'By Owner' Used Car Sales Soar, According to StraightAway

Person-to-Person Used Car Sales in the U.S. Have Grown Over 2 Million Units Since 1999

NAPLES, Fla., May 5 -- Since 1999, person-to-person auto sales have risen 20%, going from 11,448,430 units to over 13,668,383 units in 2003, while used car sales by new car dealers have declined.* "Private sales have matched independent used car dealers and could soon surge past franchised auto dealers to the #1 position in the 40+ million unit used car market," said Ben Freeland, CEO of StraightAway.

Key factors in the large gain of person-to-person auto sales are: increased usage of the Internet, better quality used cars, and the availability of financing in private sales. The Internet is a key tool for empowering individuals to easily find the used car of their choice. Companies like StraightAway, the only online auto marketplace dedicated to "By Owner" car sales, offer the services of buyer's auctions, financing, history reports, inspections, title/registration, and document preparation, which makes buying and selling cars easy.

For many years, private sales accounted for almost half of all used car sales, then car prices became so high that financing was required to complete the majority of these sales. Without accessible financing and someone to assist in lien payoffs, title/registration issues, and other hurdles, private sales tumbled to 28.1% of the used car market in 1999.*

Ben Freeland states, "Individual sellers can now take advantage of the online sites, classified ads, and trade magazines to market their vehicle and utilize a company like StraightAway for assistance with all the details to complete the transaction. Individuals can gain the financial benefits of buying and selling directly, rather than being forced to transact at a dealership."

StraightAway is a Naples, FL-based company that has been assisting individuals in used car transactions since 1999. StraightAway helps buyers and sellers find each other and also makes completing the transaction easy and secure with services such as financing, title/registration service, documentation, vehicle inspections, vehicle history reports, buyer's auctions and "60 day guaranteed to sell" classified listings for private sellers. For more information about StraightAway, visit www.straightaway.biz.

* Statistics taken from CNW Marketing Research Document 106M "Used Vehicle Sales by Type of Outlet."