NBR: Question about car sales! Opinions!

provwife

My husband got offered a job in car sales for a Ford franchise. The manager painted a pretty picture but it is 100% commission.
Do you or anyone do something similar? How much can he realistically expect to make?
I need insight before he leaves his current position please!

secretsout

My husband wasn't in car sales but he has had a few estimator jobs that are commission based. It can be really hard. If you have extra money and are really good at budgeting that will help. But some months will be good months and some will be bad.

I would not recommend it. It did not turn out well for us. I would rather make less money, but steady money. At least it's easier to plan that way.

cyprissa

What's the commission structure like? That makes a big difference. But, no base salary is shocking so I'd lean towards no. My SIL is in sales and does well but there is a pretty big learning curve with each job...

Lolapop29

*Random lurker posting*

My friend had a similar job at a Chevy dealership.  The way it worked for her, if she didn't make commission, they would pay her minimum wage for her hours worked, but that money would be deducted from a following paycheck after she made commission. 

Smootchy

I know very few people cut out for the role of a salesman or woman. It takes a certain something, hunger, passion... Something. Is it possible to make excellent money, yes it is! My dad is a perfect example. I couldn't tell you how well your DH could do, but making good money is certainly possible

littlemermaid

My husband used to sell cars so here it is:

How much he makes will depend on many variables:  how is the commission calculated, how many vehicles on average does the store sell, how many salespeople are on the floor vs how many customers are coming through the door.  Your husband is going to be at a disadvantage from the start since he already doesn't have an established clientele base.  Return customers usually go back to the salesperson they have a relationship with, so your husband will have to compete to get the new customers that are coming through the door.  A car salesperson has to be confident, know his product well, be assertive and at the same time make a very stressful situation a comfortable/enjoyable one for the customer.  There will be some weeks he may bring $0 dollars home and then other weeks he may do really well.  If your household depends on a guaranteed amount of money per week/month to pay the bills a 100% sales commission job is not ideal.  Also look at the hours he will have to work.  The car dealerships my husband worked at had hours like 9-9 a few days a week, 9-6 on the other days and some Saturdays too.  So there were many nights that he didn't see the kids at all because they would be in bed by the time he made it home.  It's also a high stress job so if your husband does not handle stress well he won't enjoy it.

FalconCrest

100% commission makes me so nervous.  BIL just left a job that was 100% commission selling windows and siding.  The commission was great when you go it, but the vast majority of time people did not want to buy.  He is in car sales right now but he makes a base salary and then commission on his sales.

lildevil968

My brother used to sell used cars, and it was awful for him. He made commission. Some months he would make a few thousand dollars, other months he would barely break even. With a family, it's not really something I would recommend doing.

spotco2

Lots of variables in play here.

How many units is the dealership moving each month on average? How many other sales people will he be competing with?

Straight commission is hard if you can't budget. You have to save on the good months to cover the bad and there will always be some very good months and some extremely bad months.

Dealer sales requires a lot of dedication, commitment to the job and time away from family. I know many that work 60-80 hours a week as well as every holiday and weekend. Lets face it, most people in the real world have jobs and shop for cars after they get off, on the weekend and holidays when they are not working. That is the busiest times for most sale people. This much time away from family can be a real strain on a relationship especially when you have children.

What does your husband do now?