Family focus, hefty benefits, openness, and integrity made four auto and auto-finance firms among the best companies to work for in 2009, according to a ranking in the Feb. 8 issue of Fortune magazine. Here’s the list, along with Fortune’s rationale:
JM Family Enterprises
Rank: 28 (previous rank: 33)
What makes it so great?
The remarkable family vibe at this distributor of Toyota vehicles is a legacy of the founder, Jim Moran, who died in 2007. His birthday, Aug. 8, is now celebrated here as Founder’s Day. At the last one, all employees were invited to a 91¢ lunch (it would have been Moran’s 91st birthday).
USAA
Rank: 45 (previous rank: n/a)
What makes it so great?
Financial group that offers services to the military and their families boasts top-of-the-line benefits such as a 401(k) match of up to 8% of pay and performance bonuses of up to 18% of pay.
Mercedes-Benz USA
Rank: 49 (previous rank: n/a)
What makes it so great?
Sales and marketing arm of the German automaker prides itself on a culture of openness. New blog, MB Community, lets employees share ideas for change.
CarMax
Rank: 56 (Previous rank: 31)
What makes it so great?
An honest used-car seller? Through its policy of no haggling and straight-talking, CarMax has become the nation’s largest seller of pre-owned cars.
What other auto finance companies should be added to the list? Cast a vote for your company in the Comment section below.
Click the links below to read more about each of the auto-related firms in Fortune’s ranking, along with feedback from employees:
JM Family
USAA
Mercedes-Benz USA
CarMax
The capital markets will recover although pinpointing a time frame is difficult. I believe of greater concern is the pending legislation in both the House and the Senate. If approved, the bills will change the landscape of subprime financing as we know it. Here are some of the bills in question:
HR 1640/S 582 – Interest Rate Reduction Act-Amends TILA to prohibit the APR applicable to any consumer credit transaction from exceeding 15% on unpaid balances, inclusive of all finance charges.
HR 2309– The FTC must “consider” adopting rules that would:
• restrict post-sale changes in financing terms;
• give consumers the right to rescind a sales contract within a specified period after receiving the final information regarding the terms of the sale or financing; and
• limit the ability of dealers to receive compensation for arranging financing or assigning a credit contract based on the interest rate, the APR, or the amount financed.
S 255 – Empowering States’ Right To Protect Consumers Act of 2009
– Amends TILA to limit the APR applicable to any consumer credit transaction (other than a residential mortgage transaction), including any associated fees, to the maximum rate permitted by the laws of the state in which the consumer resides.
– Would empower the states to set the maximum annual percentage rates applicable to consumer credit transactions.
S 257 – Consumer Credit Fairness Act
– Amends federal bankruptcy law to require the bankruptcy court to disallow any claim arising from a “high cost consumer credit transaction.”
– For secured creditors, the disallowance of the claim will extinguish their lien on the collateral securing the transaction, leaving such creditors with no claim against the bankruptcy estate or
the collateral.
High cost consumer credit transaction: • An extension of credit resulting in a consumer debt with an applicable APR, including related costs and fees, that exceeds, at any time while the credit is outstanding, the lesser of: – the sum of 15% and the yield on U.S. Treasury
securities having a 30-year period of maturity; or – 36%