Auction Guide

An auto auction is a business that acts as the middle-man between a buyer and a seller. They work for the seller and not the buyer. There is two basic types of auto auctions, Public and Dealer.

Auto auction houses get their inventory from several sources, below are the main ones:

• Dealer consignment, these are vehicles car dealers own. Car dealers get these vehicles as customer trade-ins or buy them from other dealers or auctions.
• Salvage, these are auctions held by a local salvage yard and impounds, the vehicles are sold to collect past due towing and storage fees.
• Repo’s, these are vehicles repossessed by finance companies after a borrower stops making payments.
• Off Lease, these vehicles are owned by leasing companies and are usually 2-4 years old. Most of these vehicles are available to dealers only.
• Government, these are vehicles sold by the federal or local government. You can also find IRS and border patrol seized vehicles.
• Fleet, these are vehicles owned by large companies and are sold after a few years.
• Rental, these are newer model vehicles and were used as daily rentals.