These are the worst times of the year to buy a used car – Jalopnik

It may seem that there has not been a good time since the Pandemie to buy a used car. The prices have fallen considerably for car buyers since the peak in 2022, but they are still higher than before Covid. If a bad experience in that period has led you to shop around for the best deal before buying your next used car, then that is smart thinking. However, finding the best prices not only depends on where you shop – it is also important when you look.

Statistics show that June is the worst month to buy a used car, because that is when you see the least deals for the inventory of used car. Many call it warmer weather that consumers motivate to go out of the house and shop cars, which increases demand. However, June is also a few months away from the release of the new model year for most vehicles. This also increases the demand for used cars, which means that dealers have no incentives to lower prices.

Really, the entire summer and late spring are bad times to buy a used car. Dealers simply do not have much stimulus to offer used car deals that buyers will save considerably in April, May, June and July, which means that the final price of the car you find will probably be higher than at a different time of the year.

Why is this? People venture out during the warmer weather and the fact that new releases of the model year are still gone for months, certainly contribute to the increased demand for used cars. However, there is another important reason why it is difficult to find a deal in April or May – that is when people get their tax returns. Many consumers choose to spend those reimbursements to buy a car or to make a down payment.

The holiday that lands in late spring and early summer does not help either. Mother’s Day, Memorial Day, JuneteENTH, July 4^oneAnd Father’s Day all see a low number of dealers who offer lower prices for their used inventory. They will often promote these days in connection with the sale, but in reality these are still bad days to try to find deals that actually offer considerable savings.

January is by far the best month to use use for used cars, because that is when you see most dealers who offer deals on their second -hand vehicles. Why? It is because this is the time of year that they start receiving units of the new model years, which in turn motivates them to get rid of their older inventory. The months around January – specifically November to February – are also good months to find deals.

This is especially the case when it comes to vacations that take place at the time. You can expect that you can find most deals for used cars around New Years, Martin Luther King Day, Christmas Eve, Thanksgiving and Black Friday. People are either busy with things other than shopping on those days or are in because of the weather. That makes those vacations Prime Times to hunt a good deal on a used car. So if you are looking for the best deal for a used car, shop around, but also note the calendar.