When you have exercised forced scarcity and been disciplined with your finances, there often comes a point in your life where you go from being a “tight wad,” as we say here at The Money Guy Show, to being able to spend a bit more freely. When that shift happens from super saver to abundance, buying a new car might be on your wish list.
In this week’s episode of The Money Guy Show, we walk you through all the tips and tricks of buying a new car. Tune in so you can learn how to avoid the common car buying mistakes that wind up costing consumers thousands of dollars. Instead, find out how you can successfully buy a new car and feel good that you got the best price possible.
As with most simple and smart money moves we tout on this show, making the time and effort to research what you need to know upfront can set you up for financial success.
Here’s what we cover in this week’s episode:
- Car buying basics: simple and common variables of car buying
- How to be a disciplined consumer, and protect yourself from being taken advantage of
- How you can avoid buying a car in person, and steer clear of salesperson reindeer games and emotional decision-making
- How to become an educated consumer
- What car dealerships wish consumers knew when buying cars
- The most important aspects to research in a car buying transaction from MSRP, trade-in values, invoice cost, discounts, financing, and extended warranties
- Resources you can use to conduct thorough research
- What financial figure is more important than the monthly payments
- How to approach the most dangerous moment in the car buying process: the test drive!
- How to strategically map out which dealerships you will consider buying from
- At what stages in the car buying process you make phone contact and physical contact with a dealership
- Ways to successfully negotiate the total transaction of buying a new car, not just the price
- Who should be involved when you’re ready to negotiate
- The seemingly minor details you don’t want to leave out of your negotiation
- Extended warranties: a few considerations for consumers to think about
Resources mentioned on the show:
For researching the price of a new car:
For researching what you should pay for a new car and the trade in value for your existing vehicle:
- CarsDirect
- TRUEcar
- Edmunds
- Kelly Blue Book
- CarMax (offers free appraisal of your vehicle)
- Ask friends and family who have the car what features they love and which ones are more hype than value.
Tune In and Go Beyond Common Sense with the Money Guys
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