The Truth About Kelly Blue Book Used Car Prices

Kelly Blue Book, also known as Kelley Blue Book, or KBB, is the leading resource for car buyers and sellers looking for used car prices. Yet, out of the millions of people who use Kelly Blue Book to price their used car, only a handful use its valuation correctly.

 

This occurs because most of us simply visit the website, type in our car's information, and look at the big valuation number that appears. What most of us don't do is read the fine print.

 

First of all, if you use KBB's default pricing tool, you're getting the "Suggested Retail Value" for a vehicle that is in "Excellent Condition." In layman's terms, you're finding out how much a dealer would want to sell the car for on his used car lot if the car were in excellent condition.

 

But less than 5% of all used vehicles find their way into the "Excellent Condition" category. According to Kelly Blue Book, a vehicle is in excellent condition when it has had absolutely no paint or body work done, and is free from blemishes and scratches. It is in excellent mechanical condition and needs no reconditioning. The vehicle must have a clean title history, pass smog certification, and the engine compartment must be clean with no fluid leaks or visible wear/defects.

 

In addition, the vehicle must have complete and verifiable service records. That is why less than 5% of vehicles fall into this category. Yet most vehicle sellers immediately assume that the suggested retail price for their vehicle is the bare minimum they should request when selling their auto.

 

Get a More Accurate Kelly Blue Book Price

To get a more complete picture of your vehicle's worth, use all of Kelly Blue Book's used car pricing tools. Your choices are "Dealer Trade-In Value," "Private Party," and "Suggested Retail." What you'll discover is that a dealer will offer you far less for your used car, truck or SUV, even if it happens to be in "Excellent Condition" compared to Kelly Blue Book's suggested retail value. You'll also see that though a private party will likely offer more than a dealer, it's still below the suggested retail value.

 

So why does Kelly Blue Book give you a "suggested" value, then tell you to expect far less from either a dealer or a private party? Well, as we pointed out earlier, the suggested retail value is actually representative of what a dealer will ask for the used vehicle when selling it on the lot. That's why the price is higher than most people can actually sell the vehicle for - the price is inflated due to the dealer's overhead and other costs he must recoup.

 

Still Get a Great Price for Your Used Car

Kelly Blue Book's pricing tools are basically telling you that you will get roughly 15% more money from a private buyer than from a dealer, depending on the condition and type of vehicle. However, the effort and cost involved in advertising, showing, and negotiating a private sale can overshadow any benefit that extra money brings you.

 

The excellent alternative to this Catch 22 is to sell your car, truck, or SUV to an auto buying service. They'll appraise your vehicle at your earliest convenience, giving you a cash offer right then and there.

 

In our case, we guarantee to offer more for your vehicle than any dealer will. More importantly we handle all DMV paperwork, smog certification, and transportation for the vehicle. That way, you get that extra 5-15% over the dealer trade-in value without paying out of pocket for advertising, the smog check, etc.

 

Sounds like something worth looking into, doesn't it? Especially since it's completely free (though we do accept hugs and handshakes). You can find out, right now, exactly how much money you can get for your vehicle and get that cash in your hands today. Just click here, fill out a brief form, and a valuation expert will phone you shortly.