Buying a Car In New Jersey: What to Know
Photo by Matt Duncan on Unsplash
The Garden State can be a beautiful place to drive through, whether you’re driving up and down the shore, or through the hills of north Jersey on your way from Manhattan to Philadelphia.
And while buying a car in New Jersey can seem uncomfortable, there’s no reason it shouldn’t be a (Point) pleasant experience. While you have to consider different needs when buying a new car from a dealership, a used car from a dealership, or even one from a private seller, they are all fairly similar, straightforward processes.
Buying a New Car From a Dealer
Buying a new car can be a great accomplishment after years of saving from driving used cars. But if you want to smell that sweet scent of new car, you have to put in the work to make sure you do it right. You should do your research on new cars available. Since data about reliability doesn’t exist for new cars yet, you should look for models that have a solid track record of reliability.
That means you might want to avoid cars that have just been redesigned since you can’t know if the new parts will hold up. Once you’ve found a reliable model that fits what you need in a car, you can check all the inventory of that model in stock near you with the free CoPilot App. It will also help you figure out how much you should be paying for the features that you want. Since you don’t have to deal with mileage or condition like a used car, the trims and optional packages will be the biggest factor in the price.
Once you know how much you should be paying, you ought to secure financing through a local lender. Check with as many as possible to see what interest rates and loan terms you can get that will give you the best value. Then, all that’s left to do is head to the dealership, take a test drive, and if it feels like the right fit, you can go ahead and buy your brand new car.
The dealership should handle all the necessary paperwork to get your car titled in your name, and get it registered with the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission (MVC), making it easier than ever to buy a new car in New Jersey. All that you will have to do is get a liability insurance policy on the car (though you may want a more comprehensive coverage for your big new purchase) and pay the dealership for the taxes, title fees, and registration fees. And just like that, you have that brand new car you’ve always wanted.
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Buying a Used Car From a Dealer
Much of the process is the same while you’re still at a dealership, but there is a little more due diligence you should do. For instance, in your research, you should figure out what is a fair price for a car given its age, mileage, and condition. From there, once you have found one that seems right, you should absolutely see the car in person before buying. You need to take a look at the car yourself to see if there are any problems that didn’t show up online.
Some issues might just be scratches to the paint that will ding the value but not impact the integrity of the vehicle, while other issues like rust might be easily spotted in person and indicate a much larger problem. Even if you don’t notice any glaring flaws with the car, you should always hire an independent mechanic to inspect the car you want to buy. Just because a car can pass a dealership’s inspection doesn’t mean that there aren’t any mechanical issues with the car.
You should get professional advice to make sure those small problems today won’t lead to expensive repairs down the road. But, once you feel comfortable with the state of the car and have test driven it to make sure it feels and sounds right, the process of buying a used car in New Jersey is about the same as buying a new one, as the dealership will handle the paperwork, tax, title, and registration for you. Now once you get the car insured, you are good to go.
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Buying a Used Car From a Private Seller
If you want to buy a car from a private seller in New Jersey, prepare for a little paperwork. The most important document you will need is the car’s title. The back of the title should have all the room you need to transfer the title from the seller to the buyer. You will need to fill out the form on the back with the date of the sale, the purchase price, odometer reading at the time of sale, the signature of the seller, and the buyer’s name, signature, address, driver’s license information.
Once that is done, you are responsible for the car and have ten days to get the title officially transferred and get the car registered at the MVC. To transfer the title, you will need the title with all the information listed above, you will have to pay the $60 title transfer fee, and you will have to pay the vehicle sales tax.
Once you have the title transferred and you have proof of liability insurance, you can go get your car registered at the MVC by completing form BA-49, showing a valid emission inspection sticker, providing your driver’s license number and Social Security number, and paying the registration fee. Once you’ve done that, you have mastered the art of buying a car in New Jersey, and hopefully for the next few years you can fuhgeddaboudit.
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Get a Curated List of the Best Used Cars in New Jersey
The CoPilot car shopping app is the easiest way to buy a car. Tell us what you’re looking for and we’ll search the inventories of every dealership in your area to make you a personalized list of the best car listings in your area.
Only looking for newer models? CoPilot Compare is the search engine for nearly-new cars. Only see cars five years or newer with low mileage — CoPilot Compare is the best way to find off-lease, early trade-in, and CPO cars.
The best part? CoPilot is built using the same technology that dealerships use to buy and sell their inventories, so we have more info on each vehicle than competitors. CoPilot doesn’t work with dealerships, so there are no sponsored posts or other shady practices — just the most info on the best cars. Check out our About Us page to see how CoPilot works.
