By Braden Simmons | Reporter
If you’re graduating from college soon and in need of a car, but don’t want to stretch your budget for an expensive used car, there may be an easy solution!
Buying cars that are classified as rebuilt or salvage titles can be beneficial to a consumer looking to save money on their next automobile. I recommend rebuilt as the car has been looked at and its title has been shifted from salvage to rebuilt. These cars, since they are not clean titles, will be marked down 30 to 50 percent down from the average price of the same used car.
Defining a vehicle as salvage or rebuilt comes down to a couple of details. Salvage titles are a bit riskier of a purchase because the title refers to damage to the automobile. Insurance companies define the car as totaled due to the cost of repair being more than the vehicle so they purchase the car from the driver and salvage it, rendering it worth a fraction of what it once was.
Now, you’re probably thinking, who would want a car that has been in an accident? However, a lot of people have bought rebuilt title cars. If the damage is primarily to the body or engine area, it can be fixed. As long as the car has no structural damage it can be restored to its former glory.
Repair shops that have taken a hobby in taking these cars and rebuilding them have attracted people who want to get a car at a lower price. Once the repair shop repairs the vehicle, it is then tested and if it passes, they put a rebuilt title on the car.
The cars you see on rebuilt automobile sites come with a catch. If you were to resell it, the car is not worth what a clean title car of that same make and year would be. These cars should be designed to be driven for years and be a long-term solution for transportation for the buyer.
According to How Stuff Works, a rebuilt car is worth 60 percent of retail value for a clean title. That discount alone is enough to take a look and inspect the automobiles with your own eye.
Buying a rebuilt title is definitely not as easy of a task as buying a normal car, but if you do your homework you can walk away with a car that is right for you and it will last you for years down the road. If you are going to go ahead and buy a rebuilt car, you must check and make sure your insurance provider covers rebuilt titles in order to make your new ride drivable.
I recommend not looking at cars with salvage title and paying close attention to the details of repairs made on repaired cars. Salvage titles are more trouble than they are worth and can lead you down a rabbit hole where you may buy a car with more damage than you realized. Look at the car facts with the vehicle identification number (VIN), and make sure with the dealer that the deal you are getting is one that will last you a long time on the road.
