One of the many great things about California is that it has many laws to protect its people and consumers. This is no different when it comes to buying a used car. I know, because I bought my first used car in San Diego and fortunately it was a great transaction and it was an excellent car that lasted for many years until I eventually ended up selling it on Craigslist. So in this post I am going to outline some of the laws for buying Craigslist Los Angeles Cars.
California Car Buying Bill of Rights
One of the many advantages of buying a used car in California is the used car buying bill of rights. A buyer of a used car can obtain a two-day sales cancellation option. Notice there is no “cooling off” period unless this option is purchased. There are a few limitations to this law. The vehicle sold must be less than $40,000 and only applies to used cars. The law also does not apply to motorcycles, off-road vehicles, recreational vehicles, or business/commercial vehicles. Unfortunately, the law also does not apply to private party sales so it doesn’t really apply to Craigslist purchases. This is one of the considerations you must consider when buying a used car. Do you want to get a super deal from a private party on Craigslist cars or do you want to maybe pay a little more from a dealer and get the two-day return option.
The cancellation option fee depends on the price of the vehicle being purchased. For a car up to $5,000, the fee is about $75. For a vehicle from $5-$10K the fee is about $150 and the fee is about $250 for a vehicle in the range of $10-$30K. After that the fee is 1% of the purchase price up to $40,000.
In addition to the cancellation option fee, there is often a restocking fee by the dealer to return the vehicle. So there is an obvious benefit to buying a car from a dealership but let’s focus on the option of buying a car on Craigslist and getting the best possible price for a car by eliminating the middleman.
Top Used Car Research Resources
So how do you get a great deal on Craigslist Los Angeles cars? The most important step you can take is doing thorough research. There are many sites you can do this on. Check out AutoTrader.com and your local newspaper site if they have one. These are great resources to compare anything you find on Craigslist and see if the price a private seller is offering is indeed a good deal. Sometimes it is difficult to determine if a price is a good one.
One of the best resources is online at www.kbb.com. This is the Kelley Blue Book website and it is the gold standard when determining the appropriate price on an automobile. I would absolutely recommend that you check out this resource for any used car purchase. I know I have and it has helped me in both the buying and selling process to determine if I am pricing or buying a vehicle at a good price. If I wouldn’t have used this resource, I honestly would have had no idea what I was doing.
Hopefully these tips give some useful advice when buying your next car on Craigslist. The site remains a truly great resource for buyers and sellers of used cars and I believe should be one of the first stops when searching for a used vehicle.