LendingTree: Car loans gaining popularity among millennials

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – A new study by the online loan marketplace LendingTree shows millennials nationwide are increasingly becoming a larger portion of the automobile loan market.
LendingTree analyzed auto loans requests received from May 15, 2015 to May 15, 2016 for consumers between 18 and 34 years old, along with requests from the total population of auto-loan seekers in the same period, according to the study.
On average, 33 percent of all auto loan request through the site come from applicants under 35 years old. And the share of auto loan requests from millennials has climbed about 27 percent since 2013, according to the study.
“With unemployment among millennials improving, coupled with lower interest rates and low gas prices, the share of millennial auto loan requests is on the rise,” said Doug Lebda, founder and CEO of LendingTree, in a statement. “Although the share of millennial auto loan requests is relatively lower in densely populated urban areas, the auto market appears to be enticing aging millennials.”
In the Providence-Warwick area, 26.9 percent of car buyers were younger than 35 and borrowed at an average loan amount of $15,288, according to the report. By comparison, 73.1 percent of care buyers were older than 35 with an average loan amount of $17,949.
Memphis, Tenn., had the most millennials looking for loan requests at 42 percent, followed by Milwaukee at 40.7 percent and St. Louis at 37.9 percent.
The most popular car requested by loan-seeking millennials during the time period was a Nissan Altima.
The full report can be found here.