Spring Is Officially Here!
Welcome to the peak of the spring selling season. As we’ve been highlighting for the last 90 days, pricing typically reaches its zenith in March, with trends holding strong through April and into the first part of May. It’s a good sign that after the last few years of abnormal pricing behavior, driven by shortages and elevated customer demand, the used market has shifted back into more normal rhythms. While new product inventories and incentives still pose some later season headwinds, it’s good to see pricing behavior through the lanes meeting and, in some cases, beating industry expectations.
The Time Is Now
March average wholesale price (AWP) jumped across nearly every category, including all on-highway and motorcycle categories, with core powersports showing significant strength versus the prior three months. On-highway units soared, with approximately a 10% gain in overall AWP performance, highlighted by significant increases in both the Domestic Cruiser (12.5%) and Metric Sport (12.2%) categories. Off-highway vehicles also crept up with more modest gains across all segments in March. Year-over-year AWP metrics for most categories were below March of 2023 but ahead of prior expectations. While we anticipate similar AWP performance over the next 25 to 40 days, the real question remains: How long will it last?
What to Expect This Spring
Despite concerns about the abundance of new inventory and some odd weather patterns across the country, most dealers have reported solid sales through February and March. The anticipation is that these trends should continue into April. Dealers, lenders and manufacturers have been working diligently to attract, enable and close customers through healthy incentives and promotions. While we anticipate this behavior to continue through the remainder of 2024, the impact on used pricing has yet to be fully felt. We advise dealers to use the truncated window of opportunity to aggressively move inventory. Use the next 30 days to clear out any aged units and source what you know will sell now. Keep a keen eye on what you’re paying for trades, understanding that in 45 to 60 days, the market will be much different.
Used pricing has finally returned to normal levels post-COVID, and normal seasonality has returned. Prices are strong now, but we expect market and inventory pressures to shorten this year’s spring season, making smart inventory management crucial. If you’re looking for a more in-depth analysis of current market trends or just want a better understanding of how things are changing, contact the team at NPA.
*All data provided by National Powersport Auctions includes live and online transactions from all NPA locations. Closed OEM auction data is excluded. For more info visit NPAUCTIONS.COM.
