Category Archives: opinions

“The average interest rate on new-vehicle loans is expected to fall 0.35 percentage points to 6.66%, the lowest June reading since 2022. However, the average transaction price of a new vehicle has increased to $46,387, an increase of 0.8% from a year ago, while average monthly finance payments have climbed 3.4% to $813, the highest ever for the month of June. A key driver of the higher monthly payment, despite longer loan terms, is lower trade-in equity. Many of the buyers returning to showrooms today purchased when prices were at their peak several years ago when inventory was scarce. This is manifesting itself as more buyers carrying negative equity on their trade-in. A total of 29.5% of trade-ins had negative equity in June, up 1.4 percentage points from a year ago.

“Manufacturers are leaning harder on discounts to keep buyers in the market. Average incentive spending per vehicle is trending towards $3,217, a 12.7% increase from a year ago. Part of that jump reflects tariff dynamics last year, since several OEMs made nonseasonal pullbacks in incentive spending last June as they cut discounts precautionary to offset tariff costs,” said King. Continue reading →