If You’re Thinking About Selling Your Car, Now Might Be The Right Time

One of the world’s leading online automotive marketplaces is predicting a particularly strong start to 2025 for the used car market. That’s potentially good news for sellers, but could mean higher prices and reduced selection for buyers.

Analyzing the data

Carwow recently released some internal numbers that seem to back up its bullish short-term outlook. Here are a few of the highlights:

• Used car searches were up nearly 50% during the final quarter of 2024 compared to the same period in 2023.
• According to a Carwow survey, about 3 in 10 car shoppers are more interested in used vehicles than new ones.
• There was a 14% boost in visits to the Carwow platform during the week between Christmas and New Year.

For its part, Carwow says all of these stats add up to a strong start to 2025 for used car sales. But things might not be as rosy for those trying to sell new automobiles. A lukewarm reception to EVs has stifled interest in some of the latest models, leading to increased demand for pre-owned vehicles.

Following a pattern

While there are some unique factors at play that might make this a particularly strong period for used car sales, Carwow executive Ben Carter said it’s not uncommon for business to increase this time of year.

“Our data shows that the New Year often triggers car-changing research for many consumers,” he explained, noting that Carwow typically sees a boost in traffic by both individuals searching for a used vehicle and retailers nationwide listing their inventory on the platform.

Carter said Carwow “attracted almost 200 million visitors” last year alone, with traffic up “by nearly a quarter on the previous year.”

If other platforms are seeing similar results, this might be a banner year for the entire industry.

Chris Agee January 7th, 2025

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