September 2010 Blog Posts (12)

GM-AmeriCredit Deal Clears Last Hurdle; New Co. to Start Oct. 1

With AmeriCredit’s shareholders giving General Motors the nod on its acquisition, GM will take ownership of the new company Friday.

The new subsidiary, to form the backbone of GM’s financing operations, will be called General Motors Financial Co.

Plans for the captive include a regional leasing program, set to be launched in the first quarter of 2011.

GM announced its intent in July to buy AmeriCredit for $3.5 billion. Fort Worth, Texas-based AmeriCredit has… Continue

Added by Marcie Belles on September 29, 2010 at 1:00pm — 5 Comments

10 Cities with the highest and lowest credit scores

Below is a snapshot of the 10 cities with the highest average credit scores and the 10 cities with the lowest average credit scores in the U.S. Credit scores translate the information in your credit report into a simple number. The VantageScore listed below uses a 501- 990 scoring range.

http://www.experian.com/live-credit-smart/live-credit-smart.html

Added by Jason Buchanan on September 29, 2010 at 10:28am — No Comments

CPS Returns to Securitization Market

After a two-year hiatus, Consumer Portfolio Services has returned to the asset-backed securities market with an $85.4 million transaction sold in a private offering. The deal marked CPS’s first securitization with a senior-subordinate structure in 17 years.

The receivables were originated in 2008. At the time, an institutional investor bought 95% of the notes, while CPS retained the remainder.

Standard & Poor’s rated the transaction.

CPS has $900 million of… Continue

Added by Marcie Belles on September 28, 2010 at 3:00pm — No Comments

Little Traction for P2P Auto Lending via Prosper

Auto lending and Prosper, one of the leading peer-to-peer lending sites, apparently don't mix.

In a new report on its lending risk management, Prosper says that just 6% of its loans are being taken to purchase cars.

About $21…

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Added by JJ Hornblass on September 22, 2010 at 10:10am — No Comments

Digital Due Diligence

Before the internet, when there were only phone pops, we learned valuable lessons on how to handle calls, such as selling the appointment, creating urgency, not giving shopping numbers and keeping information close to the vest until the customer showed up. It was good advice then and it may be good advice now. But keep in mind that many customer inquiries tend to come online rather then by phone. While the ultimate goal remains the same – to get the customer into the dealership – the rules for… Continue

Added by Jim Radogna on September 21, 2010 at 2:02pm — No Comments

Invitation to Participate in the Auto Finance Forecast

Three times a year AutoFinanceNews.net and sister publication Auto Finance News conduct the Auto Finance Forecast, which gauges activities and sentiments in the automotive lending and leasing market. Results will be made public at the 2010 Auto Finance Summit, Oct. 12-13, as well as in Auto Finance News and on… Continue

Added by Marcie Belles on September 20, 2010 at 11:30am — No Comments

Virtual Test-Drive

With Ford targeting Millennials as the primary customers for the subcompact Fiesta, it’s no wonder the automaker has come out with a high-tech sales pitch for the vehicle — an iPad app.

Using the interactive brochure, prospective Fiesta customers can browse all the car’s features and dealer options, including tech information, safety features, and connectivity options. They can interact with the driver display, getting a glimpse of how the screen would change in the car.… Continue

Added by Marcie Belles on September 20, 2010 at 10:00am — No Comments

Do You 'Like' Ally on Facebook?

Ally Bank last week unveiled its Facebook page, and so far 218 people "like" it.

(On Facebook, members can "like" something, which is the approximate equivalent of giving it a thumbs up.)

So who are these Facebook members who "like" Ally? Consider Carlos Medina. Medina likes "CSI: Miami," the music of Alex Campos, "The Godfather" movies, and…

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Added by JJ Hornblass on September 13, 2010 at 10:33am — 2 Comments

Middling Costs for Auto Finance Search Marketing, Study Finds

Just be happy you are not marketing home equity loans.

According to an interesting study by The Financial Brand blog, the cost to advertise in conjunction with Google search terms is more expensive for home equity-related searches compared to auto finance-related queries. Auto loan searches, such as "auto loans," cost $0.0404 per thousand searches, compared to $0.2855 per thousand…

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Added by JJ Hornblass on September 7, 2010 at 12:26pm — 2 Comments

Unfair? You Bet it is…

“BUYERS ARE LIARS”.

I don’t think I was in the car business one hour before I heard that catchy little phrase. Sure enough, over the course of my retail career, I suspect I was lied to over and over again by the best of them.

I’m not going to pontificate about what buyers lie about and why – many of us could easily write a book on that subject. Instead I’m going to bring up what I think is an important point – buyers can say pretty much whatever they want without fear of… Continue

Added by Jim Radogna on September 2, 2010 at 9:26pm — No Comments

Is It Really That Bad?

A scan of headlines recapping August vehicle sales would have many believing that the auto industry is headed off a cliff.

Here’s a sampling:

• Auto Sales: Worst August Since 1983 (CNNMoney.com)

• Auto Sales Crash in August (The Tennessean)

• 21% Drop in August Auto Sales Spurs Talk of Stimulus (Detroit Free Press)

• Auto Sales Fall as Economy Struggles (The Associated Press)

• August Auto Sales Cool Without 'Cash for Clunkers' Incentives (The Detroit… Continue

Added by Marcie Belles on September 2, 2010 at 12:30pm — 8 Comments