According to the National Auto Dealers Association, wholesale prices on used cars fell by 3.8% in February, the largest monthly drop in 22 years. So if you’re considering purchasing a used car, now may be a good time to get a discounted price. Prices fell in 16 categories of vehicles, the topmost three being: large luxury cars, subcompact cars, and large utility vehicles.
In addition, automaker’s incentives have been increasing to maintain their sales volume on new vehicles. This implies that sales demand is slowing and they are being forced to ratchet up incentives to keep moving their inventory.
As you may suspect, it may be a bad time to lease a car with a reasonable payment. Lease rates are based upon the expected value of the car at the end of the lease term. If used car prices are dropping, then sooner or later, car companies will be forced to raise the payments on their leases. Of course, if you do your homework, you can periodically find inexpensive lease terms for: slow-selling car models, getting rid of the remaining inventory of last year’s model when the new-year model is released, sometimes the end of month deadline, etc.