A used car dealership is an establishment that sells only pre-owned vehicles. According to the United States Census, there were 26,293 used car dealerships operating in the United States in 2007, the last year for which reliable census data exists. The amount of money a used car dealership makes in a year varies by location.
Number of Vehicles Sold
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The National Independent Automobile Dealer's Association reports that the average used car dealership sold 308.8 vehicles in 2009, a higher number than in 2008, when dealerships sold an average of 283.2 used cars per dealership. This may be partially attributable to the dwindling number of used car dealerships in the United States, which in 2009 was reported to be 36,418. This was down from 44,321 dealerships operating in 2006.
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Total Sales Figures
According to the 2010 Used Car Industry Report of the National Independent Automobile Dealer's Association, the total sales in all departments for the average used car dealership in the United States were $3,844,062. This was a decline from 2008, when total sales per independent dealership were $3,972,812, and a further decline from 2007, when the total sales at the average used car dealership were reported to be $4,519,223.
Profits
According to the NIADA, the gross profit for an average used car dealership in 2009 was $462,825. This represents 12.04 percent of the average dealership's total sales. This figure has been in decline since 2006, when the average used car dealership turned a profit of $774,454, which that year represented an estimated 16.16 percent of a dealership's total sales revenue.
Geographic Profile
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Texas used car dealerships led the nation in total sales revenue in 2007, with California and Florida right behind them. However, the most lucrative state per dealership was Alaska, with a reported average total sales figure of $4,826,320 per dealership. The state with the second-highest total sales figures per dealership was Maryland, where the average dealership earned $4,670,220.