Investors are always looking for a new and exciting way to diversify their portfolio and many are taking a break from stocks and share and focusing their attention on registration numbers. Investing in private number plates may seem like a strange way to secure your future but the dramatic rise in the popularity of personalised plates is providing generous returns on initial outlays.



The main selling point of private registration plates is they are unique. There whole concept of number plates is that there is only one of each. With this in mind number plate investors are constantly on the look out for the best name plates and low digit dateless number plates. If bought at the right prices, these registrations can see massive returns on investment when sold to buyers looking for the perfect plate.

As with any good deal, the profit is made in the purchase price. Buying cheap number plates below market value can increase the chances of making a good return when you sell your number plate again. When buying a number plate for an investment look for a registration that will be easy to sell on again. Try choosing a number plate with common or popular initials or that reads a name or word. Car registrations containing poor initials such as X or V are cheap number plates to buy however the chances of selling them on again are low.

There are many places to find cheap number plates. Some people buy a car which already has a personal plate on it. If the registration bears no significance to the new owner they often sell the reg for a cheap price. Other good places to look are local papers and classified ads. Cheap number plates can also be purchased from people who are emigrating and are looking to sell their number plate quickly.

One of the best places to grab private number plates deal is at a DVLA auction. These events see 1500 DVLA registrations going under the hammer to an audience of number plate dealers, collectors and enthusiasts. All the private number plates in the auction are previously unreleased meaning that potential buyers are paying wholesale prices for the registrations.

The auction lots generally include classic dateless registrations as well as suffix and prefix registration numbers which read peoples names. DVLA auctions are held every few months with private number plate dealers ( http://www.capeplates.co.uk/ )offering an auction bidding service. This service takes the hassle out of attending the auction yourself, saving the associated costs involved.

When the time comes to cash in your investment you can sell your number plates through a personal number plate dealer. Certain dealers will provide a free valuation and selling service to their customers. Valuations take into account several factors including similar marks on the market, previous selling prices and popularity of the name or initials on the number plate. Personal registration numbers can be sold whilst still assigned to your vehicle or whilst being held on a retention certificate.

If you are selling your car and wish to keep your registration number its best to transfer the number off before the deal is complete. If not the new registered keeper of the car has full legal rights to its registration and can refuse to give you the registration back. Applications to retain registration numbers take 2-3 weeks to complete so bear this in mind when selling your car.