Carfax reports for car flippers: what to check in two minutes

If you flip cars, the history report decides what you can sell a car for, so you read a lot of them and you need to read them fast. Start with the six lines in the summary on page 1, then check the mileage trail and the title brands. In two minutes you know whether a car fits your margin, needs a lower offer, or isn't worth the trip.

The quick read at a glance

• Page 1 summary: title brands, service records, open recalls, number of owners, type of owners, last odometer reading.
• Accidents: how many, how severe, airbags, total loss.
• Mileage: readings that only climb, and a last reading that fits the dashboard.
• Title trail: which states, and whether a brand appears after a move.
• Decision: buy at your number, offer lower, or pass.

Step 1: the six summary lines

The summary box on the first page of our sample report, a 2012 RAM 1500, reads:

• Branded Titles: Rebuilt, Salvage
• 3 Service history records
• At least 1 open recall
• 4 Previous owners
• Types of owners: Corporate, Personal
• 200,000 Last reported odometer reading

For a flipper that's mostly decided already. Two title brands cut the resale price and the pool of buyers who can finance or insure it. Four owners and 200,000 miles push it further down. The open recall is a free dealer fix you'd want done before selling. A corporate first owner often means a fleet car with heavy early mileage.

Step 2: accidents

Count the accident entries and read each one's detail. One minor, well-documented accident is a negotiating point. Several, an airbag deployment, or a total loss changes the car's value far more than the repair bill suggests, because your buyer will read the same report. Our guide to what "damage reported" means covers how to weigh them.

Step 3: mileage

Check that each odometer reading is higher than the last and that the last one fits the dashboard. A reading that goes down is a hard pass: you can't resell a car with questionable mileage honestly. Our odometer rollback guide shows a normal mileage trail.

Step 4: title trail

Look at where the car was registered and when. A car that moves state shortly after a total loss, or a title issued very recently with no history around it, needs a closer look before you buy.

Step 5: decide

1. Clean history and fair mileage: buy at your number, and keep the report to show buyers.
2. Minor documented issues: offer lower, and price in the explanation you'll have to give.
3. Brands, rollback signs or several accidents: pass, unless the price leaves room for a branded-title sale.

Then inspect the car you buy. A report tells you the recorded past, not what's wrong underneath today.

Running reports at volume

Credits work per VIN: one credit runs one report, from your dashboard, whenever you need it. They never expire, so a pack bought for one auction weekend still covers next month's cars. If a report can't be produced for a VIN, its credit comes back automatically. The bigger packs bring the price per report down, to $3.50 a report in the 20-pack. If you buy cars every week, our dealer and wholesale page is the place to ask about larger volumes.

Questions from car flippers

How many Carfax reports should I buy at once?

As many as you'll use over the next few months. Credits never expire, so buying a bigger pack mainly lowers the price per report.

Does a rebuilt or salvage title kill a flip?

Not always, but it lowers the resale price and the number of buyers who can finance or insure the car. Only buy one if the price leaves room for that.

Should I show the report to my buyers?

A clean history is a selling point, and buyers often run their own report anyway. Being upfront about what it shows saves arguments later.

What matters most in the report for resale?

Title brands first, then accidents with airbags or a total loss, then the mileage trail and the number of owners.

Read the history before your next auction. Choose a pack: $3.50 a report in the 20-pack, or $7.99 for a single report.