Economic recovery spurs new-car dealer jobs and revenue growth

New car dealers and their employees had a banner year last year, an industry trade group said.

Jobs at new-car dealerships rose 3.2% in 2012 to 963,400 employees, according to the National Automobile Dealers Assn. That brought the average number of employees per dealership to 55 from 53.

The average weekly earnings of employees at U.S. new-car dealerships last year was $1,030, up 9.1% from the previous year. All told, new-car dealerships had an annual average payroll of $2.9 million in 2012, up 12% from the previous year. The total payroll for all U.S. new-car dealerships was $51.6 billion, up 12.6%.

The number of franchised dealerships also grew last year by 95 to a total of 17,635.

The average new-car dealership made a profit of almost $850,000 before taxes, up about 6% from the previous year, according to the dealer group.

The average price of a new car sold was $30,910, up 0.8% from the prior year.

The increase in franchised dealerships to 17,635 at the end of 2012 is still down from 21,800 in 2002. California, with 1,364, has more new-car dealerships than any other state. Texas is second with 1,201.

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