New Car Sales Drop as Housing Prices Fall

New vehicle advertisements and offers are likely to increase this year. With tougher principles on financing and the falling cost of houses in most of capital urban areas around Australia, new car sales are expected to drop.

2019 car sales in Australia have decreased significantly with sales 9.3 per cent lower than February last year. Factors such as the weakening Australian dollar and the flat housing market have affected car sales negatively. The decrease was largely driven by drivers in New South Wales and Victoria with sales down by 11% across both states.

Tough new car financing prerequisites set by lenders have made it more challenging for buyers to get the credit they need. Even incentives such as Mazda’s five-year guarantee has had no impact on increasing sales. However, some brands have still managed to come out on top.

Even though the company’s sales dipped by 10.5%, Toyota still holds the converted title for market leader within Australian having sold 16,359 vehicles, closely followed by Mazda with 9,235 vehicles sold.

The adventurous spirit within every Australian has been strong with the top-three car sales all being utes! The Toyota Hilux (4431), Ford Ranger (3377) and ascendant Mitsubishi Triton (3155, a blend of the refreshed model and run out load of the MY18 vehicle) performed well this first quarter.  

Mazdas came in second with the Mazda 3 (2655) and CX-5, the country's best selling SUV (2357), in front of the Mitsubishi ASX (2122), Toyota Corolla (2070), Hyundai i30 (1929), Toyota LandCruiser wagon and ute go (1804) and the run out Toyota RAV4 (1639).

Based on the industry’s performance so far, we can determine that utility and traveller vehicles are set to be popular sellers.

With the car industry set for a turbulent year, the consumer can win with a range of deals likely to be applied across brands and models, there’s no better time to start your car search and find a vehicle that best suits your needs, wants and lifestyle.