Is it Possible to Sell Cars for a Living?
Is it Possible to Sell Cars for a Living?
Posted on September 17, 2021
The used car market is incredibly strong right now, with shortages driving up values of cars by a considerable margin. This has caused a few of you to wonder whether you should drop the 9-5 and try to sell cars for a living.
We know this because a couple of people have asked our dealerships if they would buy used cars from them if they could supply them.
The answer was yes of course, we would buy the cars but it isn’t necessarily a viable source of income for you.
Selling your car to a dealership will make you a lot more money than it used to but it perhaps isn’t a career option for many of us.
Making a living selling cars
In order to sell cars for a living, let alone selling them to a dealership requires a few things.
- A workshop with tools and a car lift
- The knowledge and experience to fix a multitude of issues
- A good source of cheap used cars
- The time and experience to prepare those cars to sell to us
A workshop with tools and a car lift
If you watch the many car shows on TV, the one thing they have in common is a fully stocked workshop with every tool you can think of, and several you likely didn’t think of.
That will include welding gear, presses and cutters for basic fabrication, several sets of tools, a ramp or car lift, cleaning equipment for components, an engine hoist and every type of oil and lubricant you can lay your hands on.
All that costs a ton of money, which will come out of your profits.
The knowledge and experience to fix a multitude of issues
The other thing those car shows have is experts. Whether that’s Edd China with the spanners and Mike Brewer in sales or someone else entirely, they all have an expert mechanic on hand.
If you’re a mechanic or auto technician experienced enough to handle the work, you could make this a living.
If you’re not, hiring one can be expensive, which is another chunk of profit gone.
A good source of cheap used cars
The reason used cars have risen so much in value is because there is a shortage of them.
People cannot buy new cars at the moment so they are either keeping hold of their current car or buying nearly new instead. Fleets are holding onto their cars for longer as they struggle to get replacements.
Trade ins are also at an all time low because the new car market has shortages of its own.
That means our usual sources of used cars are drying up, hence the shortages.
Unless you know something we don’t and know someone with a steady supply for legal, non-salvage vehicles, you’ll have the same problem.
The time and experience to prepare those cars to sell to us
Reconditioning takes time, money and effort and requires parts, labour and the facilities to prepare the cars.
That all takes profit from the car. That’s something you’ll need to take into consideration too.
Can you make money out of selling used cars to a dealership? Sure you can, but you’ll need all the above in place before you do it.
If you can make it work, go for it. If you can provide good quality cars, we’ll certainly consider buying them!
For any questions, concerns, or inquiries. Please don’t hesitate to contact us here!
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