In life, patience is a virtue. Coincidentally, it's also beneficial when shopping for a car.

In September, the average price of a new car in the U.S. surpassed $50,000 for the first time in history, underscoring the importance of finding a bargain in today's market. You could spend hours at a dealership haggling with a salesperson over a few thousand dollars, or you could forgo the model you really want in favor of an economical alternative. But perhaps the easiest way to save some coin is to be patient and wait for the best terms to come to you.

Timing your purchase can mean the difference between paying thousands over MSRP and scoring a deal so good it'll make your friends and family green with envy. In the following sections, we'll review the best times to buy a car and reveal why dealers offer savings at those times. We'll also outline the best times to purchase used vehicles and highlight periods you should probably avoid car-shopping if you can.

One important thing to note: No matter when you plan to buy, it's always better to come prepared with pre-approved financing if you're able.

Buy a Car Before You Need One

Start browsing for a new vehicle before you absolutely have to have one. This gives you ample time to do your research and find the vehicle that best fits your needs and your budget. It also means you're much more likely to be satisfied with your purchase.

Planning ahead also gives you more leverage at the dealership. When you have to buy a replacement vehicle quickly, a clever salesperson can take advantage of your situation. If you have a deadline for getting a new set of wheels, you may not be able to find exactly the car you want on a dealer's lot. That means settling for whatever vehicle is available, and it may be with a price that's outside your ideal budget.

If you plan on trading in your old car, remember that a vehicle that's in good running order has significantly better resale value than one that needs expensive repairs to make it salable. You may be forced to spend money fixing your current ride to make it an acceptable trade-in rather than putting those dollars into a down payment on a new car. Remember to introduce your potential trade-in after you've already negotiated a hard number for your potential purchase or lease deal. That way, you know what the dealer is actually giving you for your trade-in rather than them muddying up the numbers by manipulating the discount andtrade-in values.

When you start the car-buying process at your leisure, you can confidently decide which vehicle you want, how much you should pay, and how you will finance its purchase. You can visit the dealership more relaxed, knowing you have time to consider your options. You can even test drive multiple cars ahead of time, so you can leap as soon as you see a good deal.

Buy at the End of the Month

Most retailers, regardless of what business they're in, set monthly sales goals, and car dealerships are famous for it. If you can find a dealer that's lagging behind its sales targets as the month is winding down, its salespeople will be much more likely to offer you a good deal. They might not tell you why they're offering the discount, but it's typically because they just need a few more sales to go over the top and reap the benefits of meeting their quotas.

For dealerships, the stakes are high. Not only do they receive financial incentives from automakers for reaching sales goals, but they can also be allotted more vehicles or additional popular models.

Of course, if the dealer or salesperson has already reached their sales targets, they'll have little incentive to offer you an attractive deal. But shopping at the end of the month might be a gamble worth taking, especially if you can garner quotes from several dealerships in your area.

Buy on a Monday

Some people advise shopping for a new or used car on the busiest day of the week, usually on the weekend. The rationale is that salespeople will be so busy that they'll try to reach a quick deal so they can move on to the next customer and make their money on volume rather than one overpriced car. Unfortunately, that doesn't work anymore, if it ever did. Salespeople will make the time to negotiate, no matter how busy they are, and may ask you to make an appointment for a return visit.

So if salespeople are going to take their time, you should, too. Shopping on Mondays, or any earlier, quieter day in the week, will give you more time to get your questions answered and take test drives. It will also give you more time to calmly negotiate a price that fits your budget, as the dealership's financing office is less likely to have a waiting line. You may even get out of the showroom faster.

Another benefit of buying on a Monday is that many local lenders, like credit unions, are only open on weekdays. You'll have more of an opportunity to shop for the best rates and ensure you're getting a good financing deal. Of course, having a pre-approved financing deal in place before you visit the dealerships is the best way to get affordable financing any day of the week.

However, shopping at the beginning of a week doesn't work as well following huge sales events or in areas where Sunday sales are prohibited. In those cases, dealership staff will be catching up on paperwork from the weekend and may not have as much time to answer your questions thoroughly.

Buy on Three-Day Weekends

Three-day weekends are busy times at dealerships, but many automakers offer special financing and lease deals over holidays. The holiday weekends where you'll most likely find heavily promoted deals includeMemorial Day,Labor Day,Fourth of July, andPresidents Day.

Of those, Memorial Day is one of the best times to buy. It is the kick-off to the summer car sales season and typically offers a multitude of deals from both dealers and automakers.

