Even if you put aside gas prices, car ownership has gotten a lot more expensive in recent years.
Why it matters: Though Detroit and the region have sought to improve public transit options, many people still rely on cars, making rising ownership costs hard to avoid.
- Those steep bills also contribute to the city’s 36% transportation insecurity rate — those unable to travel safely and in a timely manner due to the absence of transportation resources like gas money or bus routes.
By the numbers: The average monthly payment for a new car in Michigan is now $744, according to new data from car research site Edmunds.
- For a used car, it’s $481.
Zoom in: Poor road quality and a higher-than-average crash rate in Metro Detroit also weigh on drivers and increase costs, per the Detroit News.
The big picture: The higher monthly payments are being driven by several factors.
- But the two biggest are high sticker prices — with many popular models now thousands of dollars more than they were a few years ago — and higher interest rates, Axios’ Joann Muller reported.
The average amount financed on a new vehicle loan hit a record high of $43,899 in the first quarter of the year, up by more than $2,000 since the same time last year, per Edmunds.
- As a result, car buyers are stretching their loan terms longer, to an average of nearly six years.
Stunning stat: Even with those longer terms, 20% of new car buyers now pay $1,000 a month — or more, per Edmunds…