Sweet Spot to Trade / Sell Vehicles?

[disneysteve]

It's been years since I've seen a vehicle disabled on the side of the road, and I live in the philly suburbs

Turn on KYW and listen to the traffic report, especially during the morning or evening rush, and there are always reports of traffic issues caused by disabled vehicles. I live just across the river in Jersey. I see disabled cars on 295 all the time.

My point is that vehicle and fluid technology is so advanced that practically any vehicle will last a LONG time before failure, and most drivers get tired of the vehicle and trade it in with lots of life left

I agree with you on this. And that's also part of why the average age of cars on the road is so high. Cars last longer as long as they are well maintained. Heck, NJ even all but eliminated inspection years ago. It just wasn't picking up much. Now they just do the emissions test and it's every 2 years. It used to be a more comprehensive inspection every year. And new cars don't need to be inspected for the first 4 years.

I had my last car for 14 years and I bought it used. And it still had plenty of life left in it when I replaced it.

[TexasHusker]

If you're really interested in saving, you can transfer the "buy a used car" idea to other items that cost a lot of money.

Furniture is worth ten cents on the dollar once someone has had their stinky rear end on it.

You can buy near-near appliances at a 60-75% discount over new.

You can buy a used flat screen TV for a $100 bill if you look. If it quits, you bust out $100 for another one.

Like Ralph Lauren? You can buy nice, pre-owned stuff on eBay at a fraction of new, and often the item has only been washed a time or two.

[disneysteve]

If you're really interested in saving, you can transfer the "buy a used car" idea to other items that cost a lot of money.

Very true. We have saved a small fortune over the years buying used items instead of new. Years ago, that meant flea markets and auctions and thrift shops. Today it includes ebay and craigslist and letgo and various other websites and apps. Resale is big business.

With furniture, for example, buying used allows you to get far better quality for your money. If I can buy an item for $200 that was $1,000 new, I'm going to get something far nicer than what $200 would buy me new today.

Another benefit of buying used is that used items maintain their resale value much better. We bought a lot of baby items used when our daughter was born. Once she outgrew them, I resold them. In most cases, I got as much as I paid and in several instances, I actually got more than I paid.

I think I've gotten all of my daughter's bikes used. I know her current one was $40 on craigslist. It's probably at least a $300 bike new.

If you aren't the sort of person who has to have new everything, you can save a ton of money buying used and get better quality than your budget would otherwise permit.

[riverwed070707]

Very true. We have saved a small fortune over the years buying used items instead of new. Years ago, that meant flea markets and auctions and thrift shops. Today it includes ebay and craigslist and letgo and various other websites and apps. Resale is big business.

With furniture, for example, buying used allows you to get far better quality for your money. If I can buy an item for $200 that was $1,000 new, I'm going to get something far nicer than what $200 would buy me new today.

Another benefit of buying used is that used items maintain their resale value much better. We bought a lot of baby items used when our daughter was born. Once she outgrew them, I resold them. In most cases, I got as much as I paid and in several instances, I actually got more than I paid.

I think I've gotten all of my daughter's bikes used. I know her current one was $40 on craigslist. It's probably at least a $300 bike new.

If you aren't the sort of person who has to have new everything, you can save a ton of money buying used and get better quality than your budget would otherwise permit.

Feel like this could be a fun thread all on its own. I think I inherited the "I'm not buying it unless its a good deal" mentality from my mom... except I'm also good at eliminating things I don't need, whereas she will buy anything and everything if its a "deal" even if she won't ever use or wear it.

I've bought used all of the things TH mentioned... Sofas/furniture I usually get from a consignment store (they even deliver!), appliances I like the Habitat for Humanity Restore. I don't remember the last time I bought a tv... the 2 I have were both given to me by people who didn't want them when they upgraded and thought selling would be a hassle Almost all of my clothes are either hand me downs from when friends/family clean their closets or from second hand stores. Same with DDs clothes. Sure there are a dozen other things I could think of.

The one area I shy away from is personal electronics (phones/computers/etc). They seem to be built so disposable these days that I wouldn't have any faith in a used one working properly or lasting very long. In my experience i "need" a new phone every couple of years because it literally wears out to where the speakers don't work well, its slow and just doesn't work the same as it used to.

[disneysteve]

In my experience i "need" a new phone every couple of years because it literally wears out to where the speakers don't work well, its slow and just doesn't work the same as it used to.

I've always found that the weak link in cell phones is the battery. After a few years, it just doesn't hold a charge very long. I end up having to carry a recharger and/or constantly look for places to plug in for a few minutes when I can. And I learned with my last phone, that apparently as they age, batteries start to expand. My phone actually popped apart as a result. When I showed it to the guy in the store, he said he sees that all the time.