The automotive affordability crisis is deepening as average monthly car payments reached a record $777 in the second quarter, with nearly a quarter of US car buyers taking out loans of seven years or more.
The average amount financed on a new car also reached an all-time high of $44,156 in the period, according to data released Wednesday by automotive shopping site Edmunds.com. At the same time, stretched buyers have less money to put down on a new car, as the average down payment fell 10% from a year ago to $5,815, Edmunds said.
It’s the latest sign that there’s no letup in accelerating automotive inflation as the average price of a new car in America has stubbornly remained around $50,000. To afford what was once luxury prices, more than a fifth of new car buyers signed up for monthly car payments of $1,000 or more in the second quarter, according to Edmunds. And that’s led many to owe more on their car than it’s worth and others to default on their loans.
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