BANDON, Ore. -

Led by a nice boost in the number of late-model vehicle sales, the total value of all used cars sold last month climbed 15 percent year-over-year and reached $33.53 billion, according to data and analysis from CNW Research.

That figure includes used cars sold by franchised and independent dealers as well as those sold by private parties.

The firm said in a summary of November used-car results that industry sales of 1-year-old vehicles jumped 6 percent, sales of 2-year-old units climbed 14 percent and sales of 3-year-old units were up 9 percent. Those increases helped push the total value of used sales for the month, CNW said. 

That age group of vehicles (1- to 3-year-old cars) is certainly a mainstay in the certified pre-owned market. And CPO operations for franchised dealers appeared to be a key factor in helping lift transaction prices for these stores.

“In a stunning show of excellent inventory control and the use of certified pre-owned vehicles, franchised dealers saw a 21 percent in actual transaction prices versus year-ago to $16,130 (excluding add-ons, taxes and fees),” CNW president Art Spinella said in the analysis accompanying the industry results shared by the firm.

Certified vehicles were expected to command approximately a 22.5-percent share of franchised dealer used sales in November, with about 197,000 CPO cars sold. That’s according to data shared by Edmunds.com last month. 

Going back to the CNW data, the firm noted that transaction prices at independent dealerships were up almost 8 percent in November, and there was a 2.1-percent gain in prices for casual sales.