According to Experian Automotive, 27 percent of new auto loans in the first half of 2013 were subprime auto loans, or loans granted to consumers with poor credit or no credit. These customers have gone through credit problems like loan delinquencies, job loss, and bankruptcy, or they never had the opportunity to establish credit history in the first place. Many consumers with low credit or no credit are in dire need of a reliable vehicle so they can get to work, pick up their kids from school, and keep up with their other responsibilities.

This is a demographic of people who are eager to buy, and yet many of them are not being sufficiently served by their local dealerships. They are viewed as high-risk buyers because of their credit histories, and sales teams at dealerships are not always trained with the knowledge they need to work with these customers. Special Finance Group has been helping dealerships cater to these customers for years using their proven Complete Special Finance Solution. Their services include an in-house marketing team, a dedicated call center that follows customer leads from first phone contact to scheduled car loan appointments, and special finance experts who handle day-to-day operations at dealerships.

If you are looking to move more inventory and boost foot traffic in your dealership, Special Finance Group is ready to assist you with their Complete Special Finance Solution. To learn more about what Special Finance Group can do for you, go to http://www.specialfinancegroup.com, and connect with Special Finance Group on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

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According to Automotive News, the average loan-to-value ratio (LTV) for auto sales to subprime credit customers has gone up 114.5 percent, getting very close to the current record of 121 percent in 2008. During the fourth quarter of 2012, subprime auto loans originations hit $18.4 billion, and dealerships across the country that were not marketing towards subprime credit consumers started to notice they were missing out on a piece of the pie.

For those dealerships wanting to get their piece of the pie, there is Special Finance Group ready to help with the Complete Special Finance Solution. Lead tracking, a fully-staffed business development center, an in-house marketing team, and more, Special Finance Group has everything a dealership needs to create a profitable special finance department. To learn more about the Complete Special Finance Solution, click here.

Want to learn more about how Special Finance Group can work for your dealership? Go to http://www.specialfinancegroup.com today to learn more about the Complete Special Finance Solution, and connect with Special Finance Group on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn!

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With all due respect, has Automotive News been living under a rock?

As special finance departments across the country can see first-hand, subprime auto lending has been back for a long time. Way back in March, TransUnion and Experian reported that one in three auto loans were for consumers with subprime credit, and even with all these subprime auto loans, delinquencies 60 days or more had gone down. The industry dipped its toe in subprime credit last year. The “recovery mode” is long gone, and subprime lending is back.

As subprime lending conditions have improved, though, some dealerships haven’t had the proper tools or training to fully take advantage of this opportunity. This is the perfect time to bring in new customers who otherwise might not have walked through the door and also move inventory, particularly used inventory. There are common problems such as ineffective sales tactics and lack of knowledge regarding consumer protection laws.

This is where Special Finance Group comes in. We provide a Complete Special Finance Solution that will give your dealership exactly what it needs to be successful, from a fully-staffed business development center to lead tracking and an in-house marketing team. To learn more about the Complete Special Finance Solution, click here.

Want to learn more about Special Finance Group? Go to http://www.specialfinancegroup.com, and connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

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The findings, which were released by Experian Automotive, showed that 25.41 percent of consumers who got auto loans in 2012 had challenged credit. Meanwhile, consumers applying for auto loans for a new car on average were approved for $474 more than in 2011, and consumers applying for auto loans for a used car on average were approved for $370 more. Surprisingly, monthly payments stayed about the same for both new and used car loans.

Dealerships that are not promoting a special finance department are missing out on a huge segment of potential customers. Over a quarter of approved auto loans went to subprime credit consumers, and probably more loans could have been approved if dealerships were bringing in more subprime credit clientele. This is why Special Finance Group’s Complete Special Finance Solution is so important. We have years of experience working with dealerships, and we’ve seen our dealerships bring in hundreds of thousands of dollars in additional revenue every month and additionally strengthen their parts and service departments.

We like to use the analogy of a pie. One piece is the sales, one piece is service, one piece is parts, and one piece is special finance. In our mind, special finance is not an afterthought for a successful dealership. Without a strong special finance department, a giant piece of the pie is missing, and that dealership will never realize its full potential.

