Photo Credit: Alamy Stock Photo
Nearly one year into the COVID-19 pandemic, the used car market continues to shift and recover in response to changes in driving preferences and disruptions to the global supply chain brought on last year.
On the supply side, one of the major challenges for the car market in general has been the fact that manufacturers produced fewer new vehicles in the first half of 2020. As many parts of the world shut down in an effort to slow the spread of the virus, car factories were not able to produce new vehicles at their usual rate. This constraint on supply has raised prices in the used car market as car buyers face limited options.
Despite increased car prices, the supply of used cars is also higher than it was a year ago by the measure of market days supply, or the number of days it would take to run out of dealer inventory at the current level of demand. One reason for this is that when the pandemic first hit, manufacturers delayed lease returns by incentivizing extensions. Those gently used, highly optioned, low-mileage cars are now coming back into the market, helping to fill up dealer lots. Under normal conditions, this influx of near-new supply would lead to lower prices for consumers, but the reduced availability of new vehicles has more consumers open to the idea of a used car. With more buyers in the market, prices for used vehicles have remained high.
The Best Metros to Buy a Used Car
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15. Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD
- Market days supply: 52
- Average used car price: $22,573
- Best segment for buyers: Minivan
- Best segment for sellers: Van
Photo Credit: Alamy Stock Photo
14. Kansas City, MO-KS
- Market days supply: 52
- Average used car price: $22,507
- Best segment for buyers: Wagon
- Best segment for sellers: SUV
Photo Credit: Alamy Stock Photo
13. Grand Rapids-Wyoming, MI
- Market days supply: 52
- Average used car price: $22,166
- Best segment for buyers: Convertible
- Best segment for sellers: Wagon
Photo Credit: Alamy Stock Photo
12. Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI
- Market days supply: 52
- Average used car price: $22,120
- Best segment for buyers: Hatchback
- Best segment for sellers: Cargo Van
Photo Credit: Alamy Stock Photo
11. Cleveland-Elyria, OH
- Market days supply: 53
- Average used car price: $21,154
- Best segment for buyers: Van
- Best segment for sellers: Cargo Van
Photo Credit: Alamy Stock Photo
10. Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI
- Market days supply: 54
- Average used car price: $23,349
- Best segment for buyers: Coupe
- Best segment for sellers: Van
Photo Credit: Alamy Stock Photo
9. Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI
- Market days supply: 54
- Average used car price: $22,986
- Best segment for buyers: Van
- Best segment for sellers: Cargo Van
Photo Credit: Alamy Stock Photo
8. Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, WI
- Market days supply: 55
- Average used car price: $23,743
- Best segment for buyers: Coupe
- Best segment for sellers: Cargo Van
Photo Credit: Alamy Stock Photo
7. Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH
- Market days supply: 55
- Average used car price: $23,402
- Best segment for buyers: Minivan
- Best segment for sellers: Van
Photo Credit: Alamy Stock Photo
6. New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA
- Market days supply: 55
- Average used car price: $23,048
- Best segment for buyers: Hatchback
- Best segment for sellers: Van
Photo Credit: Alamy Stock Photo
5. Pittsburgh, PA
- Market days supply: 56
- Average used car price: $21,813
- Best segment for buyers: Sedan
- Best segment for sellers: Cargo Van
Photo Credit: Alamy Stock Photo
4. Providence-Warwick, RI-MA
- Market days supply: 57
- Average used car price: $23,233
- Best segment for buyers: Minivan
- Best segment for sellers: Van
Photo Credit: Alamy Stock Photo
3. Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT
- Market days supply: 58
- Average used car price: $23,411
- Best segment for buyers: Minivan
- Best segment for sellers: Convertible
Photo Credit: Alamy Stock Photo
2. Buffalo-Cheektowaga-Niagara Falls, NY
- Market days supply: 61
- Average used car price: $24,339
- Best segment for buyers: Hatchback
- Best segment for sellers: Wagon
Photo Credit: Alamy Stock Photo
1. Rochester, NY
- Market days supply: 63
- Average used car price: $24,201
- Best segment for buyers: Sedan
- Best segment for sellers: Convertible
Methodology & Detailed Findings
The data used in this analysis is from CoPilot’s proprietary dataset of more than 1.3 million used car listings in the United States. To identify the best locations to buy a used car, researchers calculated the market days supply for each location, which is an expression of how many days it would take to run out of dealer inventory at the current level of demand. Locations with high levels of supply are good for buyers; whereas, locations with low supply are good for sellers. Locations were ordered based on their respective market days supply as of January 2021. In the event of a tie, the location with the lower average used car price was ranked as better for buyers.
To identify the best segments for buyers and sellers, researchers calculated the year-over-year change in market days supply for each segment in each location. Vehicle segments with the largest increase in supply were listed as the best for buyers in that location; whereas, those with the biggest decrease in supply (or in some cases, the smallest increase in supply) were listed as the best for sellers. Exotic vehicles and segments with too few listings for specific geographies were not included in the segment analysis.
Only metropolitan areas with at least one million residents were included in the analysis.
