Market Dynamics and Macroeconomic Pressures
A strange thing is happening in the used EV market. Inventory is growing due to a continuous flow of former lease vehicles arriving on dealership lots, and yet values have been rising as well. Due to America’s recent military conflict in the Middle East, secondhand electric vehicles have increased in value by slightly more than 5 percent since February. Even with the higher price tags, demand for pre-owned electric cars has remained robust this year—showing a 25 percent annual increase through May, though a softer month in June has leveled the year-over-year growth to just over 20 percent, based on figures from Cox Automotive experts.
Used EVs also hang around on dealer lots a lot less than new ones. The same analysts at Cox found just 38 days’ supply of used EVs in June, compared to 81 days for new EVs. Much of the demand is concentrated at the cheaper end of the spectrum, according to the analysts at Recurrent.
Navigating the $25,000 to $30,000 Bracket
Past entries in our secondhand electric vehicle purchasing series examined the lowest-priced options, concluding our last segment at the $25,000 mark—vehicles that can potentially fetch a $1,750 discount for California residents. Today, we are looking at used EVs that cost between $25,000 and $30,000. Autotrader search results indicate that upwards of 9,000 secondhand electric cars are currently available within that specific bracket.
Broadly, you can split the results into three buckets:
- Cars where you will find plenty to choose from.
- Models where there might be a couple of hundred for sale nationwide.
- The oddities where there might just be a handful to pick from.
