Once your car is on the board, the buyers who cover your ZIP code can bid on it. Every bid lands on your board, the page we send you to after you list, and there are two kinds.
Instant bids
Some buyers have set their own prices for cars like yours, so their bids are worked out the moment you list. They show up on your board one at a time over the first few minutes, and the top card always shows the biggest bid so far. Your board updates by itself while they come in, so there is no need to refresh it.
Not every car gets instant bids. A listing with none is still open, and buyers can still bid on it by hand.
Bids by hand
Other buyers look at your photos and answers first, then bid by hand. A bid by hand shows on your board as soon as the buyer makes it.
How long you have
When you list, “How fast do you want it gone?” sets when bids close: ASAP closes them in 1 hour, and By tomorrow closes them at 10 AM the next day, where your car is. ASAP is there until 2 PM where your car is, and if you choose it before 8 AM, bids stay open until 10 AM that morning instead, so buyers are up to see your car. The form shows the time before you list. A clock at the top of your board counts down, and you can take a bid at any time while bidding is open. When bids close at 10 AM, we also remind you once by text or email before then, with the top bid so far, usually at 8 AM that morning.
When bidding closes, no new bids come in and no bid can change. The bids you have still stand for a day, and you can take one then. We text or email you when bidding closes, with how many bids you got, the top one and the time you have until. If you don’t take a bid by then, your listing ends, and you can put the car back on the board.
If you need more time, the Keep it on the board 1 more day link at the foot of your board moves the close to 10 AM the day after, where your car is, up to three times, and a car is never up more than a week from when you listed it. After bidding has closed, the link opens bidding again until 10 AM tomorrow. Every buyer with a bid standing is told the new closing time.
Each bid also shows a “Bid good until” date, a week after the buyer made it.
One bid from each buyer
Each buyer gets one bid on your car, and it never goes down. A bid a buyer places by hand is final. A bid their prices made can be replaced once by hand, with a bigger amount or an earlier pickup time. A buyer can also take their bid back at any time, and it leaves your board without a message to you. A buyer who took their bid back can’t bid on your car again unless you put it back on the board.
What we tell you
If you agreed to texts, we text you when a buyer bids by hand, or replaces their instant bid, and takes the top spot, at most once every two hours. One that comes in between 9 PM and 8 AM, on the clock where your car is, waits until 8 AM. If we can’t text you and you gave us your email, we email you instead.