Buzz
Not too long ago, buying a used car meant getting a reasonably priced, reliable vehicle with some mileage under its belt. Today, it often involves shelling out a hefty amount, making you question if you should just buy new instead. As of March 2022, the average cost for a pre-owned car exceeded $33,000. While the market seems to be slowing down, it's still a costly endeavor.
Recently, online used car platform The Clunker Junker put together a list of 10 cities where you could spend a bit less on a used car. To gather the data, they examined about 183,000 listings for 14 popular car models across 200 cities on Cars.com, comparing average prices and identifying cities with lower-than-average costs. Here's what they discovered:
City | Price vs. National Average |
|---|---|
Jersey City, NJ | -9.08 Percent |
Hollywood, FL | -8.96 Percent |
Miami, FL | -7.95 Percent |
Huntington Beach, CA | -6.97 Percent |
Detroit, MI | -5.98 Percent |
Cleveland, OH | -4.31 Percent |
Santa Ana, CA | -4.28 Percent |
Orlando, FL | -4.11 Percent |
Fort Lauderdale, FL | -3.92 Percent |
Tampa, FL | -3.78 Percent |
As shown, Florida proves to be a prime location for used car buyers, with five of the top 10 cities on the list located there.
The site also examined the cities where you're most likely to pay above the national average:
City | Price vs. National Average |
|---|---|
Anchorage, AK | +9.84 Percent |
El Paso, TX | +8.85 Percent |
Wichita, KS | +8.09 Percent |
Honolulu, HI | +7.78 Percent |
Albuquerque, NM | +7.73 Percent |
Escondido, CA | +6.97 Percent |
Lubbock, TX | +6.28 Percent |
Montgomery, AL | +6.19 Percent |
Baton Rouge, LA | +5.92 Percent |
Savannah, GA | +5.89 Percent |
Of course, the total cost of a car goes beyond just the sticker price. Depending on the state, you may face different sales taxes, or in some cases, no sales tax at all. For instance, Alaska doesn't impose a state sales tax, which could make Anchorage's high ranking feel a little more manageable.
