Posted on: 12/15/2015

Sure there are great buys for new autos but if you haven't purchased in the last ten years or so be prepared for a shock. In November the average sale price of a vehicle was $32,966.

Mike Colias writing for Automotive News reported "GM's average transaction price (ATP) rose $580 from a year earlier to $35,800, the company's highest on record for any month. Its incentive spending fell from a year earlier, to 10 percent of the ATP, down from 1.2 perent a year earlier, GM said citing data from J.D. Power."

There are two factors involved in higher transaction prices. Gas prices would be one reason since consumers are buying large SUVs and pickups in record numbers. An example would be the Toyota RAV4 SUV which had and increase of nearly 30% but the Prius hybrid had a decrease of 10%.

Low interest rates is the second factor. Buyers, and we should say sellers as well, know that the low rates will eventually disappear and what is affordable now might now be a few months down the road.