You can learn more about the Complete Special Finance Solution by going to http://www.specialfinancegroup.com. Also, be sure to connect with us by liking Special Finance Group on Facebook, following Special Finance Group on Twitter, and connecting to Special Finance Group on LinkedIn.

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2012 has been a good year for the auto industry. Sales are up, delinquencies are down, and auto loans are more accessible than ever. NBC’s Bottom Line praised the auto industry’s success and high sales in the United States despite the challenges facing the industry, and they dubbed the auto industry the “little engine that could” referring to the famous children’s book character. In the book, a long train of cars needs to be pulled over a mountain, and all of the big engines complain and refuse to pull it. When no one steps up, a little engine volunteers for the job, even as everyone around him says he can’t pull the train over the mountain. In the end, he beats the odds, and his mantra “I-think-I-can” turns into “I-thought-I-could.”

While praise is encouraging and can push people to work harder, it is better to be a big dog than an underdog. It is better for people to always expect great things than to be surprised when a dealership posts big profits. Do you want people to look at your dealership and think, I think they can, or do you want them to think, Of course they can? Part of becoming a “big dog” is utilizing a dealership to its fullest potential, and Special Finance Group can help a dealership realize that potential. With the Complete Special Finance Solution, a dealership can move more inventory, serve more customers, and bring in more customers to every other department including parts and service.

To learn more about Special Finance Group and the Complete Special Finance Solution, go to http://www.specialfinancegroup.com. You can also connect with Special Finance Group on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

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Car dealerships, especially those dealing with subprime auto loans, should be concerned about these complaints. After all, their day-to-day work encompasses both credit and auto sales. They are extremely vulnerable to customer complaints, even if they are doing a great job.

Why do customers complain more about car sales and credit-related issues? Well, our culture has been hardened and skeptical of car salesman, and time and again the credit reporting industry has confused consumers and punished them for not understanding their credit health. People come into a dealership with ammunition, ready to go to battle with the sales person, and if they don’t get a premium interest rate, they sometimes take it personally. Why don’t they deserve a better rate? Why can’t they get the car they want? Will they ever have the chance to rebuild their credit history?

Dealerships in the Special Finance Group network have a definite advantage over other dealerships when it comes to subprime auto loans. First, Special Finance Group dealerships don’t have to spend hours every day calling leads and trying to get customers in the door. Instead, Special Finance Group’s call center contacts those leads and schedules appointments for potential customers. From the start, the customer feels like a priority before they even step in the door. The Special Finance Group representative builds a sense of excitement for the appointment, and rather than waiting around for a salesperson to notice them, the customer can go to their scheduled appointment and get on with their day. It makes the process easier and more pleasant for the customer, and it is more likely that the customer will have a positive experience buying a car, even if they have poor credit or no credit.

Want to learn more about the Complete Special Finance Solution? Go to http://www.specialfinancegroup.com, and connect with Special Finance Group on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. You can also contact Special Finance Group by phone at 212-239-7270 or by e-mail at info@specialfinancegroup.com.

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The Wall Street Journal’s article “A Green Light for Car Loans” laid out all the reasons why there has never been a better time for consumers to buy and dealers to sell, even if the car buyer has poor credit. Most lenders have changed their auto loan standards to give consumers with poor credit the opportunity to re-establish their credit history and improve their credit score. Car buyers, including sub-prime borrowers, have returned the favor by keeping up with their payments, mainly because car repossession is easier than a home foreclosure or collecting on credit card debts. The U.S. chief executive at Toyota Motor Corp was happy with the trend, stating, “We are seeing more ‘subprime,’ which is good,” and Gary McAlister, general manager at the Fairway Ford Lincoln Subaru dealership in South Carolina, was pleased that “the credit issue has eased up.”

