How to Buy a Car for $500 or Less
There are some situations when one would benefit from buying a cheap "throw away" car. Maybe an old van is needed to do a couple of hauls, or a car that will make it one way to another city. There are a few places where drivable cars can be found for $500 or less; just have an understanding of the enormous risk regarding the condition of the car.
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Instructions
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Go to eBay.com and do a search for cars. Type "used cars" into the search box. Scroll down to the "Price" search category, which is located on the left hand side of the screen. Type in a $0 to $500 range and then hit "Go." Bid on cars that you like or click "Buy It Now" to purchase the car without bidding (if that option is available for the listing you are interested in).
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2
Visit AutoTrader.com. Click "Find Cars for Sale" on the top menu. Select "Search for Used Cars" and then enter in your ZIP code. Scroll down to "Price Range" to enter in your budget of up to $500 and then "Search" to sort through available cars.
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Go to Cars.com. Click "Advanced Search" under the "Used Cars" section on the front page. Set your maximum price at $1,000, as this is the minimum, type in the ZIP code, leave all other options as is (find all types of cars) and search for listings in your area. Click the "Price" column to sort your listings so that you can find the under $500 options first.
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Search for used cars under $500 at AOL Autos (autos.aol.com/used). Enter your price range and ZIP code. Click the "Sort by" drop down box and select "Price low to high" to sort through the lowest priced car listings first.
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Tips & Warnings
If you are having a hard time finding a good selection of cars, expand your search radius. For instance, instead of a 10 mile radius, use 50 miles. Search for used cars in ZIP codes of major cities. You will have a larger selection to choose from due to the larger population. Get a Carfax vehicle history report on the car before you purchase it to find out if there were any major issues associated with the car. You need the vehicle identification number (VIN) in order to do a search.
