JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Used vehicle prices are surging.
A report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released last week finds the average cost for used cars and trucks has jumped an incredible 40% in the last year.
Inflation during the pandemic has touched almost every aspect of daily life, from gas to housing to food. But one area that has seen the largest price increase is the used car market. For comparison, the price of new cars is up 12.2% and overall consumer prices are up 7.5%, according to the Labor Department.
The increase in prices has put Jacksonville resident Lacey Bair in a difficult spot.
“I tell you, I went up and down. I spent about six hours one day going up and down. Blanding Boulevard, all the 1500 dealerships that are right there to find the car, and it was just nothing,” said Bair, who lives on the Westside and works at Target.
With nothing in her price range, Bair said she has been forced to take an Uber to work.
“I’m younger, I’m trying to get back and forth work, I don’t want to pay $15 to $40 just to get there. I had the call out of work one day, it was trying to charge me $50 just to get there. And I’m like it’s not even worth it,” she added.
Another person News4JAX spoke with said she’s been sharing a car with her husband and looking for a used car since hers broke down in November.
“What falls in our budget is a car that is older than ours and has more miles than ours, so it’s just not doable right now,” said Michelle, who lives in Fort Caroline.
Both of the people I spoke with said they plan to make get by with what they have for now and hope that car prices come down soon, but many experts aren’t sure when that will happen.
