How to Trade in a Car That is Not Paid Off

Learning how to trade in a car that you still owe on can be a rewarding experience, but it’s important to distinguish between positive and negative equity before you get started. If your vehicle is worth more than what you owe, then you have positive equity. If your vehicle is worth less than what you owe, then you have negative equity. You can trade in a car regardless of whether you have positive or negative equity, but should you? We’ve laid out everything that you need to know to get the trade-in process rolling in Englewood.

Trading in a Car with Positive Equity

It’s relatively easy to learn how to trade in a car that’s not paid off! Overall, the process is similar to a standard trade-in—especially if your vehicle is worth more than what you owe. The only difference is that the balance of your loan will be subtracted from your trade-in value before you receive cash or credit to put toward a new vehicle.

Need an example? Let’s say that you still owe $12,000 on a car that’s worth $15,000. In this case, you’ll be able to pay off your old loan balance and receive $3,000 to put toward your next new or used vehicle.

Trading in a Car with Negative Equity

Trading in a car with negative equity can be much trickier, because it’s relatively easy to set yourself up for failure. If your vehicle’s trade-in value isn’t sufficient to cover your loan balance, most Jersey City and Fort Lee dealerships will offer to roll your remaining balance onto a new automotive loan. This means you’ll only have to worry about one monthly payment, rather than two—but it also means that your monthly payments might be higher than you’d expected, or can afford.

If you have to trade in a car with negative equity, make sure that the total loan balance required for your next upgrade will fit well within your budget. Choosing a more affordable used car as your next vehicle is a great start. Of course, you can also take these steps to maximize the return on your trade-in:

• Do your research to find out how much similar cars have sold for in the past.
• Get multiple vehicle appraisals to see who will offer you the most money for your vehicle.
• Save every offer or estimate that you receive, and use these offers to negotiate for a higher return.
• Although you can’t always negotiate on trade-in prices, you can certainly do so at Land Rover Englewood.

Last but not least, always read the fine print before you sign onto an auto loan. Remember that a longer loan term can mean a lower monthly payment, but it’s also more likely to leave you with negative equity—especially if you’re rolling over an older loan!

Value Your Trade-In with Our Team!

Now that you’ve seen how to trade in a car that is not paid off, we wouldn’t blame you if you were eager to move forward. We’d love to buy your used car, even if you have negative equity, and we’re easy to reach from anywhere near New York City.