What to know in 2024 about buying a new or used car

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- If you're in the market for a used or new car, we have what you need to know from what to expect in terms of prices and availability to how to shop to get the best deal.

Affordability is the priority for the vast majority of consumers. A brand new survey by cars.com reveals about half the consumers interviewed are looking at cars priced under $30,000. The issue is, only about 12% of new cars are in that budget category.

"So there's definitely a challenge there to get exactly the car that you want for the budget that you've set aside," said Rebecca Lindland of cars.com.

That having been said, there are some good options.

"There's a Jeep Compass, you can get the Kia Seltos. You can get small crossovers that are really popular today," said Lindland.

But with slim pickings on budget cars and a continuing shortage of used cars, being a strategic, informed consumer is critical. We asked Lindland what tools are out there to shop around and get the best price.

"I love to use dealer inventory. I'll go on my local site, you can put your zip code in, you can go and say: What's the dealer? What's available? What can I buy today on the lot?" she said.

You can go to your local dealer's website, check cars.com or call a local dealer.

"You can find out what the car that you want to purchase, what the price is on that. You can get pre-approved for financing. You can control this transaction now more than ever before," she said.

And there's an interesting trend revealed by cars.com's latest report: Gen-Z is shifting to in-person buying.

"They want that tangibility. They also are quite skeptical as a generation, so they want to go in and say, and look that person in the eye and say, what am I dealing with? Who am I dealing with? And what vehicle am I buying?" said Lindland.

Another trend is twice as much interest in hybrids and plug-in hybrids than electric vehicles.

"You can get about anywhere from 30 to 50 miles of charge and then you also have the safety net of a gas engine," said Lindland.

One more thing to note: because of the used car shortage, you can get about 23% more for your trade-in than in 2020. But make sure you do your research to find out what your car is worth so you can negotiate how much you get for it.