[CarGuy954]

I have been in the market to purchase a used BMW M340i and had some questions during my research. Recently I found two 2022's for sale with nearly identical mileage and packages. The retail price on these vehicles was around 51K. So I requested an appraisal from several dealers as if I were selling them so I can see what the trade values are. This would give me an idea was kind of margin there is so I can negotiate the retail price down. However, both those vehicles had a trade in of 39k (with no accidents & clean titles). This concerned me on how there can be a 35% increase over trade-in to retail. From an equity stand point this would be a really bad start. The dealerships I spoke with are not willing to go down very much if any. I am going to try this method on more used M340's to see if this high margin applies to all.

This leads to my question for those of you who have traded in recently are you getting a low trade in value in comparison to retail price. For those who have purchased used recently are you seeing the same margin over trade in and are dealers willing to negotiate down to a 10 to 15% margin over trade in.

With wholesales prices dropping at auctions and its inherent affect on trade in values, as well as its expected to continue throughtout the remainder of the year. To purchase a car with a 30 to 35% increase over trade in now would be bad, as the additional equity loss throughout the year could leave you really upside dopwn in just a couple of years. Unless you place a good down payment which you will just loose over time.

If anyone has any input on this or recommendations it would be much appreciated.