Low Mazda Interest Rates Signal a Good Time To Buy
Supply chain disruptions due to the COVID-19 pandemic along with the current global microchip shortage have severely limited the production and availability of new vehicles. These factors combined with the recent skyrocketing demand for new cars have led to extreme shortages of new vehicles at car dealerships around the world. The limited availability of new vehicles has also increased the overall demand for used vehicles because many prospective car buyers who would have chosen to buy a new vehicle are now setting their sights on used vehicle options as a result of the limited availability of new vehicles on dealership lots.
This heightened demand for both new and used vehicles has significantly inflated car prices overall. It has also increased interest rates and has made securing a satisfactory auto loan with fair terms much more difficult for car buyers. Having an excellent credit score no longer guarantees you a good auto loan. Even drivers with some of the highest possible credit scores have been struggling to afford financing a new or used vehicle because the only financing options they are offered are loans that are attached to extremely high interest rates. Recent statistics indicate that the current average auto loan interest rate in the United States is approximately 3.86% for new cars and 8.21% for used cars–which indicates a recent steep increase in average interest rates for auto loans.
It is important to keep in mind that current auto loan interest rates do still vary significantly depending on the borrower’s credit score. Even in the current mainstream auto market, drivers with higher credit scores are still able to get lower interest rates than drivers with lower credit scores–those lower rates are just likely to be much higher than they typically are.
If you’re in the market for your next vehicle, keep reading to learn more about current interest rates, how interest rates generally differ between new and used vehicles, and how you might be able to save big on your next vehicle purchase by acting fast and buying a used car model from Mazda in the very near future.
Interest Rates for New Versus Used Cars
As previously stated, the current average auto loan interest rate for new cars is 3.86%, whereas the current average auto loan interest rate for used cars is 8.21%. This means that the average auto loan interest rate for used cars on the current mainstream auto market is more than 4% higher than the average auto loan interest rate for new cars. This discrepancy is consistent with historical trends for auto loan interest rates in the auto industry. So why are interest rates so much higher for used cars than they are for new cars?
There are multiple reasons why auto loan interest rates for used cars tend to be higher than auto loan interest rates for new cars. One reason is that the value of used cars is less certain and depends on a wide range of factors, whereas the value of most brand-new cars can be calculated and agreed upon fairly easily. Also, it is a reality that drivers who take out an auto loan to purchase a used car are statistically more likely to default on their auto loans than drivers who take out an auto loan to buy a new car–and this holds true even when controlling for credit scores. These are the primary reasons why auto loans for used cars are usually only available at much higher interest rates than auto loans for new cars.
Mazda’s Current Interest Rate Offers for Used Cars
Although it is true that auto loan interest rates for used cars are significantly higher than auto loan interest rates for new cars on average, that is not currently the case for some Mazda vehicles.
Mazda is currently offering a special APR rate of 2.9% for 60 months on their new and used Mazda 3 compact sedan and Mazda CX-5 compact SUV models. Both of these models are extremely popular and high-performing models from Mazda and both new and used versions of these models are available at an interest rate that is notably lower than the current average interest rate for brand-new vehicles.
If you’re in the market for your next vehicle, consider taking advantage of this special offer from Mazda before it expires to secure one of the lowest available interest rates available for used vehicles on the current mainstream auto market.
