Report: Used car prices up more than 50% since before the pandemic
According to Kelley Blue Book, the average price of a new car nationwide is more than $47,000.
LA CROSSE (WKBT) — According to Consumer Reports, the price of a used car has surged more than 50 percent since February 2020.
Jim Berge, the owner of Bob’s Auto Service in La Crosse, said Wednesday that vehicle repairs are also more expensive these days because of higher labor and supply costs.
“Back in January and February we had parts prices that went up three times,” he said.
Berge said it’s important to get an oil change not only for the maintenance, but because it’s an opportunity for a mechanic to find anything else that could be wrong with a vehicle.
The average used car on the road is more than 12 years old. Berge added that people have been spending more money on repairs in recent months.
“It is more expensive, we’ve seen a lot more large bills on cars,” he said. “People are fixing stuff that normally they wouldn’t,” he added.
Coulee Auto in La Crosse has been in business since 2019. Dan Swift is the company’s vice president of sales.
He said the company pays for its own set of truckers to deliver vehicles, allowing the company to save money on shipping.
“We’re able to decrease the cost of bringing a vehicle to market more so than we were able to in the past,” he said.
Swift recommends that people trade in older vehicles prior to buying their next car.
“Anyone coming in to trade in their vehicle has gotten a great deal comparatively speaking to what they might have bought it for three years ago,” he added.
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