Used Car Prices Up 16 Percent, Many Domestics Now Holding Value Better
Edmunds analysts have reported that three-year-old used cars currently sell for about 16 percent more than they did this time last year. Typically, used car prices rise 4.6 percent from year to year.
"The remarkable price increase is easily attributed to basic economic principles: used car supply is down, and demand is up," said Edmunds.com Analyst Joe Spina, who is responsible for the True Market Value Used Vehicle Appraiser data.
Spina added that, "in recent years, automakers largely withdrew from leasing and now the effects are starting to kick in, so off-lease inventory is starting to dry up. Also, thanks to relative softness in the new car market, there aren't as many used cars being traded in. Meanwhile, demand is up because many traditional new car shoppers are now considering used due to the economy."
Domestic cars are benefitting the most from the price spike. Three-year old domestic cars are selling for about 18 percent more than they did this time last year, while European used car prices fell during the same period.
Slicing the data by segment, minivans jumped the most, 27.1 percent, while midsize cars fell 1.6 and was the only segment to post a decline. Notably, many of the Japanese midsize cars are selling at lower prices while domestic and Korean midsize cars are commanding higher prices.
"Barring any other atypical market forces or dramatic changes in gas prices, we expect that used car prices will be stable over the next few years - which is good news for consumers who plan to trade in soon," Spina told Edmunds' AutoObserver.com.
Detailed charts and more information are available here.
- Posted by
- Ron Montoya October 29, 2009, 1:08 PM
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- Automotive Consumer News, Car Buying
According to KBB, my '09 Challenger R/T is now worth about a grand higher as a TRADE-IN than what I paid for it out-the-door this time last year, and that's with 15K miles on it.