Categories
EFG Companies Featured

NAMAD and EFG Companies Announce First Annual Northwood University Scholarship Recipient

Northwood Sophomore, Javante Dilworth Selected Based on Scholastic Merit, Leadership & Fortitude

northwood_university_logoEFG Companies, the innovator behind the award-winning Hyundai Assurance program, together with the National Association of Minority Automobile Dealers (NAMAD), selected Javante Dilworth as the recipient for their Northwood University private donor scholarship.

The annual NAMAD scholarship will fund the remainder of Dilworth’s four-year tuition while he attends the Automotive Management Program at Northwood University, representing an investment of up to $100,000 from EFG. Dilworth is currently enrolled at Northwood pursuing a bachelor’s degree in Automotive Marketing and Management, and will be entering his sophomore year this fall.

Namad“When I first found out that I was the recipient of the NAMAD Scholarship I was amazed and overfilled with joy,” said Javante Dilworth, sophomore, Automotive Marketing & Finance, Northwood University.  This is really important to me because it opens up opportunities that are not always available.  It is truly a great blessing.”

Dilworth was raised by his mother in Detroit, Michigan, and was accepted to Northwood based upon academic merit, without family or dealership connections. During his first year of matriculation, his mother was tragically taken from him. This thrust Dilworth into a very adult situation in which he quickly learned how to provide for himself. Throughout the year, he sought out various projects, volunteer opportunities and jobs on campus, including Northwood’s 2014 phone-a-thon, where he consistently demonstrated maturity for his age and strong leadership. Despite the challenge of losing his mother and having to support himself, Dilworth maintained a 3.0 GPA.

Continue reading “NAMAD and EFG Companies Announce First Annual Northwood University Scholarship Recipient”
Categories
Dealership Training Economy

Positioning Leasing vs. Buying

Hollis Goode Blog Headshot

Contributing Author: Hollis Goode, Regional Vice President, Dealer Services, EFG Companies

Leasing continues to gain considerable ground in the automotive space as manufacturers place greater emphasis on lease incentives. Is your team taking advantage of this trend?

According to a recent report from Experian, leasing hit a record of 26.7 percent of U.S. new-vehicle volume in the first quarter of 2015. This represents a 1.1% year-over-year growth and the fourth time in the past five quarters when lease penetration topped 25 percent. With this growing trend, we can expect more manufacturer lease incentives in the second half of this year, meaning now is the time to ensure your sales team can not only close a sale, but also a lease.

Ask yourself, does my team know how to positional leasing versus financing? Not sure? Refresh your team by focusing on the basics.

Help customers understand depreciation. While they probably know that all vehicles depreciate as soon as they leave the lot, they probably don’t make the connection that vehicles depreciate at the same rate whether they lease or buy. The only difference lies in what they pay for. With leasing, customers only pay for the time/miles they drive. However, with buying customers commit to the entire cost of the vehicle, no matter how far they drive it or how long they keep it.

Continue reading “Positioning Leasing vs. Buying”
Categories
Compliance

Rolling with the Times!

Karen Klees, Certified Consumer Credit Compliance Professional, EFG Companies

 

Contributing Author: Karen Klees, Certified Consumer Credit Compliance Specialist, EFG Companies

Recently, U.S. Bank issued a letter to its dealer partners describing the Bank’s policy in regards to fair and responsible lending. Well, that in itself is not news. Lenders have been issuing letters of that nature for the past few years. However, this letter did mark a significant milestone in the CFPB’s regulation of the automotive industry. In this letter, U.S. Bank became the first lender to explain a monitoring program with a heavy focus on how F&I products are priced and sold.

To date, dealers have had substantial leeway with F&I pricing practices. The only minor cap dealers have as far as marking up products is concerned, is how much money lenders are willing to fund. So, it’s natural for dealers to pucker when a lender like U.S. bank says they are watching for potential discriminatory practices in F&I.

However, from a lender standpoint, U.S. Bank is taking proactive steps to protect itself before any regulatory decisions are made. And, it’s possible that other lending institutions may follow suit, especially those who’ve already felt the influence of the CFPB.

As a dealer, you could simply say “Good Riddance!” to any lender who tries to restrict F&I product markup. However, you could be losing quality lenders in the process. And, then there’s the potential eventuality that the CFPB will have all lenders monitor F&I product pricing. Rather than purely reacting, a better option might be to begin the process of preparing your dealership now for industry trends that could impact your business.

Continue reading “Rolling with the Times!”