7 jobs that can earn you a 6-figure salary in the $4 trillion auto industry

REUTERS/Carlos Barria

“F&I” is auto-industry shorthand for “finance and insurance.” If you’ve ever bought or leased a vehicle from an auto dealer, you’ve most likely interacted with an F&I professional. They’re the last stage in the purchasing process, where you’re walked through the details of your lease or loan, warranty, given the opportunity to buy into extras that are dealership-exclusive, deal with local DMV regulations and paperwork, and can have insurance coverage arranged.

Sometimes, your dealer will introduce you to an F&I staffer during the buying process to review lease and loan options. The dealership, if it’s franchised to sell major brands (Toyota, Ford, Cadillac, Mercedes, and so on), should have access to an automaker’s captive-finance arm, as well as a bunch of banks that can make loans to buyers of varying creditworthiness.

Almost nobody walks into a dealership with bag of cash, so an F&I manager has a very big job: he or she needs to figure how people from all walks of life can get across the car-buying/leasing finish line.

Dealers make money from selling cars, but they make their real profits acting as loan brokers, insurance brokers, and by selling things like extended warranties to customers. That’s why the F&I manager is well compensated — NADA reckons on average almost $133,000 a year — and often has received special training or a certification.