A used-car lot at dusk under sodium lights, one person crouched at a front wheel shining a flashlight along the underside of a sedan.

The First Thirty Days

What you do immediately after buying decides whether it was a good purchase. Baseline it, fix the deferred items, and start the record.

Module 7 of 74 lessonsWritten in full1 worksheet

Start this module The whole course

The lessons

All 4, in the order they are read.

1. Baseline everything
Fluids, filters, pressures, readings and photographs on day one, so that every future change has something to be compared against.
2. The deferred maintenance you already priced
The list you negotiated with is the list you now execute, in the order the machine cares about.
3. Registration, insurance and the clock
Most states run a short deadline for transfer, and missing it costs a penalty for the life of the ownership.
4. The record that pays you back
The folder you start on day one is the evidence that Module 1 said the market pays for — and next time you are the seller.

The worksheet

First-thirty-days plan

Dated tasks with a deadline column, because two of these have legal deadlines attached. The baseline block at the top is the one people skip and regret at the first fault.

First-thirty-days plan
Task	Deadline	Done	Cost	Filed in the folder?
Photograph every side, the interior, the identification plate and all readings	Day 1	—	—	—
Record all fluid levels, tyre pressures, tread depths and date codes	Day 1	—	—	—
Bind insurance	Before it moves	—	—	—
Title transfer and registration	Your state's deadline — confirm it	—	—	—
Sales tax paid or exemption filed	Your state's deadline	—	—	—
Deferred item 1 from the offer sheet	—	—	—	—

4 further rows in the downloadable sheet.

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