TAMPA, Fla. — With the talk of tariffs, people in the market for a new set of wheels may be turning to used cars, but experts shared the potential trickle-down of how tariffs could impact the used car market.
Picking out the perfect car isn't easy, but Kirt Thomason is always there to help.
"Most folks think that going out and buying a car that it's so terrible and it's so hard to do, and so we like to make it fun,” said Thomason, the owner of South Tampa Auto Boutique, a used car dealer.
Thomason shared how he sees the ripple effect of tariffs eventually impacting used cars.
“I don’t think right now we’re going to see much on used cars until we’re out of new cars,” said Thomason. “I think it’s like anything else: it’s a supply and demand. When we’re out of new cars, that’s going to definitely affect your one, two, three-year-old cars.”
WATCH: Industry experts share how tariffs could trickle down to impact the used car market
Experts admit it's a fluid situation. Jeremy Robb is the lead economist for Manheim at Cox Automotive.
"Tariffs primarily, because they will make things more expensive on the new car side and likely also a little bit more scarce at the beginning, it will drive more demand on used car markets,” said Robb. "Any time you're going to start making those new cars more expensive, more people are saying I'm going to go to the used car marketplace, so that is going to increase demand, that will increase prices."
He also explained what they call the price waterfall.
"A new car sets the stage or the utmost level for where the value of that same make/model will be over time, and if you increase that, it's going to pull up the used car price with it,” said Robb.
For now, dealers and consumers have to wait and see what the impact will be.
"It's been pretty stable. The same as it's been for several months now, until again, until we run out of new cars, and then we will definitely see that effect,” said Thomason.
"If there had just been a trooper up there, maybe this whole thing could have been avoided."
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