LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga. — Valuation and value forecast solutions provider Black Book (div. Hearst) released its Used Vehicle Retention Index for September. The index fell to 115.9, a -0.6% change from August (116.6).
The index remains above the 115 registered in June and July. It increased 1.4% in August, a month in which subcompacts led the charge with a 2.1% gain. The index appears to be following a seasonal pattern since a long, slow decline that began in June 2014 (128.1) and reached its nadir in May 2017 (112.3).
Read: Hot August: Subcompacts Lead 1.4% Gain in Retained Values
“The used market held up pretty well during summer when traditionally, the values have declined,” said Executive Vice President of Operations Anil Goyal. “However, we are now starting to see that the market strength is waning. We expect the index to continue to drop in the remaining months of the year.”
The Black Book Used Vehicle Retention Index is calculated using Black Book’s published wholesale average value on two- to six-year-old used vehicles, as percent of original typically equipped MSRP. It is weighted based on registration volume and adjusted for seasonality, vehicle age, mileage, and condition.
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