Study: Northeast Ohio is a great place to find a bargain on used cars

In the market for a used car? You've come to the right place.

They are cheaper in Northeast Ohio now than anywhere in the country, according to a national study by a car search and research company.

The report from iSeeCars found the average price for new cars in the Cleveland-Akron area is $6,173 less than those bought in the most expensive area, West Palm Beach-Fort Pierce, Florida.

In those cities on Florida's east coast, used vehicles have an average price of $37,632, or 9.9% above the national average of $34,227.

Used cars bought in the Cleveland-Akron area have an average price of $31,458, 8.1% below the national average, according to iSeeCars, which is based in Woburn, Massachusetts.

The company found the Ram 1500 has the biggest price difference between the least and most expensive cities, costing $7,795 more in Denver than it does in Cleveland.

The Chevrolet Malibu and Toyota Tacoma have the biggest percentage difference between the least and most expensive cities, with the analysis showing more than a 17% shift in how much a buyer can pay.

What does a local used car dealer think?

Ron Winters sells cars with his business partner Michael France at Car Logic, 1202 Whipple Ave. NW, in Canton Township.

Winters is skeptical about the iSeeCars conclusion that similar used cars cost less here than elsewhere.

"It could be a different type of vehicle down there, in what they sell," he said. "You have to look at the demographics of where you're getting this information from. West Palm Beach in Florida, you're probably going to have Ferraris and Rolls-Royces and things like that. So that's going to be your difference in price right there as compared to us selling Jeeps or basic trucks or things like that."

Even the same make, model and year could have different values, depending on where they have been driven, according to Winters, who has spent six years in the used car business.

"You have to look at the condition," he said. "In Denver, they don't use the type of chemicals for snow removal that we do. Those trucks in Denver are going to be a lot more solid if they're not going to have any frame problems underneath. It's going to be a lot ... nicer. They don't use the brine chemicals that we use in Ohio, and that's the thing you have to watch for -- the frames on them."

Winters finds buyers are getting more attuned to asking about the history of cars from Florida or Louisiana.

"They don't want to know if it's been hit. They want to know if it's a flood car," he said.

Winters said dealers have to research a vehicle's history to make sure the customer isn't getting a car with a serious problem, and to get it financed.

How did iSeeCars do its research?

To get the numbers, iSeeCars analyzed more than 6.5 million one-to-five-year-old used cars sold from January through August 2023 in the country's 50 largest metropolitan areas. It reported finding a wide spectrum of pricing.

“Research and flexibility are two powerful assets for used car shoppers,” iSeeCars executive analyst Karl Brauer said in a news release. “Buyers in Cleveland and Cincinnati, the top two cities with the least expensive cars, are already living in the lowest-cost cities and can shop locally. But used car buyers in the most expensive cities like West Palm Beach and Denver might want to research bus and plane schedules as part of their shopping process.”

Top 10 least expensive cities

Three markets in Ohio (Cleveland-Akron, Cincinnati and Columbus) ranked among top 10 cheapest used car cities in the iSeeCars report, suggesting used car prices are generally lower in the Buckeye State.

Buyers in all 10 of the least expensive cities are likely to find attractive used car pricing in their local markets. The ability to save between $1,700 and $2,700 could still justify the time and effort to travel to the least expensive cities to buy used cars, especially for shoppers who live relatively close.

“While these cities have attractive overall used car pricing, buyers in these markets still need to look at specific models to confirm they can’t find a better deal somewhere else,” Brauer said. “It’s easy to research car pricing, both locally and nationally, so there’s no reason not to look beyond your area to get a sense of how much prices vary for a given model.”

Top 10 most expensive cities

The most expensive cities for used car buying are widely scattered throughout the U.S., with West Palm Beach, Denver, Austin, and Seattle in the top four slots, according to the pricing study. Florida and Texas each have two cities on the list, but cities in Colorado, Washington, Utah, North Carolina, California, Massachusetts and New Hampshire also make an appearance. With buyers paying between $1,000 and $3,400 above the average used car price, the cost rises even more for those who are financing a used car purchase, given high interest rates.

“Used car buyers in the most expensive markets should look to nearby cities to save money on their next purchase,” Brauer said. “For instance, while West Palm Beach, Florida, has the highest average used car price, Orlando is one of the cheapest cities and is less than 200 miles away.”

Reach Nancy at 330-580-8382 or nancy.molnar@cantonrep.com.

On X, formerly known as Twitter: @nmolnarTR

This article originally appeared on The Repository: Study finds Cleveland-Akron area least expensive for buying used cars