Getting Started - Volume #3

The Process

Now that you’re armed with the facts about your chosen vehicle, you’re ready to shop. This is a process in itself.
A few years ago, I spent over a year looking for a 1979 Lincoln Mark V. During this period, I looked at 29 Mark V’s before finding the right one. I didn’t give up until I found what I was looking for. In this case, a beautifully kept, one owner car with only 22,000 miles showing. The underside was so clean you could eat off it. Now, this was not a project or restoration vehicle. I knew what it was that I was looking for and I knew it was the right car before I ever got to see it. By asking all the right questions and knowing the vehicles true value, I came away with a very nice Class 2 car for a very fair price. That’s what you need to get out of an effort like this.

Start the process by reading through local and online classified ads. This will help you establish the quantity and average price range of vehicles your area. Follow up the best ads with a phone call. Start the conversation by asking the seller to tell you a little about the vehicle. This part of the conversation will tell you right away if you’re going out to look at it or not. The best vehicles come from people who know about them. This is not a concrete rule, but I have found that people that know the vehicle they are trying to sell are informative and have some knowledge of what the vehicle should sell for.

There are a few exceptions. One is a vehicle offered by an estate. Estate vehicles are either sold by a family member or through liquidations. In either case, don’t expect to get any worth while information out of these sources. You have to check these in person, so ask obvious questions here, i.e. "Is the body and glass in good condition"; questions along those lines. Visual details are all you can expect in these situations. For the first timer, a vehicle that needs more mechanical and less body and fender work should be your target. Remember a drivable vehicle is the goal here. This is also a good time to find out the asking price, whether it is printed in the add or not. Things change and misprints do occur. If the seller does not have a price on the vehicle, it’s usually due to the fact they really don’t have an idea what it’s worth. Do what you can to get a price out of him before you go to look. No price, don’t waste your time.

Once you have found a vehicle and you’re ready to make an offer, here are a few tips you might want to consider. Cash talks and …..well you know the rest. Having your financing pre-arranged is a must in leveraging a good deal. Be ready to lay down a deposit of at least $100 in cash, followed by a cashier’s check if you’re not paying on the spot in cash. Cash is the key word here. Cash money is the best bargaining tool you have. The statement "I’ll give you $?,???.00 in CASH, right now", is powerful and can help to slick off a couple a hundred from a seller’s asking price.

Any offer you make should only be good until the end of the day the offer is made on. Don’t let a seller use your offer to boost his sales with other would-be buyers. Ending your offer at a set time tells the seller that his opportunity to sell his vehicle is "Right Now". Making an offer that expires at a set time also frees you to move on to other things without being tied down to a wishy-washy situation that may go on for sometime. A big problem that buyers sometimes fall into is that they fall in "love" with the vehicle and allow the seller to gain an emotional foothold. When I go to look, I go prepared to buy and also to come home empty handed at the same time.

Ok, the seller accepts your offer, not comes the paper work. If the title and tags are current, you’re not far from completing the transaction. Here’s the point where many a good deal have soured. You like the car, the seller has accepted your offer, but the title or tags are not in proper order. What, now? If the problem is minor and you "KNOW" it’s a minor problem, then go head with the sale. This type of situation is an open door to renegotiate the selling price if you feel the inconvenience warrants a drop in the selling price.

If the seller does not have current and proper title of the vehicle, you should walk away. This may seem like a hard thing to do, but keep in mind these fasts. First, it’s illegal to receive stolen property and without proper documentation, this is what you’ll be opening yourself up to. Another element, if the tags and title are not current the back registration fees could come to far more than what your paying for the vehicle. In some states, vehicles that have gone unregistered for a period of time are considered "JUNK" and cannot be reregistered. It’s a sad truth that in certain situations, "Junker -Clunker Laws" make it impossible or too costly to reregister vehicles that have fallen from the active rolls. So, walking way is a good plan when vehicle documentation is in question.

Some states require emissions or SMOG testing on change of ownership. This testing requirement is the responsibility of the seller. Don’t assume or allow the seller to pass on to you this responsibility. Necessary repair costs may also exceed the fair market cost of your purchase or wrap you up in red tape that makes the purchase itself a misery.

Last, but not least, get every detail of the sale in writing. If extra parts or other conditions are part of the transaction or contingent to the sale, get them down on paper. Also, remember to get a receipt for any deposits you put down. If you’re leaving a deposit, make sure your deal is down on paper. Never assume a check is your receipt. Sellers have been known to take better offers after deposits have been put down. Get everything in writing. If this sounds like experience talking…..you would be right!

Next, well look at the process of planning the restoration work.