Driven by continued strength in commercial consignment, auction sales are up double-digit percentages so far this year, including July volumes that climbed more than 24% from a year ago.

July also marked a milestone for electric vehicles: it was the first time there were more than 10,000 auction sales of EVs.

All this according to the latest AuctionNet data from the National Auto Auction Association.

There were 561,653 wholesale auction sales in July, which is up 24.2% year-over-year and beats June figures by 7.6%, NAAA said.

When adjusted for two more selling days in the most recent month, sales fell 2% from June but still beat July 2023 figures by 13%, the association said in analysis accompanying the data.

Commercial volume is leading the charge: Adjusting for selling days, commercial sales climbed 26% year-over-year in July, with dealer sales up 7%.

Year-to-date, there have been 3.97 million units sold at auction, which beats the year-ago period by 10%, NAAA said.

Dealer sales at auction have softened 1.6% through seven months, but commercial sales have climbed 30%.

Looking at July’s figures in more detail, all but one of the segments in NAAA’s data set (compact cars, which were up 9.3%) showed double-digit-percentage growth year-over-year.

Compact crossovers/SUVs were up 26.5%, compact luxury crossovers/SUVs climbed 44.5%, full-size pickups were up 30.2% and luxury car sales were up 22%, according to NAAA.

Midsize car volume jumped 14.6%, midsize crossover/SUV volume was up 32.3% and midsize luxury crossovers/SUVs climbed 27.8%.

There was a record 10,314 EVs sold at auction in July, a milestone figure that was up 96% year-over-year, NAAA said.

Electrics remain a small but growing segment of the wholesale market: their year-to-date share of auction sales is at 1.6%, compared to 0.9% in the first seven months of 2023.

Note: This is part of a monthly series in which Auto Remarketing shares AuctionNet data and commentary provided by the National Auto Auction Association.

As noted by the organization, more than 260 NAAA member auctions power AuctionNet, making it the most comprehensive source of wholesale auto auction sales data in the U.S. Unless otherwise noted, auction sales figures are based on total reporting auctions, the number and composition of which may vary over time. 

AuctionNet® Wholesale Auction Results
July 2024
Total Unit Sales
Jul-23 Jul-24 % Change
Overall Market 452,145 561,653 24.2%
Compact Car 52,362 57,246 9.3%
Compact Crossover/SUV 64,454 81,510 26.5%
Compact Luxury Crossover/SUV 9,086 13,128 44.5%
Full-Size Pickup 55,882 72,739 30.2%
Luxury Car 25,666 31,325 22.0%
Mid-Size Car 55,461 63,578 14.6%
Mid-Size Crossover/SUV 63,418 83,894 32.3%
Mid-Size Luxury Crossover/SUV 15,426 19,714 27.8%
Electric Vehicles 5,263 10,314 96.0%

SOURCE: NAAA/AuctionNet