Seized Car Police Auctions

How to be one of the sharp operators

When it comes to local police car auctions, there are always a few sharp operators getting the great deals and there are always more than a few “weekenders” getting the not so great deals.

Don’t think you’re going to get a great deal just by showing up. In fact, if you go in unprepared, it’s virtually guaranteed that you’re going to pay market price or more instead of getting a bargain.

Live auctions are your best chance to score a real bargain. When I say bargain, I don’t mean that you’re going to score a mint condition Corvette for five hundred dollars. Those dream deals are just dreams. What you can honestly expect is to pay true dealer cost.

You need to face the fact that you’re going to be bidding against professional dealers and what separates them from the weekenders is that they actually know the “trade-in” value of every car that comes up for auction. They understand exactly how condition affects the value of a car and they bid accordingly. Most importantly, they stop bidding when an auction gets taken over by a couple of weekenders with no clue.

The good news is that a detailed knowledge of the market is available to anyone with an internet connection.

It’s also a good place to start looking for auctions in your area. Do a Google search something like “Los Angeles Police Auctions”( using the name of your city) and see what turns up. Many cities, like Los Angeles, use commercial auction services to handle all seized property sales. However, there are still many towns and cities that do their own auctions. You can also try calling the local police business offices (NOT 911) and asking about auctions, or you can subscribe to one of the services that gives you updated local auction information regularly.

You should be aware that most, if not all, of the cars in a seized property auction will have been stored in an outdoor lot without maintenance and you need to be able to tell the difference between paint that is dirty and paint that is thrashed.

If the buyer inspection time is only a few hours before the auction, you’ll need some sort of internet connected device with you to check out market values and to make sure the car has a clear title.

That’s right, it’s up to YOU to make sure the car has a clear title. The police are not required to make sure the title of a seized car is clear before they sell it. That’s something the guy who is getting the $500 Corvette doesn’t know. He doesn’t know that when he tries to register that little beauty, the DMV computer is going to light up like a Christmas tree and his dream machine is going to disappear behind a tow truck and he’ll be out the five hundred bucks. Cars at auction are sold “as is” and that means dodgy title and all.

Do your homework on every car at the auction. Know the Kelly Blue Book Trade-In Price for every car there and write that down as your maximum bid. Know BEFORE the auction what every car there is really worth. If you have time, check prices for closed auction of similar cars on eBay Motors. You can also check places like AutoTrader and other online used car sites for retail values.

Run every car through a title check with places like AutoCheck or CarFax to make sure the title is clear before you buy.

Most importantly – stop bidding when the price of a car exceeds the maximum value that you have already worked out through careful inspection and research. Don’t “fall in love” with any particular car as there will always be another car and another auction and nothing justifies paying retail market value or higher at an auction. It’s just crazy that it happens all the time. Don’t let it be you.

Have fun and good luck at auctions!

You can find more free information at my Seized Car Police Auctions Blog.