Kelly Blue Book or Edmunds???

[Da Game]

I've talked to several people selling their cars and mechanics alike. The answer I get from mechanics say "Check Edmunds for real life prices". The people who sell always use KBB as a starting point. I notice that there's a $500 difference between the two.

So what book do you use when buying or selling and why?

 

[dparm]

It's some combination of Edmunds TMV, KBB, and NADA, in my experience.

For certain kinds of cars, those aren't even that useful. When I sold my previous Audi (2005 S4 with manual trans), the used market was giving about 20% ABOVE what all three of those listed.

 

[Da Game]

Originally Posted By: dparm
It's some combination of Edmunds TMV, KBB, and NADA, in my experience.

For certain kinds of cars, those aren't even that useful. When I sold my previous Audi (2005 S4 with manual trans), the used market was giving about 20% ABOVE what all three of those listed.



So it was the "Market demand" or what the buyer was willing to pay? So for the sake of asking, what price did you base your value from?

 

[HTSS_TR]

Originally Posted By: Da Game
So it was the "Market demand" or what the buyer was willing to pay? So for the sake of asking, what price did you base your value from?

Local market and/or what buyers are willing to pay determine the used car price.

When I was looking at 2002-2005 Camry last summer, the local price for fair condition was about 10-20% higher than what was on NADA, KBB ... and they are sold within 24-48 hours at asking price.

 

[VicVinegar]

I'd just check the market for comparable cars. If your car is rare, then maybe your "market" is a larger radius than if you have a Camry to sell. If a buyer complains about being higher than KBB, tell him to shop around himself and see what he finds.

 

[itguy08]

None of the above. Keep an eye at Craigslist, eBay Completed and sold auctions, and used car places. You want to be around CL and eBay and a little lower than local car lots.

Those guides are OK for a rough guess but none of the actually buy or sell cars so it is just their guess on the values.

If you want a shocker, look up the Black Book value which is close ot acution values.

 

[Tdbo]

KBB and Edmunds are the two that seem to be most accurate. NADA is usually off the wall and Black Book is basically auction value or less. I will use KBB and Edmunds as a guide for pricing, and sometimes will even average both to get a value.

 

[Quattro Pete]

In my experience, Edmunds TMV figures are more realistic. KBB values are typically too high. Alas, it may vary depending on specific vehicle.

 

[Rebel Rouser]

I think the Black Book values are most accurate, as they are published based on sales of the previous week or two. However, it seems you must be either a dealership or financial institution in order to receive a copy. The Blue Book values are dated and based on the previous month of sales. I don't know how often Edumds or NADA are updated. As with all, it boils down to personal opinion on what the condition of the used vehicle really is. Good luck!

 

[eljefino]

IMO someone who owns a "good" marque will have higher vehicular self esteem, rate the same condition car higher and pricier, and be less likely to budge on price, because a book told them so.

This self perpetuates the myth of resale value for that model, if someone is willing to pay it. Similarly someone with poor vehiclular self esteem might sell quickly to avoid/ lessen the pain.

Even shabby (per my inspection) overpriced (JMO) toyotas and hondas in front lawns by the roadside seem to move.

 

[surfstar]

kbb if selling
edmunds if buying

use the tools in your favor

 

[cptbarkey]

edmunds is very accurate. kbb is a sucker website.

 

[DBMaster]

I checked TRUECar.com before buying my Mazda. Before doing that I paid the $14 to get a Consumer Reports price report. I had been reading about them in the magazine for many years. The CR price report said "powered by TRUECar.com" at the bottom of it. The numbers were slightly different from the report that cost money, but it was good enough for me to recommend the freebie service.

 

[dparm]

Originally Posted By: Da Game
Originally Posted By: dparm
It's some combination of Edmunds TMV, KBB, and NADA, in my experience.

For certain kinds of cars, those aren't even that useful. When I sold my previous Audi (2005 S4 with manual trans), the used market was giving about 20% ABOVE what all three of those listed.



So it was the "Market demand" or what the buyer was willing to pay? So for the sake of asking, what price did you base your value from?



It was both. Desirable car, not common, and a prime example of the model.

I looked around on the Audi enthusiast sites and then to places like Autotrader. Seemed pretty obvious and basically got my asking price with no haggling from the very first guy.

 

[KitaCam]

When buying, always figure higher than you want to spend; when selling, always figure less than you hope to get....

That said...perceived demand and available supply will outweigh KBB/Edmunds calculations...

Case in point...KitaCam is a 4cyl manual tranny and the dealer was VERY anxious to sell to a rare buyer (me, who was looking for ANY stick car, not just a Camry)...Florida Camry owners are NOT stick-shift type drivers...

...so the dealer was happy to lower the retail offering to trade-in value to close the sale...to keep me from looking elsewhere...

Well, I did look elsewhere, but KitaCam was the real deal...

 

[Da Game]

I've searched for "Black Book" and found this web-site.

http://www.carquotes.com/

or

http://www.blackbookusa.com/home.aspx?m=4

They claim Black Book price. Can this be correct?

 

[Lyman]

KBB is way off for my area. They are high by a lot compared to what vehicles are being sold for. When I need to check the value on a car I do my own comps.