How to Trade in a Car That is Not Paid Off?

Trying to trade in your current vehicle to a Williamsville dealership for a new Mitsubishi car, pre-owned vehicle, or straight cash? Not sure how to trade in a car you still owe? Although the trade-in process is fairly simple when the vehicle’s entirely paid off, the process can involve more steps if your vehicle still has debt. Find out how to trade in a car that’s not paid off yet with the Finance experts at Basil Mitsubishi below!

Do You Have Negative or Positive Equity?

So, how do you trade in a car you still owe? First things first, you’ll have to determine which of the two situations you are in:

• Positive equity: your car is worth more than what you still owe
• Negative equity: your car is worth less than what you still owe 

To find out which equity applies to you, you’ll need to know how much you still owe on your current Mitsubishi car, truck, or SUV. You’ll also want to find out how much your vehicle is worth according to Kelley Blue Book estimations. Finally, you’ll have to get a sample of trade-in offers to bring to our dealership near Clarence. If the offers you’re receiving are more than your current amount of debt, then you have positive equity. However, if the trade-in offers are less than the amount you owe, then it’s negative. 

Positive equity is the ideal situation for any trading in their car and guarantees that the rest of the process will go fairly smoothly. You’ll be able to trade in your vehicle without any debt, or even surplus money to put towards a new-to-you vehicle! If you have negative equity, you’ll have to consider the following options and determine which one best fits your needs instead. 

How to Trade in a Car You Still Owe on with Negative Equity?

If you have negative equity in the Amherst area, you have a few options for trading in your vehicle:

• Make Up the Difference You Still Owe After Accounting for the Trade-In Price: This is the first option you should consider, since it can easily turn your situation for the better. While not everyone will have enough spare cash to do this, it will work in your favor if you do.
• Another Option is to Transfer the Amount You Still Owe Over to a New Loan: Most people choose this option when they have negative equity and want to trade in their current vehicle that’s not paid off. However, transferring the amount to your new loan can increase the monthly payment and in the end, you will still be paying for a car that you traded in. In other words, this will make you upside-down in your new loan. If you can’t keep up with your current car payments, and you are downsizing with a cheaper car, this could be the best option for you.

Find a New-to-You Vehicle at Basil Mitsubishi

Have any further questions about how to trade in a car that is not paid off? Then, you’ll want to get in touch with us at Basil Mitsubishi today! We’re more than happy to provide you with the finance information you need to make an informed purchasing decision!