HOUSTON — The Mint Leasing used a portion of its previously announced $10 million credit facility to purchase 61 vehicles for a trio of corporate clients.

Mint Leasing bought all of the vehicles from Fred Haas Toyota Country, a Houston-area dealership. The units, all 2010 Toyota Corollas, then were leased to Premier CARSTARS, U-Save Auto Rental and Kenneth's Body Shop.

Company officials said that the total purchase cost more than $1 million. Jerry Parish, chief executive officer of Mint Leasing, described the transaction as a wise decision for the industry in the Houston market.

"We believe these transactions are representative of an improved business outlook for Mint Leasing that reflects the business opportunities available to the company as a result of its new credit facility and the attractive purchase opportunities presented by the current economic and auto retailing environment," Parish explained.

"These Houston-based auto rental agencies selected Mint Leasing after carefully evaluating our business proposition and customer service capabilities, relative to the proposals available from our competitors," he continued.

"We are pleased to welcome these agencies to our growing family of customers," Parish added.

Parish went on to forecast how this particular purchase should help Mint Leasing's financial standing going forward.

"These transactions should assure Mint Leasing of a return to profitability in the fourth quarter of 2009, and we look forward to similar opportunities in the upcoming year," Parish indicated.

"Our ability to fund over a million dollars in new-car purchases speaks highly of the company's ability to play an increasingly important role in a tough market environment," he concluded.