15 Secrets to Buying a Used Car

6. Know When to Pull Out the Benjamins

If you are planning to pay in cash, it pays to be smart about when and how you disclose this fact.

Private sellers are very motivated by cash. Seeing you pull out a wad of bills and slowly count them off can encourage the seller to do anything to sell the car, including drop his price. Toward the end of negotiation, pull out your wallet and say as remorsefully as you can, “It’s a shame you’re asking $1,500, because I only brought $1,000” is an age-old trick, but it works. Be prepared to walk away if the offer is rejected. More often than not, it won’t be.

If you’re at a dealership, though, this trick will backfire. Dealers make most of their money from partnerships with financing companies, so they have little to gain from a purchase made in cash. If you’re planning to buy the car outright, leave this detail off until the last minute. Otherwise, you risk a premature end to price negotiations.