PANAMA CITY, Fla. (WMBB) — A year ago, many struggled to find new cars as automotive chips were in short supply. That led to more expensive used cars, as interest rates skyrocketed nationwide.
But that could be changing.
According to Kelley Blue Book, the average price of used cars is falling. They said the prices have dropped by more than $1,000 since last year. That’s because used car dealers aren’t selling cars at the rate they were a year ago.
In Bay County, several used car dealerships said business has been slow for the past six months.
” I have friends in the industry that work at major franchises, and they were singing the blues,” Tomi Auto’s Employee Rob Kimble said.
Kimble said Tomi Auto’s has been able to keep numbers steady.
“This economy right now is not the best but we’ve been able to do our numbers,” Kimble said.
He said the shop sales leveled off in March. But they are expecting a rise in business soon.
“The biggest part of our business is during the tax season,” Kimble said. “You know, we do a lot of financing as well as secondary financing.”
But he said they are being transparent on social media, which some dealerships don’t do.
“You can see the price of the car,” Kimble said. “You can see the down payment required, all the equipment, the miles.”
Kelley Blue Book said the supply of new cars is growing.
