What trading in buys you
One trip, no strangers, no listing photos, and the car's value comes straight off your next deal. Michigan also gives a sales-tax credit on trade-ins — you're taxed on the difference rather than the full price of the new car, up to a yearly cap — which quietly narrows the gap between a trade offer and a private-sale price. Ask the dealer to show the tax credit in the numbers.
What selling yourself buys you
Usually a better price — retail instead of wholesale. The cost is your time: photos, messages, test drives with strangers, and the paperwork. If the spread is small after the tax credit, the trade often wins on effort alone. If the spread is thousands, the weekend of work can be the best-paying job you'll do all year.
A third road
List it free on YouBuyCars. Up to three cars list free, a real person reviews each one before it goes live, and buyers reach you by on-site message, or by text and phone if you add your number. You get private-sale money with less of the private-sale circus.