美国国家公共电台 NPR--More people are falling behind on car payments, and the consequences can be severe

More people are falling behind on car payments, and the consequences can be severe

Transcript¹

More and more people are falling behind on their car payments. A look at what's driving the delinquencies and why those whose cars are repossessed still have a good chance of getting them back.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

More and more people are falling behind on their car payments, and the consequences can be swift and severe. Why are so many people struggling? NPR's Arezou Rezvani explains.

AREZOU REZVANI, BYLINE²: Fifty-nine-year-old Kyle Mestas has always loved working as a traffic controller, directing drivers around road construction.

KYLE MESTAS: I can be in the mountains one day. I can be working in downtown the next day. And I'm not stuck in an office. I meet new people constantly.

REZVANI: His $60,000 salary went a long way in his hometown of Denver, Colo. It easily covered his monthly car payments.

MESTAS: It was quite easy, and a lot of times I had actually made extra payments, so I was ahead.

REZVANI: All of that came to a screeching³ halt in December when Mestas suddenly lost his job.

MESTAS: The timing⁴ of getting laid off before Christmas and then going through the holidays, my mother dying, me having to get there - it was just horrendous⁵.

REZVANI: He dipped into his retirement⁶ account and burned through his savings⁷ to get by. But it wasn't enough. He fell behind on his car payments. Then one recent morning, things went from bad to worse.

MESTAS: It was two weeks ago, and I got up, went outside, and I was like, where's my car?

REZVANI: His Kia Sorento was repossessed overnight, and it's been slow going ever since.

MESTAS: It's been hard, you know, not being able to get around anywhere, or I can't run an errand. So it's been hard.

REZVANI: More and more Americans are falling behind on their car payments. For low-income households, delinquencies are now greater than they were at the peak of the Great Recession. Amy Martin of S&P Global says there are several reasons for this.

AMY MARTIN: Many borrowers - they're getting squeezed with a higher monthly car payment as well as higher food and housing expenses.

REZVANI: The average monthly payment for a new car loan hit a record $780 in January. It's not much less for used cars. As COVID-era federal aid has expired, people's savings have also slumped⁸. Add stubborn inflation into this mix and people just don't have the money they once used to.

JONATHAN SMOKE: But the good news is we have not seen the corresponding level of default.

REZVANI: That's Jonathan Smoke, chief economist⁹ with Cox Automotive. He says while late payments are up, even those who are facing repossession have a pretty good chance of keeping their cars. And that's partly because vehicles are retaining their value better than ever.

SMOKE: The lender has more options to work with the borrower to restructure the loan, to keep them in the car and to help get them out of the situation.

REZVANI: Smoke says there's one other thing that's helped people hang on to their cars - low unemployment. That may actually be what helps Kyle Mestas get back into his Kia. He's landed a new job directing traffic again and starts this month. If he can quickly cobble together the $2,500 he owes through his GoFundMe page and his first paycheck, he'll get his car back.

MESTAS: I'm hoping, and I'm trying.

REZVANI: If he can't, not only will his car be auctioned¹⁰ off - the dent¹¹ in his credit score will make it harder to get any car down the road.

Arezou Rezvani, NPR News, Los Angeles.

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

3 screeching   

v.发出尖叫声( screech的现在分词 )；发出粗而刺耳的声音；高叫

参考例句：

• Monkeys were screeching in the trees. 猴子在树上吱吱地叫着。
• the unedifying sight of the two party leaders screeching at each other 两党党魁狺狺对吠的讨厌情景

4 timing   

n.时间安排，时间选择

参考例句：

• The timing of the meeting is not convenient.会议的时间安排不合适。
• The timing of our statement is very opportune.我们发表声明选择的时机很恰当。

5 horrendous   

adj.可怕的，令人惊惧的

参考例句：

• He described it as the most horrendous experience of his life.他形容这是自己一生中最可怕的经历。
• The mining industry in China has a horrendous safety record.中国的煤矿工业具有令人不安的安全记录。

6 retirement   

n.退休，退职

参考例句：

• She wanted to enjoy her retirement without being beset by financial worries.她想享受退休生活而不必为金钱担忧。
• I have to put everything away for my retirement.我必须把一切都积蓄起来以便退休后用。

7 savings   

n.存款，储蓄

参考例句：

• I can't afford the vacation,for it would eat up my savings.我度不起假，那样会把我的积蓄用光的。
• By this time he had used up all his savings.到这时，他的存款已全部用完。

8 slumped   

大幅度下降，暴跌( slump的过去式和过去分词 )； 沉重或突然地落下[倒下]

参考例句：

• Sales have slumped this year. 今年销售量锐减。
• The driver was slumped exhausted over the wheel. 司机伏在方向盘上，疲惫得睡着了。

9 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

10 auctioned   

v.拍卖( auction的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• It was sad to see all grandmother's lovely things being auctioned off. 眼看着祖母那些可爱的东西全都被拍卖掉，心里真不好受。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• TV franchises will be auctioned to the highest bidder. 电视特许经营权将拍卖给出价最高的投标人。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 dent   

n.凹痕，凹坑；初步进展

参考例句：

• I don't know how it came about but I've got a dent in the rear of my car.我不知道是怎么回事，但我的汽车后部有了一个凹痕。
• That dent is not big enough to be worth hammering out.那个凹陷不大，用不着把它锤平。