How Time Consuming is it to Sell Your Own Car? Find Out Here

So, you need to sell your car and free up some cash. The only problem is that you don’t need to replace it, and you aren’t sure what to do. On the one hand, you can try and sell it yourself, and on the other hand, you can keep it and continue paying money to have it parked in your garage. As time consuming as the first option sounds, the second option isn’t a possibility at the moment. You don’t use your car, and you need money. It’s not rocket science, but figuring out the best course of action to sell your car and make some quick cash, is proving to be more difficult than you imagined. As you sit and wonder, how can I sell my car fast?, you are probably at least considering selling your car privately. While this may be a good option for some, it isn’t the most ideal course of action for others.

Selling Your Car: Do You Have What it Takes?

Before we dive into the list of reasons why selling your car privately can be dangerous, let’s take a look at how time consuming the process can be. Imagine that you work a forty hour work week, and you commute as far as the average American, which translates into about 45 minutes a day in the car. If your job is from 9AM-5PM, that means you will have to leave the house by 8:30AM at the latest, and typically arrive home by 530PM. If you go to bed around 10:30PM, that leaves you with five hours of free time each weeknight, or about 25 hours per week. If you take out meal prep and cooking, putting the kids to bed if you have them, and other miscellaneous tasks, you probably have closer to three hours to yourself each day.

Now, imagine how you would like to spend those three blissful hours of alone time. Is it reading your favorite book? Playing Xbox Live with your buddies? Or maybe your idea of quality alone time is vegging out in front of your smartphone. Sounds amazing, right? If you plan to sell your car on your own, let’s take a look at how much of your precious free time that endeavor will approximately deduct from your weekly total of fifteen hours.

• 4 Hours: This is the amount of time it will take for you to either detail your car yourself, or bring it to the professionals to have it done. This process is time consuming, but getting your car into pristine condition is the best way to secure a good cash offer. No one wants to buy a dirty car, so start scrubbing!

• 3 Hours: This is how long it will take you to take pictures with your smartphone, upload them to your computer, jot down necessary information about your exact make and model, locate your vehicle’s title, and list it for sale.

• 2 Minutes: This is the amount of time it should take you to post your classified ad on your Facebook page, once you have gathered all of the required information.

• 1-5 Hours Per Day: I realize that one hour and five hours are two very different spans of time. This step, responding to potential buyers, varies depending on how interested people are, and how responsive they are to your ad. Whether you posted your car for sale on craigslist, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or another free site, you should be prepared to constantly check each posting multiple times per day. Neglecting to respond to potential buyers may result in the loss of a sale – so don’t slack off! Apologize to your boss later, but for the next several days, selling your car is your new job.

• 2 Hours Per Potential Buyer: This is an average guesstimate of how much time it will take for you to meet up with an interested party. Depending on where you live, and where your car’s potential buyer lives, it may be longer or shorter. You can plan on spending at least two hours for each meet up, which includes driving there and back. Hopefully, you will only have to meet with one or two people before making a deal, but that is the best case scenario. Also be prepared to be stood up, and left waiting around for someone who never shows up. It’s rude, infuriating, and frustrating – but it’s part of the package deal when you decide to sell your own car.

As you can see, the time adds up rather quickly. Those once relaxing nights at home are filled with conversations with strangers regarding how often you changed the car’s oil, and whether or not the tires are less than five years old. It’s exhausting, and for most car owners, the thought of committing that much time for a small amount of extra cash, isn’t worth the effort.

Good News! You Have Another Option

Remember when we said that you have two options for selling your car – trading it in or selling it yourself? While these are two of your options, Colorado Springs residents have a third and final choice for how they will sell their cars: Faricy Chrysler Jeep. Faricy Chrysler Jeep want to purchase your car for cash, and will make you an offer the same day you bring it in to the dealership. It may not be as much as you would get selling it yourself, or it may be more. The only way to know for sure is to bring your current car, truck, or SUV into Faricy Chrysler Jeep to find out. Free yourself of the time-suck vortex that selling your own car all-too often becomes, and bring it to Faricy Chrysler Jeep.

Faricy Chrysler Jeep dealership uses Kelley Blue Book’s “Value Your Trade” tool, so you can even see how much to expect for your car online, prior to coming down to the dealership. Within less than thirty minutes of your arrival, you can be heading home with a fistful of cash, and not a care in the world. Oh, and when you get home? All the free time in the world to spend however you please.