As the National Auto Auction Association reported last month through its AuctionNet data, the opening six months of 2026 marked the strongest first half for auction vehicle sales in seven years. There were nearly 3.7 million vehicle sales at AuctionNet-participating auctions, the highest first-half tally since 2019. Drilling down into the most recent results from […] [Read More]

Annual depreciation for used vehicles on average has been historically between about 16 and 18%. Last year that figure was 13%, said Larry Dixon, vice president of Auction Data Solutions/AuctionNet at the National Auto Auction Association. “This year we’re trending to about 12% to let’s call it 14%, so very similar to what we saw […] [Read More]

Like NASA’s Artemis II mission in April, retail used-car prices rocketed into orbit this spring. And slowly but surely, “they’ve come back to down to earth.” Just not at astronomical speeds, says CARFAX, known for its history reports on more earthly vessels. The CARFAX Used Car Index in July is up 0.1% from June, an […] [Read More]

Caribou’s Q2 2026 Auto Refinance Trends Report showed subprime consumers enjoyed the deepest rate cuts across credit tiers, based on data from April to June of customers who refinanced to lower their monthly payments. Before someone begins to project that refinancing in the subprime market could take off even more if the Federal Reserve goes […] [Read More]

As much as artificial intelligence and other technologies have boosted auto financing, sometimes the fundamentals of just making a good car deal remain most important. FICO recently hosted an online dialogue with its head of auto, Shams Blanc, and Jim Dietrich, who is senior vice president of product at NCC. Not surprisingly, both Blanc and […] [Read More]

In Catalyst IQ’s State of the Industry report for the second quarter, a subsection titled “Actionable Guidance for Automotive Retail” lists the following used-car implications for automakers. “A healthy used market supports long-term brand value by strengthening residual values and lease economics. Monitoring and supporting used supply will remain essential when planning production levels, incentive […] [Read More]

Record new-car prices, says Catalyst IQ, have led to greater consumer emphasis on “affordability, fuel-efficiency and value.” And that includes stronger demand for used cars, which hit their quickest turn times in nearly three years, the automotive analytics and marketing company said in its Q2 2026 State of the Industry Report. Offering some overall commentary […] [Read More]

The latest data on electric vehicles may come as a shock. Against conventional used-car wisdom, prices for pre-owned EVs are appreciating, thanks in part to a spark in demand, which is now close to par with supply, according to Recurrent. “Used cars don’t normally appreciate in value,” Recurrent head of growth & research Andrew Garberson […] [Read More]

America’s Car-Mart president and CEO Doug Campbell immediately began his discussion about the buy-here, pay-here dealership network’s 2026 fiscal year update by stating, “I want to be direct about how to read this year's results because the headline numbers invite the wrong conclusion.” Among the numbers Campbell might have referenced and Car-Mart reported this week […] [Read More]

Similar to other recent analyses on the wholesale vehicle market, “momentum” and “discipline” were themes that popped up in the AutoIMS Industry View for the second quarter. The quarterly report aims to provide a “compendium of metrics featured in the AutoIMS Sales Scorecard that reflects the AutoIMS database (with few needed exclusions) — a vast […] [Read More]