SPRING MILLS, W.Va. (WDVM) — Talk about sticker shock! Have you priced a used car lately? That’s if you can find one on the market. The market for used cars now is a whole new ballgame.
Usually, a car or truck depreciates as soon as it’s driven off the lot or showroom floor. But not in this economy. Supply chain snarls. Computer chip shortages at factories to build new cars. The market is unprecedented.
“There are no new cars to buy, so there are not the trades that are out there,” said Jerry Walberg at Ten Point Preowned Auto Sales, LLC. “So the dealers are buying up the trades or buying up the used inventory to try to have something to sell.”
The scarcity has pushed car prices up by more than a whopping 40% over the past year, driving inflation to over 7.5%, a four-decade high!
“Since there are no new car sales,” said Walberg, “that makes the used car market very hot because there’s hardly any used cars out there. And then with all of these problems and shortages, the prices of used cars have gone up exponentially.”
And those higher costs carry over to buying insurance for vehicles, further limiting options for shoppers seeking more affordable cars.
“A 2018 Chevy Malibu with 30,000 miles on it,” said Walberg, “this time last year would be probably a retail car of about 16.9 to 17 thousand. now it’s $22,000 to $23,000.”
Market research firm JD Power said a car bought last year for $38,000 can sell now, slightly used, for almost $49,000.
Even rental car companies are holding on to their vehicles because they can’t get replacements. And some enterprising vehicle leaseholders are buying out their lease, selling the car for a profit that covers the entire lease. A crazy market indeed.
