There are advantages and disadvantages to purchasing a vehicle at a government or police auction instead of going to a car dealership. Many people don’t realize it, but the police seize thousands vehicles every month and in most cases auction them off to the general public at greatly reduced prices.

Obviously, police auctions are a secret that car dealerships don’t want you to know about. This is because not only is there one less potential customer looking to purchase a vehicle but there is also another bidder competing against him for the cars that are being auctioned.

So why does 90% of the general public buy from car dealerships? Well that’s a good question and I think it comes down to education. People are simply not aware or these government and police vehicle auctions. The government would be ridiculed is they spent money on advertising. Here is a list of advantages and disadvantages in buying at these auctions:

Pros:

- Business Methodology allows much lower prices.

- Police auctions are held everywhere in US and Canada.

- Detailed listings of vehicles at government and police auctions are now available on the Internet

- There is a large selection of vehicles that can be found at police auctions including: cars, jeeps, trucks, minivans, ATV’s and more!

- No middle tier channel (middleman) to go through or pay

- No commissioned salesperson to have to deal with

- Motivated seller who is not equipped to handle inventory, everything must go

- Better income tax advantage (can be set up as a business for resale to spouse, kids etc.)

- May pay less sales and new car tax

- Once you understand process you can do as a side business (i.e sale cars in Autotrader.com or eBay)

Cons:

- Most sales are made in cash so credit is typically not offered

- No warranty period beyond manufacturer warrenty, although most used dealerships only provide 30 days or so

So if you don’t mind paying cash, or have access to credit, then it’s obvious that the pros far out-weigh the cons in favour of government and police auctions. Just as with a used car dealership it is a good idea to bring someone with you who can inspect and determine the vehicles condition.