The Labor Day weekend is also a good opportunity for a nice deal, as it coincides with the beginning of the fall sell-off season. During that time, automakers are starting to roll out the next year's products, and dealers are trying to get rid of last year's models.

Buy in the Fall

Buy at the End of the Year

New Year's Eve and New Year's Day are some of the best times to buy a new or used car. These days usually still haveend-of-year sales events that are supported with great financing and lease deals from automakers. Yes, these days are usually considered to be the end of the previous year for automakers and their dealerships, despite their "new year" status.

Because it's still considered the end of the month, end of the quarter, and end of the year, there are plenty of sales goals that salespeople, dealers, and automakers are trying to hit. Because of the way automakers report sales, you don't usually have to complete the deal by Dec. 31. Deals completed on New Year's Day (and sometimes even a day or so later) usually contribute to the previous year's sales targets.

With dealerships super busy over the holiday, it's a good idea to do your homework well in advance. Salespeople aren't going to have the time to answer your every question or guide you toward a car that fits your needs. That means knowing the vehicle you want, having a pre-approved car loan in hand, and having a good idea of your trade-in's value.

Buy When There Are Incentives, Rebates, or Financing Deals

Sometimes, a vehicle needs a bit of a boost to meet an automaker's sales or leasing goals for that model. Those boosts come in the form of incentives such as cash back, low-rate financing deals, or lease offers with low monthly payments and a smaller-than-usual sum due at signing.

You can find the best auto loan and rebate car-buying incentives on ournew car deals page. Ourlease deals page showcases the best offers in the leasing marketplace. You won't typically find cash back offers on used cars, but ourused car deals page shows the best financing deals automakers are offering on certified used cars.

Buy When a Car Has Been Redesigned or Discontinued

Cars have design cycles and life cycles. A design cycle is the time between complete redesigns and is typically, but not always, about five years. A great time to buy or lease is toward the end of a vehicle's design cycle, when other shoppers are eyeing the newly redesigned model and dealerships want to unload the last of their inventory of the outgoing version. You'll even see automakers start to promote significant deals for the outgoing model before the new models arrive.

A car model's life cycle ends when an automaker decides to stop building it. You can save some serious cash if you're willing to buy at the end of a car's life cycle. You'll frequently see massive buying and leasing incentives offered as automakers announce a vehicle's impending exit from the marketplace.

Should I Buy a Discontinued Car?

There's nothing wrong with buying a discontinued car, especially if you plan to keep it for a long time. Cars that have been axed from an automaker's lineup tend to depreciate more quickly than current models. That's bad for lease customers, who should be shopping for vehicles with high residual values, but it doesn't really affect buyers who keep their rides for the long term.

It's important to learn why a vehicle was discontinued. Some just take a new name when they're redesigned. Others are so outmoded and uncompetitive that you should avoid them. Many vehicles are withdrawn from the market due to changing customer desires, including the seismic shift from sedans to trucks and SUVs.

When Is the Best Time to Buy a Used Car?

Many of the same rules about timing your new car purchase apply to used car purchases. One exception is holiday weekends and other significant sales events. In those cases, there are a couple of reasons why it's best to wait until a few days pass before you buy.

When shoppers buy new cars, they often sell or trade in their old ones. Those vehicles typically take a few days to get cleaned up, inspected, and moved to dealers' used car lots. Buyers who plan to sell their cars privately rather than trade them in may not sell until after they've brought their new vehicle home.

When Is a Bad Time to Buy a Car?

When a car model is a hot seller because it is brand-new, redesigned, or the best-selling model in its class, wait a while until its prices settle down before buying. There are plenty of buyers out there willing to spend more than the sticker price for the latest and greatest, but it's usually worth waiting instead of spending the extra money.

There's an urban legend that you should show up just before a dealership closes or even on Christmas Eve. The reasoning is that the salesperson will accept a lowball price so they can close up shop and head home. That's simply not the case. They'll probably just ask you to come back during business hours or possibly put in the extra time to negotiate the sale that evening. Remember, a typical car buyer is only at the dealership once every several years. Car salespeople are there every day, and they know the game better than you do.

You don't ever want to buy a used car shortly after a major flood or other disaster has passed through your area. Opportunistic sellers may try to get rid of damaged and quickly repaired vehicles before the information appears onvehicle history reports. Take the time and spend the money to get a pre-purchase inspection done by an independent mechanic to ensure there's no hidden damage.

Frequently Asked Questions