Auto Loans for Visa Holders: A Texas-Sized Opportunity for Dealerships

They say everything is bigger in Texas, and when it comes to opening up opportunities for Texas dealerships by servicing audiences that your business may previously have had to turn away, that saying couldn’t be more true: the state features a few unique factors that combine to create an ideal environment for success.

First, the basics. With 30.03 million residents and 314,000 miles of highways and byways that stretch across 268,596 square miles of terrain, Texas isn’t just the second largest US state (by area AND population) it boasts the nation’s largest road network. These roads have been deemed so critical to Texas’ health and success economically and culturally, that the state’s Department of Transportation, as part of it’s long-range “Texas Transportation Plan 2040” has recommended budgeting $396 billion (in state and federal funds) to “...maintain, repair and expand the state’s roadways”. These numbers paint a clear picture of the state’s understanding of—and commitment to—the mobility of its citizens.

Next, there’s the employment environment. Over the last few years, Texas has seen major growth in the number of companies with locations throughout the state, with the latest US Census listing over 618,000 (yes, 618 THOUSAND) businesses. This massive number includes 55 Fortune 500 companies—making Texas number 1 in the nation for the list. If you look more closely at these companies, you’ll find that nearly 10,000 of them sponsor H1B Visas, with two standout statistics: the city of College Station has the highest concentration of H1B workers in the nation (32 out of every 100 workers is an H1B holder,) and Dallas having the second largest overall population of H1B workers (74,000) behind New York. Most of these H1B holders will arrive in the state with a clear picture of their work and financial future—but often without a credit history.

The opportunities for car dealers to reach new audiences aren’t limited to just people who are moving to Texas for work. Higher education is a huge draw for people from other countries, with some 67,000 international students coming to the state on student visas to study. That number translates to 7% of ALL international students in the US, with certain cities seeing incredibly concentrated numbers: Dallas (noted above for its second largest population of H1B workers in the US,) alone accounts for 2.6% of the country’s total number of international students. In addition to the schools themselves, another reason people come to study in Texas is the aforementioned employment environment, which is bolstered by initiatives like the Texas College Work-Study program. These students typically commit themselves to the state for a minimum of four years, need transportation for school, work, and recreation, and not unlike H1B holders, usually don’t have a credit history to rely on when trying to access the variety of financial products that most US citizens take for granted.

This combination of a valuable audience (H1B visa holders, student visa holders, and others,) transportation-dependent geography, continued growth in overall population—which estimates say may double in size in the next two decades—and an economic and business climate that remains robust, means there are a lot of people out there who need the cars on your lots today, tomorrow, and well into the future.

If you’re a Texas car dealer—or you’re located in Florida, California, New York, or any of the other states where there’s a large population of Visa holders—the question is: are you in a position to offer many of these people (especially those who have little to no credit history here in the US,) the car loans they so desperately need in order to live and thrive in such a rapidly expanding state? If you’re a Lendbuzz partner, the answer is yes. If you’re not, becoming one is something we would love to discuss.

Learn more about Lendbuzz here.

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Sources:

Transportation Infrastructure in Texas

Texas Trends as the Third Most Popular US State for International Students

The H-1B Visa Program and Its Impact on the U.S. Economy

H1B Sponsoring Companies from Texas (2024)

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