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Auto Loan Balances, Interest Rates, Subprime Delinquencies, Cash Buyers, Tight Credit: How Are Our Drunken Sailors Holding Up?

November 08, 2023

by Wolf Richter Wolf Street

Those who can, pay cash to avoid the interest rates. Subprime credit tightens substantially.

The balance of auto loans and leases rose by 0.8% in Q3 from Q2, and by 4.7% year-over-year, to 1.60 trillion, driven by financing of new vehicles, according to data from the New York Fed’s Household Debt and Credit Report.

New vehicles account for the bulk of the auto loans and leases. New-vehicle prices still rose in Q3, and new-vehicle unit sales jumped 20% year-over-year. So that’s where the increase in loans and leases came from.