The COVID pandemic is impacting the price of used cars. In some cases, you will pay more for a used car than the newest model.
This record surge in used car prices is due to a global microchip shortage.
iSeeCars latest analysis of more than 470,000 new and used cars from the 2019 and 2020 model years listed for sale, show the price gap between new and used has gotten smaller and in some cases, the used version is more expensive than the newest model. For the Raleigh and Durham metropolitan area, iSeeCars.com found that the used Chrysler 300 costs about 11% more than the new model, a GMC Sierra 1500 used will cost you a little more than $3,900 compared to new.
Courtesy of iSeeCars.com. Full study can be found here.
iSeeCars has a wide range of vehicle listings, filtered geographically, by make, model year, and mileage price, helping you identify not just which cars are best for certain kinds of categories or characteristics, but also which are the best deals when buying.
iSeeCars Executive Analyst, Karl Brauer says, "If you're a consumer, and you're shopping right now, your power of negotiation isn't what it was a year or fifteen months ago." Adding, "That doesn't mean you shouldn't still find a good deal, or try to find a good deal. That's why we're trying to help consumers identify not only which cars have gone up the most, but also which cars have gone up the least over the last year."
Despite the demand being so high and supply low right now for car buying, there are ways you can still get a good deal.
"If you can be more flexible, that's very helpful in terms of everything from color and options to even model choices. And of course location, you can widen your spectrum and how far you'll go to get the car, how far you might drive to get the car," Brauer said.
If you don't desperately need a new car right now, industry experts say if you can wait at least six months they expect the supply chain on new and used cars to be better.