Purchasing Automobiles From Probate
Buying personal property from heir groups is a topic I get questions about quite frequently.
Specifically, I got a question last week as to whether you can buy cars from the estates.
The answer is ...
absolutely! Once the Personal Representative has been appointed, he/she has the authority to act for the estate and can sell anything in the estate.
So, if the estate has a car in it, the PR can sell the car to you ...
no problem.
Have you ever been browsing through the classified ads and seen one that says,"1995 Buick Electra, immaculate, power everything, non-smoker, 39,400 miles, $3950, Call Jim"? I can almost guarantee you that's an estate car.
"How can I tell?" you ask.
Well, first of all, older folks seem to like Buicks, Pontiacs, Fords, Chevrolets ...
big American cars.
I call these "Luxo Cruisers.
" Luxury cars with all the power stuff that ride nice and easy.
Also, look at the miles, 39,400 for a 13 year old car! That's low, low miles folks.
The average family drives their car around 12,000 miles per year.
So for this 13 year old car, 156,000 miles is about what would be expected.
But older folks just don't drive as much as we do when we are younger.
So here we've got a big ol' "Luxo Cruiser" with very low miles ...
and a great price.
These are the kinds of cars you will find in estates.
So, if you are looking for a good replacement car and you don't want to spend a lot of money, Probate properties can be a great place to look.
By the way, this is exactly what my friend Andy did a few years ago.
He found a white, 1993 Buick Park Avenue, beautiful dark blue leather interior, all power options including a nice power moon roof, and he paid around $4600 - if I remember correctly.
He's still driving this car today.
The last time I talked to him, he said he had just driven to Seattle and back (from Portland, OR) and averaged 27 MPG.
27 MPG! WOW! What a blessing.
Now, as I have said before, I concentrate on the Real Property, the homes.
However, if you're into cars, or just want to pick up a nice bargain, Probate can be the answer.
Specifically, I got a question last week as to whether you can buy cars from the estates.
The answer is ...
absolutely! Once the Personal Representative has been appointed, he/she has the authority to act for the estate and can sell anything in the estate.
So, if the estate has a car in it, the PR can sell the car to you ...
no problem.
Have you ever been browsing through the classified ads and seen one that says,"1995 Buick Electra, immaculate, power everything, non-smoker, 39,400 miles, $3950, Call Jim"? I can almost guarantee you that's an estate car.
"How can I tell?" you ask.
Well, first of all, older folks seem to like Buicks, Pontiacs, Fords, Chevrolets ...
big American cars.
I call these "Luxo Cruisers.
" Luxury cars with all the power stuff that ride nice and easy.
Also, look at the miles, 39,400 for a 13 year old car! That's low, low miles folks.
The average family drives their car around 12,000 miles per year.
So for this 13 year old car, 156,000 miles is about what would be expected.
But older folks just don't drive as much as we do when we are younger.
So here we've got a big ol' "Luxo Cruiser" with very low miles ...
and a great price.
These are the kinds of cars you will find in estates.
So, if you are looking for a good replacement car and you don't want to spend a lot of money, Probate properties can be a great place to look.
By the way, this is exactly what my friend Andy did a few years ago.
He found a white, 1993 Buick Park Avenue, beautiful dark blue leather interior, all power options including a nice power moon roof, and he paid around $4600 - if I remember correctly.
He's still driving this car today.
The last time I talked to him, he said he had just driven to Seattle and back (from Portland, OR) and averaged 27 MPG.
27 MPG! WOW! What a blessing.
Now, as I have said before, I concentrate on the Real Property, the homes.
However, if you're into cars, or just want to pick up a nice bargain, Probate can be the answer.