As a result of the interest rate increases made in the name of monetary tightening policies, zero kilometer car dealers gave up on campaigns because they had difficulty in paying the differences they had funded with their own means, and it is stated that they ended the zero interest campaigns for 200-300 thousand TL, which were seen in almost many brands, as of April.
Stating that the sector is left with many problems on the financing side, the representatives pointed out that when consumers apply to banks, they cannot get the loan they want for the car they want to buy due to the maturity and amount restrictions imposed by the BRSA on new mileage or second-hand vehicles.
Sharing his findings on the subject, Otomerkezi.net CEO Muhammed Ali Karakaş stated that sales were made with credit cards in the last 4-5 months, but the commissions of credit cards have increased significantly recently and said, "Although the credit card option is still more advantageous than credit, many sellers also It started to lend up to 70 percent with the promissory note system and offer maturities of up to 48 months. Currently, the consumer has two options: 1. 12 installments with credit card, 2. 48 months maturity with the promissory note system. Consumers are trying to make purchases using these methods, but in general their financial support is almost non-existent in the entire automotive market. There is a tremendous complaint from consumers due to increasing interest rates. For example, a car worth 400 thousand TL has a repayment of more than 24 million TL in 1 months. "This situation scares the consumer when buying a car and hurts his pocket." he said.
“THE CURRENT SITUATION IN AUTOMOTIVE IS NO LONGER SUSTAINABLE”
“We think that the current situation is not sustainable, interest rates should be at least around the Central Bank policy rate,” said Karakaş, adding, “Because with the recent increases, banks have set interest rates at much higher levels. Plus, they have almost turned off the credit taps, it is as if they are in a serious race not to give loans.” said.
Pointing out that there is activity in the market due to the holidays and summer months, but there is a need for financing to support the activity, Karakaş said that galleries or brokerage firms are not of any interest in the current situation, as purchasing and keeping stocks costs 70-75% interest annually.
Karakaş stated that in the second hand, this framework is not based on favorable interest rates and too much stock during the pandemic period, but on quick turnover with little stock and little profit. “Of course, this can only happen if the price of the car is very attractive and you provide flexibility and convenience in payment options. Currently, chaos prevails in this sense. The market is not clear; With the holiday, the start of the summer months, and the expectation of an exchange rate increase after the election, there is a demand and activity in the market compared to the previous months. But there is no financial support on both the buyer and seller side to meet this demand. The full and strict implementation of the monetary tightening policy by banks has tied the hands of the consumer. In the current situation, galleries do not want to buy cars. It's similar for long-term rentals; For a car worth 1 million, you have to repay 24 million TL in 2,5 months, meaning you owe 1,5 more cars. No one in the industry wants to take on this burden. For this reason, vehicle changes have slowed down on the rental and fleet side. "In general, we can say that the entire sector is stuck," he said.