The new efficient used car market place once again requires a new approach for valuating a used vehicle. In the past, our industry has valued a used vehicle based on its historical wholesale value. Today, I am firmly of the opinion that the value of a used vehicle intended for retail should be derived from its current retail market value, rather than its wholesale value.

For example, imagine that you are the seller of a 2007 Ford Explorer Eddie Bauer 4×4 with an automatic transmission. In your market, there are 42 of them that are identically equipped with very similar mileage. Based on the ranking of price, your happens to be 38th highest of the 42. The likelihood is very small that a shopper for this type of vehicle will appear at your store. if, however, your price was ranked in the top 10, the likelihood of seeing a shopper would be much greater. If you agree with this premise, then you’re half way there to understanding why buyers purchasing used vehicles based on wholesale values are dead wrong.

The reason they are wrong is that these vehicles were recently being purchased in the auction lanes in the high $17k to mid $18k range. So, let’s suppose that you paid 18k. After transportation of $300, reconditioning of $700 and a mere profit of $1500, you would have ask $20,500. The problem is that the average retail price of the 42 identically equipped, similar mileage vehicles in your market was $19,200. This means that your asking price is $1,300 above the average and your competitive ranking would have been 38th out of 42. Considering the fact that there are 37 identically equipped similar mileage vehicles in your market available for sale for thousands less, how likely is it that you would sell this vehicle quickly? Not too likely. If you wanted to position your in the 10th position, you would have to have priced it at $18,464, which would have been a $536 loser after transportation and recon.

So I ask you, was the vehicle you purchased worth $18,000? Well, yes, if you believe that a vehicle’s worth what someone is willing to pay in the wholesale market place, but clearly no if you have a more enlightened view, that a vehicle in today’s transparent and efficient market place will only bring what the retail market will bear, and in this case that is somewhere in the mid $18k range.(Top 10)

We must resist temptation to pay extraordinarily high prices for vehicles just because the herd is doing so. Rather, purchase vehicles for amounts that will allow you to put a respectable profit on top of you acquisition price and still position the vehicle in the lower range of its current competition in the market. if it means that you can’t buy a vehicle that way, then let it go. Its a far better problem to be light on inventory that is owned right than to be heavy and long on inventory waiting for the market to come around.

Sam Griswold
Wade Raulerson BPG