The price to buy a new or used car is increasing at a faster rate than the average wage growth in the nation, a study said.
On Thursday, Anderson Economic Group, an East Lansing-based economic consulting firm, released the results of a recent analysis comparing new and used vehicle price increases against wage growth in the U.S. private sector. The study relied on data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics related to the Consumer Price Index to compare the cost of a new and used vehicle relative to average weekly earnings for private jobs.
It found that the average new car price last year increased by 11.8% in December compared with a year earlier. The average price of a used vehicle increased by 37.3% for the same period, according to Consumer Price Index data cited in the study.
