LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga.—There is no end in sight to rising used car values, as the latest Black Book Used Vehicle Retention Index soared to another all-time high in September.
The Index increased 3.8 points to 169.5 points, or 2.3% increase from August (165.7). Prior to September, the Index’s August level was an all-time high.
The Index currently stands 29.6% above where it was this same time last year.
“With new inventory levels continuing to drop, dealers are increasing their spending on used inventory, pushing wholesale prices up across all segments in September,” said Alex Yurchenko, chief data science officer at Black Book. “Cars of all sizes and vans saw exceptionally strong increases. With anticipated limited new vehicle supply—and low incentives—for months to come and lower than typical return volume from rental and commercial fleet companies, we expect the wholesale prices to remain strong throughout Q4.”
How Index is Calculated
The Black Book Used Vehicle Retention Index is calculated using Black Book’s published Wholesale Average value on two- to six-year-old used vehicles, as percent of original typically equipped MSRP. It is weighted based on registration volume and adjusted for seasonality, vehicle age, mileage, and condition.
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