Learn 03
Salvage and rebuilt titles
Blake’s rule: never buy salvage. But if you do, pay 25–40% less than standard market value. Full stop.
Standard clean-title market value ($)
Salvage discount35%
25%40%
Fair salvage price
$11,830
Walk away above $12,776 — the seller has to come to you, not the other way around.
Why the discount
A salvage title means the car was totaled by an insurance company and then repaired. Even when the body work is perfect, you inherit:
- Massive resale loss — the next buyer will discount you the same way
- Insurance headaches — most carriers refuse comprehensive on salvage
- Hidden frame and structural damage that doesn’t always show on inspection
- Possible airbag, sensor, and ECU issues that surface months later
Hard pass
Junk-title cars are unrepairable per state DMV. Walk away, no exceptions.