Car buyers throughout the Bay Area are facing high prices and limited supply because of a pandemic-induced shortage of semiconductors, a supply pothole that has trickled down to used cars and is leaving buyers and dealers frustrated.

That was the reality that greeted Anthony Di Miceli, who came to the Auto Deals dealership in Hayward to look for a car he drive for Uber.

“(Prices) are going up,” he said with a shake as he peeked inside a red hybrid 2017 Toyota Prius Prime.

The global chip shortage has slowed the production of increasingly computerized cars at the same time as shoppers are braving car lots in anticipation of a return to offices and commuting. That has reduced new car supplies and trickled down to higher demand for used cars, which are becoming more expensive and harder to find.

“This is really across the board. I think the lightly used vehicles will see competition from new car buyers who are looking to switch over,” said Jessica Caldwell, executive director of insights at Edmunds. “The cheaper the car is, the faster they sell.”

Car buyers used to negotiating down from a car’s sticker price are in for a rude awakening. Nearly 13 percent of customers are paying above sticker price on new cars, according to Edmunds, which also found the supply of new vehicles has dropped 48 percent year over year.

Jose Luna, owner of All USA Motors in San Jose, said he’s been having trouble even getting cars to sell. Normally, a lot of used cars come from people who trade in an older vehicle when they purchase a new one. Those cars are then sold at wholesale auctions to auto dealers like Luna.

“The prices at the wholesale auctions have dramatically increased,” he said, adding that he’s paid up to $2,000 more at auction for a car compared to what he would’ve paid a year ago.

This is the highest he’s seen wholesale car prices since he started helping his dad at the dealership 20 years ago. At the same time, demand is up from people who saved their stimulus payments and need to buy a car to go back to work.

“There’s a lot of money in the market, a lot of demand, but obviously in turn not a lot of supply,” he said.

The lack of supply has gotten so bad that Jason Martinez, a salesman at Silicon Valley Enthusiast, said he knows one dealer who hired someone to knock on peoples’ doors asking if they want to sell their cars. He thinks the high prices are going to squeeze a lot of used car dealers out of business entirely.

He’s seen the price ramp-up first hand, both in the prices quoted in guides like the Kelly Blue Book, as well as in his own dealing. He bought a car at the start of the pandemic, he said, and drove it for about 7,000 miles before deciding to sell, something that would normally decrease a vehicle’s value.

“I sold it for $7,000 more than I purchased it for. Easily, too,” he said. “It’s a sellers’ market right now. The problem is once you sell, what are you going to replace it with?

For those people with an extra car sitting around, this could be a major opportunity, Caldwell at Edmunds said.

“Those people are selling their vehicles and they’re just making a fortune,” she said. “Just check the price of your car because it probably will shock you how much it’s actually worth. You could have a goldmine sitting on your driveway you hadn’t noticed before.”

For those who are trying to buy in this market, Caldwell’s advice starts with don’t. If you can wait six months or so, that would help, although she doesn’t expect car production to be back to normal until 2022.

For those who can’t wait, the sooner they buy, the better, as she expects the market to only get more expensive in the coming months. She also suggests expanding your search, looking at dealerships further away that may have more inventory.

Di Miceli, in Hayward, couldn’t wait. He had come with his friend Rafael Iyesca, who had recommended Auto Deals after buying a 2016 Prius there in December 2019 for just under $18,000.

After turning on the car and inspecting the inside of the 2017 Prius (a missing backseat headrest was the “sports model,” the dealer quipped), Di Miceli decided to buy it. The final price was just under $24,000, taxes not included.