Do any of you flip cars?

I just finished an online course for flipping cars. I expect to do one within a month. Learned a great deal about auto repairs and paint in the process, will actually help my detailing business I think. I have yet to do actual body work but it's simple enough when you know how. So rust spots and major defects I could now work on.

If you have downtime in your detailling business, I strongly suggest you give car flipping a look. You could do this on slow days and raise your profits. Also I think the cars that you flip will make the best before/after pictures you can ever dream of for your websites. Taking a car that looks like trash and turning it into a car that looks new is sure to bring you some customers.

I am waiting on my copy of the Canadian Black Book to come in the mail to get started. Unfortunatelly I live in Québec and transfering ownership of a car here is really complicated compared to you guys in the US. I just hope it won't create too much headhache.
 
Just a question for guys that's do this.... I would THINK, as a private party it's pretty difficult to sell a used car. Not the actual sale, but to actually get someone to buy it from you. I'm thinking most people tend to buy from used car dealerships, etc... because they don't want to get involved with a private party and because financing is easier if the dealership gets it.

How difficult is it to spark interest in your used car? Just wondering.
 
If you have a good price it isn't hard to find a taker. I generally buy older import trucks and sell them a year later for a bit more than I bought them for.

It is really just more of a hassle to deal with flakes who will buy your car and then not end up titling it. Either that or they want to chew you down from dirt cheap.
 
I never flipped cars but have sold previous cars that I have owned.

1998 Chevy Blazer
1955 Chevy Bel Air
1998 Mitsubishi Mirage
2006 Scion XB

I actually saw a Lincoln Continental while walking the kid to school. I've been wanting to get another classic, I'll take pictures of it. Maybe you guys can help me out, with what to ask and what to look for.

Would be nice to restore the original paint on it :cruisin:
 
I believe this topic is already here on the boards....that being said i flip cars all the time at least two a month probably. The biggest advice i could give you is not to buy any vehicle with a major mechanical issue, ive learned hands on that these type of vehicles are major money pits. i look for vehicles that are more cosmetically damaged than anything else. I do my own paint and body work as well as detail so that helps alot. There are ways around johnny law dog as well.
 
swanicyouth said:
Just a question for guys that's do this.... I would THINK, as a private party it's pretty difficult to sell a used car. Not the actual sale, but to actually get someone to buy it from you. I'm thinking most people tend to buy from used car dealerships, etc... because they don't want to get involved with a private party and because financing is easier if the dealership gets it.

How difficult is it to spark interest in your used car? Just wondering.
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I've looked at use cars and motorcycles on craigslist a lot. Did buy one used car that way. It had dealer plates on it, guy was a licensed 'dealer', but was doing it out of his home. Had 3 or 4 cars for sale.

I'm sure he peruses craigslist looking for cars that he can buy below-market, cleans them up- sells them! I see stuff like that on craigslist all the time. From a 'detailers' perspective, there are lots of cars for sale that run good but are filthy inside and out. If you could negotiate a good deal, buy it below market, make it shine, sell it above market- boom! (In theory!)

Most folks probably go to a dealer but I've never had trouble selling my own cars via craigslist. Sometimes in a matter of days! My current 'record' is about an hour. Listed the car for the book value, an hour later a guy was there, paid cash without even making a lower offer, paid what I was asking and drove the car off.
 
All it takes is one unhappy customer to complain to the law and you'll find your butt in court so fast it isn't even funny. You do NOT want the DMV/SOS to audit your transaction history. Most DMV/SOS have the ability to pull reports from their software to tell if you've exceeded the yearly limit. Title Jumping, which is selling the car without registering it to yourself, is highly illegal. To each their own, but know that in Illinois, it is a felony which will get you prison time.
 
Chicago Tommy said:
All it takes is one unhappy customer to complain to the law and you'll find your butt in court so fast it isn't even funny. You do NOT want the DMV/SOS to audit your transaction history. Most DMV/SOS have the ability to pull reports from their software to tell if you've exceeded the yearly limit. Title Jumping, which is selling the car without registering it to yourself, is highly illegal. To each their own, but know that in Illinois, it is a felony which will get you prison time.
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What sent you up the river? Murder? Rape?

No. I sold too many cars.


LoL. I believe it though.
 
