Equifax reported the total balance of newly originated subprime auto loans stood at $70.7 billion in August, a level representing an eight-year high and 27.8 percent of the total balance of new auto loans. That’s a slight increase in share from the previous year.

But Equifax auto finance leader Lou Loquasto pointed to a different metric from the latest Equifax National Consumer Credit Trends Report that he thinks is even more profound.

The credit agency determined serious delinquencies represented 1.05 percent of total balances outstanding in August, a decrease of 8 percent from same time a year ago.

“Anytime you have losses and delinquencies this low, it is going to encourage a little more availability of credit at the margin,” Loquasto told SubPrime Auto Finance News this week. “We’ve definitely seen that with non-prime.

“The cool thing is we’ve seen more players participating in non-prime,” he continued. “It’s not just the independent auto finance companies. But the banks are participating in non-prime, the credit unions, the captives. The whole industry is picking and choosing in the lower credit segments, the segments where they’re more comfortable buying a little bit deeper. We think that’s a very healthy thing for the dealers and for customers.

“It’s super competitive out there for lenders. But as a long as the performance continues to be this strong, it’s a good thing for lenders, too,” Loquasto went on to say.

Equifax tallied up the total balance of auto loans outstanding through August and found it to be $924.2 billion — an all-time high and an increase of 10.8 percent from same time a year ago.

At the same time, analysts determined the total number of auto loans outstanding now sits at more than 65 million — a record high and an increase of more than 6 percent from the same time last year.

“Auto sales continue to soar, crossing the 17.4 million mark on an annualized basis for new cars and light trucks in August,” said Amy Crews Cutts, senior vice president and chief economist at Equifax. 

“The abundance of high-quality vehicles for sale, the attractive financing options available and the ever-increasing age of cars on the road today have created an environment that makes it easy for consumers to say ‘yes’ when it comes to purchasing a new or used car,” Crews Cutts continued.

“Importantly, auto loan originations to borrowers with subprime credit scores remain stable, providing additional evidence that a bubble is not occurring in that space,” she added.

Sharing more evidence of subprime health, Equifax indicated the total number of new loans originated year-to-date through June for subprime borrowers — defined as consumers with Equifax Risk Scores of 640 or lower — came in at 3.9 million, representing 31.2 percent of all auto loans originated this year.  This level is a just slight decrease in share from this same time in 2013.

Furthermore, Equifax’s year-to-date data through June showed the average loan amount for borrowers with risk scores of 680 or lower are increasing the most, posting a 3-percent increase from the previous year.

“We’re still not to where it was at the all-time high. I think some of the reflection of the growth is just due to how low it went during the downturn,” said Loquasto, one of the many experts who will be on hand for the SubPrime Forum, a conference held in partnership with the National Automotive Finance Association during Used Car Week.

Elsewhere in Equifax’s latest report, analysts mentioned the total number of new loans originated through June rose to 12.5 million, an increase of 4.9 percent from same time a year ago. The total balance of those new loans came in at $254.2 billion, an increase of 6.9 percent from same time a year ago and representing nearly half of total new non-mortgage credit originated.

A couple of trends to mention included:

— Loan sizes among borrowers with risk scores of 760 or higher show little change from the same time a year ago.

— By source, balances on outstanding loans funded by banks, savings and loans and credit unions are at $453 billion, while the total number of loans is more than 31.4 million.

— Similarly, total outstanding balances for loans funded by auto finance companies is $471.2 billion, while the total number of existing loans is 34.1 million.

“The cost of funds is so low right now that they’re able to get a lot more car for the money and get into a higher, upscale vehicle than normally would have been in years prior,” said Gary Hughes, general manager of automotive services for Equifax.

“That pent up demand from the past eight to 10 years is coming back around. We anticipate growth to continue. It might moderate a little bit, but we still anticipate it staying near these levels for the foreseeable future,” Hughes added.

Analysis like what Hughes and Loquasto shared is what’s on tap for the SubPrime Forum, the event dedicated to auto financing at Used Car Week.

This three-day conference will provide data, knowledge, insight and powerful business networking opportunities to spur innovation and drive growth in the growing subprime auto finance marketplace. Presented by SubPrime Auto Finance News and SubPrimeNews.com, and in affiliation with the NAF Association, the event will offer a best-in-class forum for executives and thought-leaders in the auto finance vertical.

The SubPrime Forum is set for Nov. 10 through Nov. 12 at the Red Rock Casino, Resort and Spa in Las Vegas. It’s a part of Used Car Week, which includes the CPO Forum, the Re3 Conference and the National Remarketing Conference.

All member-company staff of the NAF Association are $100 eligible for a discount of off the standard registration fee for the SubPrime Forum. Use discount code NAF2014 when registering.

Also, be sure to make your hotel reservations at the Red Rock Casino, Resort and Spa before Oct. 17 to secure your room at the exclusive conference rate of $195/night.

Click here for additional information regarding the SubPrime Forum, including the agenda, scheduled speakers and exhibitors.

“We’re bullish on the industry. We’re proud of what the industry has achieved,” Loquasto said.

“Nobody thinks it can be perfect forever. But what our lenders are doing is making the investments for the future,” he continued. “They’re looking at business intelligence tools and data so they know what to plan for and what to do over the next one to three years. They’re taking some of the profits from the last few years and they’re investing with companies like Equifax and others to do everything they can to make sure this good run continues as long as it can.”