Americans with active auto loans spend an average of 15% of their income on car expenses. This equates to nearly $13,000 per year.
WASHINGTON — With Memorial Day and summer just around the corner next week, many drivers are getting ready to hit the road, but The price they pay is higher than ever.
According to recent analysis loan treethe cost of owning a car is eating more and more of household budgets. The analysis found that loan payments were the biggest burden on the budget, followed by insurance, gas and maintenance.
“All of these rising prices make affordability even more unaffordable due to the cost of gas, maintenance and insurance, as well as the sticker price of the car itself,” said Matt Schulz, chief consumer finance analyst at LendingTree.
Americans with active auto loans spend an average of 15% of their income on car expenses, according to LendingTree. This equates to nearly $13,000 per year. A LendingTree survey showed that 21% of 2,000 respondents strongly agreed that owning a car is a luxury they cannot afford.
In the first three months of 2026, Americans’ auto loan debt increased by $18 billion. The Federal Reserve Bank of New York said drivers’ total auto loan debt hit a record $1.69 trillion.
Government inflation data for April showed natural gas prices rose 28.4% year-on-year. The report also showed that tire prices increased by 4% year-on-year, and motor vehicle maintenance costs increased by 5%.
LendingTree said it has seen insurance costs surge 37.5% since 2021.
“For a lot of Americans, their car is their lifeline to their job, and if they can’t, if they don’t have that transportation, things become very challenging for them,” Schultz said.
CNN Newsource contributed to this report.
