Buyingacarisamajorfinancialdecisionwheretimingcanmakeadifference.Jumptoosoon,andyoumaymissoutondeals.Waittoolong,andinflationmayhityourwallet.
Intoday'smarket,carbuyersaregrapplingwithtoughquestions.ShouldIbuyanewcarnoworwaitWillnewcarpricesdropWhattimeofyeardocarpricesgodown
Ifyou'relikeothercarbuyers,oneburningquestionprobablyweighsonyourmindastheyear-endapproaches:DoImaketheleapandbuyin2023orholdoffuntil2024
Discovertipsfornavigatingtheidealtimeforyourcarpurchase.Aswewalkthroughtheinsandoutsofwhatmaybethebesttimetobuyavehicleaswellasotherfactorstoconsider,inthisuncertainenvironment,you'llbereadytohittheroadwithyournextcar.
Regardlessofthetimingofyourpurchase,it'simportanttonotethatexperiencedsalespeopleoftenapplysalestacticstocreateasenseofurgencyforpotentialbuyers.TheaimToconvinceyoutobuyonthespotorrisklosingoutonapurportedonce-in-a-lifetimeopportunity.
Buthere'swhattoconsider:itmaypayofftostandyourground,resistthefearofmissingout,anddowhatsavvyshopperstendtodo.
Carbuyerstakingasmarterapproachareintentionalwhenitcomestotimingtheirshopping.Ratherthanrushingintoanimpulsivedecision,theytimepurchasesforwhencardealershipsaremoreinclinedtoofferbetterdeals.
Armedwiththisinsight,let’sexplorehowtimingmayhelpscoreamorefavorabledeal.
Forstarters,understandthatsalesprofessionalsworkoncommissionsandhavequotastomeeteachsalescycle.
Whatfollowsisadeeperdiveintohowthisknowledgehelpsshopperslikeyoulandadeal.
Everymonth,quarter,andyear,salespeoplekickintofullgear,rushingtomeetsalestargets.Asthesecyclesdrawtoaclose,theybecomeextramotivatedtooffersomesweetdeals,creatingagreatchanceforyoutosnagabargain.
Still,notallend-of-cycledaysarecreatedequal.Someareagoodbuyingopportunity,whileotherscanbemoresignificant.
NewYear'sEveandNewYear'sDayareoftenseenastimeswhenbuyingacarmightbeagoodidea.That'sbecausedealershipsaretriple-motivated:it'stheendofthemonth,theendofthequarter,andtheendoftheyearallatthesametime.Thatmeanstheyhaveplentyofsalestargetstomeet.Whichexplainswhytherearesomanyspecialend-of-yearsalesevents.
Whatcansweetentheofferevenmoreisthatthisisthetimewhencarmanufacturersusuallyrolloutthosespecialfinancingoptions,potentiallyfillingyourpocketwithextrasavings.
Still,rememberthatyoumostlikelywon'tbetheonlyoneprivytothisknowledge.Dealershipsaretypicallypackedatthistimeofyear,soit'swisetohitthelotprepared.
IfyoumissedtheDecembersales,don'tdespair.ManydealershipscontinuetoofferattractivesaleswellintoJanuaryandsometimesevenbeyond(thinkFebruary'sPresident'sDayevents).Duringtheseperiods,they'rekeentoclearinventoryofftheirlotstomakeroomfornewarrivals.
Asyoulookfurtherintothecalendaryear,theendofeachquarterstandsoutasanotherpromisingopportunitytosecureafantasticdeal.Duringthesetimes,dealershipshavequarterlyquotastoreach,sosalesprofessionalsmightbemotivatedtoofferpromotionsinordertomeettheirsalestargets.
Ifyouwonderwhatmonthislikelytobealessexpensivetimetobuyacar,markyourcalendarwiththeseend-of-quarterdates.Thesearemonthswhencarpricestypicallygodown:
Whenitcomestocarshopping,Mondayseemstobeatoppick.It'salsooneoftheslowerdaysoftheweekforfoottraffic,providingamorerelaxedshoppingexperience.
Onquieterdays,youwilllikelygetmoreattentionfromasalespersonandmightevenlandanicedealastheylooktoinvigoratethistraditionallysluggishstarttotheweek.
