Used vehicle prices are rising, according to a joint forecast released on Nov. 20 from J.D. Power and GlobalData.
“The average used-vehicle price is trending toward $29,696, up $725 from a year ago,” stated Thomas King, president of OEM solutions at J.D. Power. “This reflects the combination of reduced supply of recent model-year used vehicles due to lower new-vehicle production during the pandemic, fewer lease maturities and manufacturers moderating discounts.
“The rise in used-vehicle prices is good news for new-vehicle buyers with a trade-in, although average trade-in equity in November is down a modest $111 year over year to $7,822. The number of new-vehicle buyers with negative equity on their trade-in is expected to reach 26.9%—an increase of 3.3 percentage points from November 2024. Although negative equity is rising, it remains below the peak November level of 32.9% recorded in 2019…. Subprime mix had been on a steady upward trajectory this year, topping out at 9.8% in October, the highest of any month since March 2020. Subprime mix fell slightly from October to 8.9% in November, still 2.8 percentage points higher than November 2024.
