites that you can search for a deal. Auto-rv.com is what I used to look up a few Bonnevilles that were under $3,000. I found only three cars and then I searched for their true value on kbb.com and found what the true worth of the car was. Searching for a car doesn’t just include looking for a car at a reasonable price, you must also make sure it is worth what you are buying it for. You are not the only one out there attempting to make money through selling cars. How do you think that car dealerships make money?



One car I found was a 1993 Bonneville that was being sold for $2,500 that looks like its in great condition. I searched Kelley Blue Book’s site to see the true value and found that the car’s Trade-In Value was, in only good condition, worth $1,150. The private property value was $1,950, and then the suggested retail price was $3,230. This car is being sold for $2,500, but has a retail value of $3,230. If you cleaned this car up a little, if needed, got some new tires, you could easily raise your sell price and make a few hundred or more. This reminds me of another trick you could use, get a mechanic to look the car over and tell you if it has anything wrong or faulty with it. You could then use this to negotiate the price you are purchasing it for, buy it for less, work on it, and then sell it for more. No sweat!



Another car I found was another ’93 Bonneville that had 136,000 miles on it and the seller was selling it for $2,550. I looked up this car’s value as well and found out that the trade-in value was $900. Private property value was $1,700 and the suggested retail price was $2,980. If you bought this car you could also negotiate and end up making a few grand on this car with no real trouble on your part.



The last car I found, for fewer than three grand, was a 1989 Bonneville with only $106,000. The car was being sold for $1,999 and was fully loaded with leather seats and new tires. The Trade-In Value was $850, the private property value was $1,385, and the suggested retail price was $2,205. Now as with all the cars, a little work and cleaning up, you could easily make a few hundred. Buying and selling cars is easy, but first you must look for a deal that will be profitable. It only took me about 10 minutes and its just that easy. Deal are everywhere, you just have to keep your eyes open.

Don has just came in to inform me of something I myself didn't know, the private property value is the most acurate sell value. Since learning this I see that none of these cars were values, but don't be discouraged, they are there! Remember, these are only the 'asking' prices, but you can offer less and negotiate for less. Just have an open eye and be willing to do a little extra work and you will be rewarded with profit.

The thought behind the name

I am a 17 year old (almost 18) that has an entrepreneur for a stepfather. He is determined to prepare me for the ‘real world’ and all the money struggles that, rumor has it, comes along with living out there. He has a lot of ideas for quick money making schemes that I could get into to make a quick buck when I need or just to save up for when I will. One of these tremendous ideas is that I can buy and sell cars, not brand new ones, but used ones that I can get for a deal. When buying my current car, a ’93 Pontiac Bonneville, we got one of the greatest deals around. The people trying to sell it were asking $3,000 and my stepfather got it looked at with no intention of buying it for that sort of price. The ABS on it was horrible and would lock up the tires at any time it chose to and it had an oil pan leak, an antifreeze leak, and a few other little quirks. It was indeed an old car, but he still had no intention of paying that amount. He then offered $1,500 and said that it meant no more to him. They offered to bring the price down to $2,000, but my stepfather said that he wouldn’t go over $1,500. They said they were sorry and all that jazz but, then, called him the next day and said they would sell it for the price he offered. After putting a few hundred in brakes and AC he could’ve easily sold it and made up to $1,000 on it. We also have a Pontiac Firebird that we bought for a screaming deal and could’ve easily made up to a thousand on that as well. My stepfather has always said that you just need to look for a deal, get a little upfront money, and specialize in one kind of car. If I were to look now, I would just specialize in looking for and selling Pontiac Bonnevilles, just so you know what is reasonable and be able to tell the car’s true value. Another good piece of advice is that you should be able to walk away from a deal, no matter how much you like the car. The reason for this is if the seller thinks you don’t care they won’t attempt to pull you in with negotiation and ‘deals’. Throughout this whole writing process I will continue to update and relay advice I am given on how to help others, as I am being helped, learn how to buy and sell cars.