How to sell your car in Albania: the complete guide

There are three common ways to sell a used car in Albania: to a dealer, through an advert where buyers call and negotiate, or at an online auction. The steps below apply to all three. Where Going Once Cars works differently, we say so.

1. Decide how you want to sell

• To a dealer: quick and simple, but the dealer has to resell the car at a profit, so the offer is usually well below what a private buyer would pay.
• Through an advert: you choose the asking price, then answer calls, show the car, negotiate and arrange the payment yourself. It can take days or weeks.
• At an online auction: you list the car once, verified buyers bid for 1 to 7 days and competition sets the price. On Going Once Cars the buyer pays GOC, not you, and you are paid after the handover.

A side-by-side comparison is in auction or advert with haggling?

2. Find out what the car is worth

Start from a realistic price. Look at similar cars (same model, year and mileage), and remember that prices in adverts are asking prices, not sale prices. Our free valuation gives you a price range, plus a suggested starting price and minimum price for an auction. What moves the price up or down is explained in the factors that decide a car's price.

3. Get the documents ready

A sale moves faster when the papers are ready before you list the car:

• your ID card or passport;
• the registration certificate (leje qarkullimi), showing you as the owner;
• proof of ownership, such as the purchase contract, if the car isn't registered in your name yet;
• the technical inspection certificate, if the car has a valid one;
• customs clearance documents, for imported cars;
• a power of attorney, if someone else sells the car for the owner.

The rules for transferring ownership (notary, registration and deadlines) can change, so check them with a notary or the vehicle registration office before you sell. More in documents to sell a car.

4. Prepare the car

Wash the car inside and out, take out personal items and find every key, the service book and the receipts for recent work, such as the timing belt, tyres, brakes or clutch. Small fixes, like a bulb or the wiper blades, are worth doing. For bigger faults it is usually better to describe them honestly and let the price reflect them.

5. Take photos that sell

Buyers decide from the photos. Shoot in daylight, hold the phone sideways and keep the whole car in the frame. On Going Once Cars the app asks for 8 photos: the front, the rear, both sides, both three-quarter views, the dashboard with the mileage and the front seats. We recommend 20 or more in total. Step by step: how to photograph your car so it sells faster.

6. Write an honest description

Say how long you have had the car, how many owners it has had, how it was used and when it was serviced, with dates or mileage. Mention known faults and what is included, such as the number of keys or winter tyres. A clear, honest listing sells faster and avoids arguments at the handover. On Going Once Cars, leave out phone numbers and links: all contact goes through GOC.

7. Set your price

• For an advert: an asking price with a little room to negotiate.
• For an auction: a low starting price (at least €500 on Going Once Cars) attracts more bidders. Protect yourself with a hidden minimum price at the lowest amount you would accept. If the auction ends below it, you have 24 hours to accept the highest bid or decline it.

You can also add a Buy Now price, or sell at a fixed price for 7, 14 or 30 days.

8. List the car and follow the bids

On Going Once Cars you list the car from your phone in about 10 minutes, for free. Automatic checks start as soon as you submit, and the listing usually goes live within minutes if everything is in order. The auction runs for 1 to 7 days, as you choose, and you get a notification for every bid. A live auction can't be edited, so check everything before you submit, and choose a start time so the auction ends in the evening rather than in the middle of the night.

9. Get paid safely

In a private sale the payment is the riskiest moment: counterfeit banknotes, fake transfer receipts, "deposits" that never arrive. Never hand over the car, the keys or the documents before the money is really in your account.

On Going Once Cars you never receive money from the buyer directly. The buyer pays Going Once Cars within 3 business days, and we pay you by bank transfer to your IBAN 1–2 business days after the handover: the price minus the €50 success fee. If the car doesn't sell, you pay nothing.

10. Hand over the car and transfer ownership

Sign a sale contract with both names on it, hand over the keys and the documents, and transfer the ownership according to the rules in force.

On Going Once Cars the buyer books a pickup slot. On the day you check the buyer's ID against the name the app shows you, sign the Going Once Cars sale contract together and enter the buyer's 6-character handover code in the app. Hand over the keys only after the code has been accepted.

Mistakes that slow a sale

• An asking price far above the market.
• Too few photos, or dark ones.
• A fault the buyer only discovers at the viewing.
• Documents that aren't ready.
• Accepting the first low offer because you're tired of the calls.