Chicago Tommy said:
All it takes is one unhappy customer to complain to the law and you'll find your butt in court so fast it isn't even funny. You do NOT want the DMV/SOS to audit your transaction history. Most DMV/SOS have the ability to pull reports from their software to tell if you've exceeded the yearly limit. Title Jumping, which is selling the car without registering it to yourself, is highly illegal. To each their own, but know that in Illinois, it is a felony which will get you prison time.
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In some states dealer licenses are not difficult to obtain or even that expensive. Like I said, I bought a car from a guy who was a legit, licensed dealer, who was even able to issue me a temp tag and had dealer plates for the test drive, but sold out of his home. He had 3 or 4 for sale at the time, had a big shed behind his house where he had the cars, a big lift, couple rotary buffers. Fix 'em up, clean 'em up, sell 'em on Craigslist. I think he was a mechanic full time. Sure made sense! Make a little money on the side.
 
"Flipping cars" still conjures up shady dealings to me.
Just can't get those images out of my mind.

And there is still way too many "flood cars" out there flooding the used vehicle market.
Some in the "new" vehicle market as well!

Bob
 
FUNX725 said:
"Flipping cars" still conjures up shady dealings to me.
Just can't get those images out of my mind.

And there is still way too many "flood cars" out there flooding the used vehicle market.
Some in the "new" vehicle market as well!

Bob
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Like anything else, you can do it wrong or you can do it right. If you think the big mega dealership is looking out for your well being and is gonna tell you before that used car came to their lot it was in a police auction with a pool of blood in the trunk and had a bad engine rattle- you've got another thing comin'

It's not something I personally am interested in but I could see it being done in a genuine and honest way. Take a dirty car that needs modest repairs, fix it up and sell it in the pristine shape only an "autogeeker" can get it to, and you could sell it for a decent profit.

The real snakes are the buy-here pay-here's. Often buying flooded or wrecked cars, and then selling them at insanely high interest rates. Ever notice they are usually right by a title loan place? Yeah- probably both owned by the same sleezeball! Met a guy once who was proudly telling me about a jeep he bought 4 or 5 years prior from auction for $600. Put a couple junkyard parts on it and has sold it and repo'ed it so many times (his place is $500 down, $25 a week no matter what car it is. How many weeks is what varies!), that he said he's already made thousands on it. Day late? Repo! Then another $500 down and another couple of payments! Boom!
 
Romans5.8 said:
Like anything else, you can do it wrong or you can do it right.

If you think the big mega dealership is looking out for your well being and is gonna tell you before that
used car came to their lot it was in a police auction with a pool of blood in the trunk and had a bad engine rattle-

you've got another thing comin'
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My alluding to the denotative: "Flipping cars";
and the connotative meanings it conjures-up for me (shady dealings):

Should, in no way, fashion, or form be misconstrued as me saying to place any trust...whatsoever...
with big mega dealerships when shopping for used, or alleged "new" vehicles. That: Just wouldn't be true.

:)

Bob
 
Romans5.8 said:
In some states dealer licenses are not difficult to obtain or even that expensive. Like I said, I bought a car from a guy who was a legit, licensed dealer, who was even able to issue me a temp tag and had dealer plates for the test drive, but sold out of his home. He had 3 or 4 for sale at the time, had a big shed behind his house where he had the cars, a big lift, couple rotary buffers. Fix 'em up, clean 'em up, sell 'em on Craigslist. I think he was a mechanic full time. Sure made sense! Make a little money on the side.
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Yes, that is why I noted that that only applied to Illinois. It used to be insanely easy to get a dealer license in Indiana. All you needed was an "office". Most people would rent a cubicle in an office building for $200 a month. I know the Illinois SOS has cracked down on the "Indiana" dealers doing business in Illinois.

Just a side note to the other geekers in this thread. I wouldn't condone anyone posting that they have ever broken a law, or construe that they might have. Even if you're absolutely sure the SOL has expired. :dblthumb2: Just bad form, especially if you own a business with the same name as your AG account. Knowhatimsayin?
 
swanicyouth said:
Just a question for guys that's do this.... I would THINK, as a private party it's pretty difficult to sell a used car. Not the actual sale, but to actually get someone to buy it from you. I'm thinking most people tend to buy from used car dealerships, etc... because they don't want to get involved with a private party and because financing is easier if the dealership gets it.

How difficult is it to spark interest in your used car? Just wondering.
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Most people who flip cars such as myself don't buy a vehicle expensive enough to need financing. I stay below 5000. I even sell vehicles to local dealerships when the opportunity presents itself. I also show them all services i have had done to the vehicle and try to be as honest as possible with them. ive been doing this for about 10 years and it provides a great source of extra income about 10,000 per year.
 
