Must have 2010 Car Features for Resale value
So, you are considering buying a new car in 2010? I am sure that the purchase of the car is foremost in your mind, selling it on is probably not a high priority to you unless you are a fleet purchaser for a Company where residual values are important. However, it is worth considering a few points when considering the purchase of this new car as it is unlikely that you will never sell this car.
One of the most obvious but hardest to predict features for resale is the colour and type of paint used on the car bodywork. I am sure we have all looked at older cars and thought to ourselves, 'who would have chosen that colour of car, it's awful'! Unfortunately, colour is influenced by fashion as much as anything else, which means the 'in' colour of today may well be passe in the future. A poor prediction here will influence the price you finally sell the car for when resale is due. It might be wise to avoid the more garish colours.
Metallic finish paintwork does tend to hold it's value more than non-metallic finishes, so this may be a feature you may consider as a must have? It could be that this will increase the cost of the vehicle on initial purchase, but the resale rewards should be considered. Some colours, such as red, do not get favourable insurance quotations and if you are reselling your car further into the future, where the purchase price is low enough that a new or beginner driver is buying it, insurance costs at that point will influence the realised resale value of your car.
Due to political and peer pressures, cars with what could be considered 'green' features such as hybrid engines and other energy saving innovations may well have greater residual values when it comes to resale. You will need to balance the higher purchase price for such innovation against your prediction of the sale price of the vehicle when you decide to move it on. During ownership there may also be higher servicing and maintenance costs too, which you will not be able to set against your sale price.
You will need to look for features that are not fad or fashion orientated, such as long anti-rust warranties, long manufacturer vehicle warranties and a good history of a particular vehicle in the second hand car market. A buyer of a second hand car is looking more for reliability than how many cup holders the car has.
So, must have features that attract the new car buyer may well not be features that a second hand car buyer would consider as must have. You need to bear this in mind when choosing all the buyer options the dealer will offer you when making the purchase of your shiny new 2010 car. Which of these options will add value to the vehicle? Time will tell.
