If you’re shopping for a used car in Washington, you may want to take a closer look at the price before signing on the dotted line.
A new analysis of about 264,000 used-car loan inquiries by LendingTree found that Washington shoppers are buying vehicles priced well above their estimated wholesale value.
Washington Ranks Near the Top of Used Car Prices in the USA
Washington has the 8th-largest dollar gap in the country between estimated purchase prices and wholesale values. That simply means that Washington used car buyers have to pay a higher percentage of the actual value.
The median Washington vehicle in the analysis was priced $2,016 above wholesale, or about 11% higher.

About 41.8% of Washington inquiries were for vehicles priced at least 20% above wholesale, while 22.6% were at least 50% higher.
Nationally, the typical used-car loan inquiry was $1,350, or 6.8%, above wholesale value.
That is about a 40% gap compared to the national figure.
Older, High-Mileage Cars Stand Out in Washington State
Nationally, cars 11 years old or older had a median price $3,484 above wholesale. Vehicles with 100,000 miles or more were even higher, with a median premium of $3,550.
Also, 1-to-2-year-old vehicles were priced a median of $3,266 below wholesale.
Some Cars Are Even More Expensive
Luxury and performance vehicles showed some of the biggest differences in Washington State.
Porsche buyers were financing vehicles priced a median of $9,078 above wholesale, while Chevrolet Corvettes had the largest model-level gap at $9,375.

The takeaway for Washington shoppers is pretty simple: don’t assume the sticker price tells the whole story.
Before buying, it may be worth checking the vehicle’s age, mileage, history, and comparable prices.
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