This simple fact about a car on a dealer's lot can give you negotiating power

By Doug Demuro

Car dealerships are more willing to drop prices when they've had a car for a while-here's how to find out how long it's been there.

You've probably considered several essential tips and tricks for negotiating the best price as you get closer to buying a car. How long a dealership has had a particular vehicle for sale can be another good negotiation tool, a tactic even savvy car shoppers sometimes overlook. Here's how to determine how long a car has been sitting on a lot and how it can help you get a better price on your next vehicle.

Related: When car dealers are overstocked, that's good for buyers. These brands have the most inventory.

How knowing inventory age helps

In general, car dealerships become more willing to drop prices when they've had a car for a while. The main reason for this is obvious: When a dealership first gets a car, there's no reason to lower prices if customers are immediately interested. But, the longer a dealership has a car without selling it, the less likely the dealership is to find an interested buyer. That's when dealers start to drop prices to help the car sell, and that's when you should swoop in and negotiate the best deal you can.

Plus: Buyer beware: How to spot and avoid car dealer markups

Used car dealers nationwide ended February 2024 with an average of 44 days' worth of stock, up 9% from a year ago. That data is from Cox Automotive, Autotrader's corporate parent. Used car prices are in a slow but steady decline from pandemic-era records, partly because more inventory sits on dealer lots for longer periods.

How long has a car been on the lot?

There are several ways to figure out how long a dealership has had a car. Paperwork is one: Check when the car's paperwork was completed, indicating when it arrived at the dealer. If the title and other documents show the car has been sitting at the dealership for 60 days or more, you can likely negotiate a good deal.

Another tool: Use the vehicle history report from AutoCheck or Carfax. Most dealers are willing to provide a report to show a vehicle's history, including whether the car was involved in any accidents or incidents. However, a vehicle history report also shows another essential piece of information: it reveals when the car was listed for sale. Once again, you can use this information to your advantage when negotiating the price.

And then there's the tried-and-true method of figuring out how long a dealer has had a car: Watch the inventory. If you see a vehicle listed in a dealer's Autotrader inventory for more than a month or two, it's likely the dealer is slowly becoming more and more willing to lower the price.

Our take

In the car business, the term "aged inventory" refers to cars that have been sitting on the lot for so long that the dealer is ready to drop the price significantly to make a sale. If you can figure out which models are aged inventory when buying a car, you typically can negotiate a better-than-average deal on your next vehicle.

This story originally ran on Autotrader.com.

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04-18-24 0502ET

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