Check the law in your particular state. I know in NM you have to obtain a dealer license and be bonded if you sell more than 3 cars per year. Personally, I wouldn't take a chance with the law. With electronic records, I'm sure there is something set up with the DMV to trigger people who make XX number of sales in a year.
 
PERFECTIONPLUS said:
Most people who flip cars such as myself don't buy a vehicle expensive enough to need financing. I stay below 5000. I even sell vehicles to local dealerships when the opportunity presents itself. I also show them all services i have had done to the vehicle and try to be as honest as possible with them. ive been doing this for about 10 years and it provides a great source of extra income about 10,000 per year.
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Amazing what you can find at auctions, too. Auctions don't JUST include wrecked cars- they also include older trade-ins that dealerships just didn't want to sell, and cars with mechanical problems. Some dealerships will auction any car older than 7-10 years as many financial institutions- including the ones the dealerships work with- won't finance cars that old. Since most dealerships offer a 'one stop shop' experience, handling financing and things in-house, they won't sell anything they can't finance. The well-maintained 14 year old Saturn I just sold would've been auctioned off had I traded it in, per my salesman.

Just because it's auctioned, doesn't mean it will be cheap. BUT, if this was the kind of hobby you wanted to get into, and you had mechanical knowledge (and an EPTG to check for body work and repairs!), you could get a cheap car or two. I've never done it, but I've had relatives who had. My uncle got an older Ford escort from auction with a blown transmission for $300. Bought a used tranny for $250 and spent 8 or 9 hours putting it in. Sold it for somewhere around $1800 if I remember right, a few months later. He was just looking for a cheap car to commute with instead of his gas-sucking truck, but he ended up turning a profit anyway!

And Bob,

I get what you mean with the connotation! So I guess we'll say "Does anyone have interest in refurbishing pre-owned cars for resale"? Hehehe.
 
swanicyouth said:
Just a question for guys that's do this.... I would THINK, as a private party it's pretty difficult to sell a used car. Not the actual sale, but to actually get someone to buy it from you. I'm thinking most people tend to buy from used car dealerships, etc... because they don't want to get involved with a private party and because financing is easier if the dealership gets it.

How difficult is it to spark interest in your used car? Just wondering.
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Dépends what you want to sell I guess. If you try to sell car in the 5,000$-20,000$ range, I think you are right. The lack of financing would make it really difficult.

People who flip cars usually do this:

1. Find a car that they can purchase really cheap say 400$-2500$

2. Fix the car. This varies from car to car, could be as simple as doing a good interior detail and paint polishing or as complicated as repairing mechanical problems and re-painting the car. The idea is to find a car that you can buy way bellow market value because it's in bad shape, fix it up and sell it for more than the combined amounts of buy price + work done on it. On average flippers try to make 1000-1500$ per car but in some cases if you find a car that needs almost no work and is bellow market value many will go for profits in the 500$-700$ range since it will take no time and everything is pure profit.

3. Selling cars that looks almost new seems to be pretty easy from what I have read. Most people don't have a good detail + paint polish done before trying to sell. So when someone come to look at your car that looks and smells like new, it's not hard to sell.

Selling is done through free listings like Craig's list, Kijiji, autotrader and the like. So you can get a lot of exposure at no cost.

If this interests you, do a search for flipping cars in Google or youtube, you should get 100s of links with info.
 
hernandez.art13 said:
Here is the car, I want to go talk to the owner. But it was too early in the morning to go knock on the door. I don't really know what to ask and what to look for...

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Feedback would be appreciated. Thank You...
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You are someone who could really make good money flipping cars because you know how to paint them. Add your detailing skills and all you need to learn (unless you already do) is how to fix common problems like A/C that doesn't work, replacing break pads and things like that and learn how to buy and sell. All of that can be done in a week.

Now for choosing cars, you need to find cars that sell bellow market value. For that you need the Kelly's Blue Book if you are in the US. Your goal is to buy the car at (or bellow) fair trade-in price and sell close to private party price or above. So when evaluating you need to look at the spread between the 2 prices and take into account how much money (and/or time) you need to invest in the car to sell it. Goal is to make at least a grand. As I said earlier if you find a car in perfect shape that you don't need to put any money in and would take little or no time to prepare, then you could go for a lower target profit.
 
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