News stories like the Wall Street Journal’s recent piece are giving a push to consumers on the fence about buying a car, and the first place they go to look for a car or a car loan is the internet. Special Finance Group wants to help dealerships make the most of this extraordinary time by working tirelessly to match lenders with car buyers. With the Complete Special Finance Solution, dealerships in the Special Finance Group network get access to Special Finance Group’s online resources, their leads generated through internet advertising and social media outreach, and a call center full of highly trained customer service representatives whose sole task is setting up appointments for network dealerships. With Special Finance Group, dealerships can get more customers in the door and sell more cars without taking time away from the dealership or distracting the sales team from what they do best, which is selling cars.

You can learn more about the Complete Special Finance Solution here, and get the latest news and updates from Special Finance Group by liking Special Finance Group on Facebook, following Special Finance Group on Twitter, and connecting with Special Finance Group on LinkedIn.

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According to Fitch Ratings, the U.S. auto loan market is continuing to thrive and improve, even as lenders are approving sub-prime credit clientele. There were less charge-offs and 30-day delinquencies in the second quarter, and overall, lenders had extremely low credit losses. Besides that, car sales have kept going up through the summer and are expected to hit their height of the year in August before plateauing in autumn. Now more than ever, dealerships can get more car buyers approved and move more of their inventory out the door, raking in massive profits.

Dealerships across the country are putting more time and money into their special finance department, but there is a downside to all of it. Unfortunately, many salespeople are spending their time calling auto loan leads and trying to get people in the door than they are actually selling cars. This is where Special Finance Group comes in. Special Finance Group supplements a dealership’s special finance department and gives the dealership more time to sell and less hassle getting people in the door. Dealerships in the Special Finance Group network have access to a call center that turns leads into car loan appointments as well as their own auto loan leads and targeted online advertising.

To learn more about Special Finance Group’s Complete Special Finance Solution, go to http://www.specialfinancegroup.com, and keep up with the latest from Special Finance Group on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

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According to a recent article from ABC News, consumers with an average or less-than-average credit score will benefit from searching for an auto loan first and keeping their options open on the vehicle. Edmunds.com features editor and consumer advice expert Caroll Lachnit lent her advice to the piece and encouraged even people who had been turned down in the past to try again to get a car loan. Lachnit told ABC News, “(Even) consumers with poor credit are able to get back in the market.”

How does this news affect Special Finance Group and its network dealerships? Well, more consumers shopping for a new or used car will be looking for a dealership and lenders willing to work with them first and then thinking of the car second. Special Finance Group’s lead generator taps into these consumers, and from there, Special Finance Group’s highly-trained call center sets appointments for these customers at a network dealership. The result is that dealerships in the Special Finance Group network will all get more potential customers, bringing in thousands in additional revenue every month.

Does your dealership have the Complete Special Finance Solution yet? Learn more about it by going to http://www.specialfinancegroup.com, and get connected with Special Finance Group on Facebook, Twitter, and Linked In.

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A survey conducted by FICO shows that lenders will be approving auto loans for credit-challenged consumers in the coming year, a trend that is likely to continue. Why are these consumers getting approved for auto loans and yet are getting turned down for credit cards, mortgages, or personal loans? The answer is simple: less risk.

Consumers are more likely to make their car payments than other installment payments like mortgages. Cars are so closely linked to a person’s ability to work and earn a living that people feel more compelled to make their payments. Besides that, foreclosures take much more time to process than a car repossession which makes consumers more likely to pay and lenders more likely to approve the loan. If the consumer doesn’t make their payments, the car can be quickly and easily repossessed.

For car dealerships looking to bring in more business, including more subprime credit customers, Special Finance Group’s Complete Special Finance Solution is the perfect complimentary service to any special finance department. They provide lead generation services as well as a call center with highly trained customer service reps, ready to set up appointments for their partner dealerships. Special Finance Group’s partner dealerships bring in hundreds of thousands of dollars in additional revenue, and dealerships spend less time trying to get customers in the door and more time doing what they do best: selling cars.

To learn more about the Complete Special Finance Solution, go to http://www.specialfinancegroup.com or call 212-239-7270 for more information. You can also connect with Special Finance Group on Facebook, Twitter, and Linked In.

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