Vehicle Prices Are Rising: Here’s What You Can Do About It
Towards the end of 2021, the average price of a used vehicle soared to $29,011. That’s a 39% jump from just twelve months earlier! And because used car prices have sky rocketed, US News reported that over half of Americans have less income than is considered necessary to buy the average-priced used vehicle.
What used to be a $5,000 car is now $8,000. What used to be $8,000 is now $12,000.
If you add up taxes, fees, a 10% down payment, and the average dealer interest rate of around 7.5%, the average used vehicle will now cost you around $520 a month, even by stretching the financing out for six years.*
While we at Caro can’t adjust the price of the used car and truck market, we can help make the process of finding your next vehicle easier and cheaper.
Search and Research Your Next Vehicle
Before your drive from near empty lot to near empty lot, use our AutoLink search tool to locate the make and model you want, compare prices with other dealers, and even take a virtual test drive.
Get Pre-Qualified
Once you find that perfect car, the sales person will sit you down at the desk and perhaps say something like, “With your credit score, you won’t qualify for competitive financing rates.” This may be true; however, some dealers will imply your credit is worse than it actually is so you think you’ll have to pay a higher interest rate. You can avoid getting into a high interest loan by knowing your credit score ahead of time, and even getting pre-qualified so you don’t have to spend your day doing back and forth negotiations at the dealer.
