{"id":41253,"date":"2026-02-17T15:33:09","date_gmt":"2026-02-17T15:33:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/?p=41253"},"modified":"2026-02-17T15:33:09","modified_gmt":"2026-02-17T15:33:09","slug":"used-car-inventory-to-grow-in-2026-but-affordability-still-a-challenge","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/financialrush.com\/?p=41253","title":{"rendered":"Used car inventory to grow in 2026 but affordability still a challenge"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Hispanolistic | E+ | Getty Images<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Even as experts anticipate more supply in the used car market this year, consumers probably won’t see much relief on pricing<\/a>.<\/p>\n

While dealer inventories continue to slowly improve, the higher-cost mix of vehicles hitting the used car market \u2014 and wholesale prices that ticked higher<\/a> in January \u2014 could limit how much that added supply translates into cheaper cars.<\/p>\n

Although the consumer price index<\/a> shows that prices for used cars were down 1.8% in January from December and 2% from a year earlier, they’re easing off record highs. <\/strong>The average price of a used car up to 8 years old was $30,202 in 2025, up 27.6% from $23,668 in 2020, according to J.D. Power.<\/p>\n

“The affordable under-$20,000 vehicles are harder to find,” said Jonathan Banks, a vice president with J.D. Power.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Read more CNBC personal finance coverage<\/h2>\n
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