Owning a car in Minnesota can be pretty expensive. According to Bankrate.com, car ownership costs in the state are more expensive than Washington, Hawaii, and Oregon. In fact, the state belongs to the top 25 priciest list!
What makes it quite expensive? There are many reasons, including other extra fees to pay upon purchase such as title and public safety vehicle fees. Of course, you need to be covered by auto insurance. Under the state’s auto insurance law, a car owner should be covered a minimum of $35,000 for property damage liability with no deductible.
The high price, however, should not deter you from owning a vehicle. One of the best ways to buy cheap vehicles in Minnesota is to join government auto auctions.
Let’s talk about government auctions for a bit.
Perhaps you’re not aware that government agencies do organize auctions to sell off surpluses and other assets that may be incurring inventory costs. Police, on the other hand, may auction off seized or repossessed vehicles. Either way, since the government doesn’t operate to earn a profit from asset sale, there’s a good chance vehicles can be won for at least 30% off their book or trade-in value. Moreover, with many vehicles up for auction, you may find one with fewer bidders, which increase your chance of getting a car for a cheaper price.
Although some of these government auctions are only for car dealers, who will be bidding on many vehicles, most are open to the public. You’d know if they are running one by visiting the state’s official website. Sometimes they publish the auction schedules in bulletin boards, flyers, print, and radio.
But here’s the thing: not all of the government auctions are advertised. Where should you look then? You can check out auction listing websites.
Auction listing websites do not organize auctions, and they are not affiliated with the government and other auctioneers. What they do is to collate all the auctions in the country, including those in Minnesota. Depending on the website such as Gov-auctions.org, sort the list out by state. You can then visit the links to find out which of them are running an auction.
These websites often require a subscription fee, but if there’s a possibility you’ll be bidding frequently, you can look for websites that offer a lifetime membership, which may cost you for less than $50.
How about the quality of the vehicles? In auctions, vehicles are sold in an as-is basis, which means what you see is what you get. Fortunately, since these are government vehicles, and the government has an allotted budget for asset maintenance, the cars are in good condition. To be sure, make sure that you attend an inspection, which is normally scheduled a day or two before the actual auction. Keep your car inspection checklist handy or bring along an auto technician.
Cliché goes “If there’s a will, there’s a way.” You’ve got the way, so now find the will to join a Minnesota government auction today.