Althoughthetimingofyourarrivalatthedealershipmaynotdirectlyimpactthepurchaseprice,itcanenhanceyouroverallbuyingexperience.Agoodruletofollowistoavoidtimesaroundlunchhoursandthefinalhourbeforeclosing.
Three-dayholidayweekendsaretraditionallyoneofthebesttimestogetadealonavehicle.
Forexample,LaborDayisoneofthebusiestdaysforcarsales,andMemorialDaysaleseventsoftenofferenticingopportunities.
Plus,BlackFridayshoppingfrenzyisn'tjustreservedforsnaggingbrand-newTVs.Withsomestrategicplanning,youcouldlockinabargainonacar.
Here'salistofholidaysthataretypicallyagoodtimetoexplorecardeals:
Ifyou'renotdeadsetonowningthelatestcarmodel,anotherpossibilitytoexploreistowaituntiltheendofthemodelyeartobuyacar.Carsfornewmodelyearsusuallyhavetheirdebutinthefall,butdoyourresearchtoseeifyourtoppicksmightfollowadifferentschedule.
Similarly,youcanoptforacarmodelthat'sundergonearedesign.Asthishappens,bothmanufacturersanddealershipsareeagertocleartheirinventoriesoftheoldmodelandmakeroomfortheshinyneweditions.
Thesetacticstypicallyserveasreliableguidelinesforcarpurchasesinanordinarybuyingenvironment.However,today'sautomarketappearstobeanythingbut.
Carbuyersnowfaceachallengingchoice,tornbetweenbuyinginthecurrentclimateorholdingoutformorefavorableconditions.
There'snosingleanswertowhatcarbuyersshoulddo,astheirspecificcircumstancesdiffer,andthenatureofthisunusualmarketenvironmentmakesitdifficulttopredictwhatwillhappennext.
Whilesmarttacticsarestillvaluable,theyalonemaynotbeenough.
Beforetacticalnuancescomeintoplay,youneedstrategicguidelinestogaugewhetheramarketcorrectionisonthehorizon.Ofcourse,thistasklackstheluxuryofacrystalballfordefinitiveanswers,butconsidersomefactorsdrivingthemarketandusethatknowledgewhenstrategizingthetimingtopurchaseacar.
Carpricescanfluctuateforvariousreasons,buttheyallusuallyfallintotwobroadcategories:directandindirectfactorsrelatedtodemandandsupply.
Dealerinventoryreflectstheimmediatesupplyofcarsavailableattheirlots.Whenthisinventorydecreases,evenasdemandremainsthesameorrises,pricestendtorise—ascenariothatunfoldedinthewakeofthepandemic.
Thesehigh-demandvehiclesarealsolesslikelytoofferrebatesordealerdiscounts.
Whatsetssmartcarbuyersapartisanunderstandingoffundamentaleconomics,namelytheimpactofinterestratesandinflationonsupplyanddemand.
Withoutgoingintothetechnicalnitty-gritty,let'sequipyouwiththeknowledgethatcanhelpyoupickthetimeforacarpurchase.
InterestRates
Ultimately,reduceddemandusuallyleadstolowercarprices,buttheexacttimingofthisadjustmentisdifficulttopinpoint.
Inflation
Inflationbringsaboutpriceincreasesacrosstheboard,andcarsarenoexception.Aspricesclimb,consumersfindithardertosetasideenoughmoneytobuyanewcar.Again,thisusuallyleadstoadecreaseincarsales,butthetimeframeforwhenthisreduceddemandwilltranslateintolowerpricesisalsohardtopredict.
Insummaryhereisashortlistofthingsyoumightliketoconsiderasyoustrategizethetimingofyourcarpurchase.
Whetheritcomestothetimingofhittingthedealershiporconsideringtheeconomicsoffinancingyourvehicle,remembertodoyourresearchsothatasaninformedconsumer,youcanmakethedecisionthatbestmeetsyourneeds.
Letushelpyougetontheroadtoday.
Takethenextsteptoward
drivingoffinthecarofyourdreams.
1.Autosalesarefalling—butprofitsaresurging.Welcometothenewnormal,CNNBusiness,January12,2023
2.Thesemiconductorshortageis–mostly–overfortheautoindustry,S&PGlobal,July12,2023
3.Feddeclinestohike,butpointstoratesstayinghigherforlonger,CNBC,September20,2023
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