Car owners are having a hard time hanging onto their vehicles in the midst of an economy with soaring interest rates.
According to Cox Automotive, the volume of repossessed vehicles at Manheim auctions, the largest wholesale marketplace, is up 23% year over year through the first half of 2024. They are also up 14% compared with the same period in 2019, according to the data.
While that’s only one metric, Cox Automotive senior analyst Jeremy Robb told FOX Business that he also tracks defaults industry-wide using Equifax data. That data suggests that defaults are up 11% during the first half of the year compared with the same period in 2019, Robb said. Lenders can repossess a vehicle when a loan is in default.
Dave Cantin, CEO of Dave Cantin Group, points to rising interest rates as well as decreased inventory during the pandemic as reasons why car owners are getting hounded by higher payments.
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