Question for the O/O

I'm afraid your question is way too simplistic. It depends on what you're hauling , how an O/O gets paid, but I doubt an O/O will make more $$ if he's home every night. We would all like that but it's not going to happen.
It also depends on how good you are at running your own business. It's just a very complex answer with too many variables. Whether you are leased onto a company against having your own authority. Being an O/O can be a very complex enterprise.

 

For me I haul my own reefer trailer and I tend to stay out 1month at a time, since my truck and trailer is paid for I don't have to worry about payments, I just got my own authority, I won't be doing no factorying or quick pay, I'll have to wait 1month to get paid for each load but for me it's well worth b/c I already have money saved up. My insurance is a expensive tho, I pay 1000$ a month for all the coverages. After the 1month period wait time for my pays I should be taking home about 9500-12000$ each time I'm out for a month. But during May-September that's where I make the most about 14k after expenses each time I'm out that's about 30days. I figured If I was leased to a company that charges me 10% revenue and they choose the quick pay that comes out of your pocket, your looking about 13%-15% lost revenue a year which that equals to about 15-20k a year!! That's crazy. For the fuel tax part I pay company 125$ a quarter to do that for me. but that's my situation everybodys different. STAY AWAY FROM LEASE PURCHASE.

 

I tried running local a time ago. Didnt go well $1100-1300 a week pulling rail containers. If you get with the right company to lease to, or have a good mind for business and go independent you can definitely makr more. I stay out 3-4 weeks a time, go home 4-6 days. It gets old fast, bbut if you take care of your equipment and run effeceintly you can avg. $2k after expenses rather easily. Granted you will owe taxes mosy likely, and bank roll for repairs. But you can do well, just Stay away from Lease Purchase as stated above!

 

If you run your business smart, an O/O can male tons more. I make tons more then i would as a company driver, but i do have a bit more risk. I also bought a used truck that i paid off quickly. If you drive a truck that keeps brecking down and get poor mpg and dont haul high paying freght you could make way less thena company driver.

 

If you havent turned any miles in a truck yet. I suggest you get on as a company driver for 6 months. If anything you will earn some money for the down payment. Then will you have a better idea of what to expect for costs.

[FONT=Baskerville Old Face, Times New Roman, serif]My business plan (refined with IronPony's help) if I can find some one that will pay me half the price of fuel per mile.
It is based on 500 miles a day (approximately).
I priced insurance once before with OOIDA and they said 5 grand/yr. So 5000 divided by 365 days = $13.70 (rounded) per day
Registration in Maine is about $550 /yr. $550 divided by 365 = $1.50 per day.
500 miles with a truck in the worst fuel mileage of 5 mpg.
If fuel is $4.00 (only for this, I know fuel is higher) that is $4/2 = $2 a mile or $1000.00
So 100 gallons of fuel is cost driven. $400 from $1000 = $600
20%? for taxes (20% x 600 = 120) $120 from $600 = $480
10% for Maintenance (10% x 600 = 60) $60 from $480 = $420
Registration $1.50 from $420 = $418.50
Insurance $13.70 from $418.50 = $404.80
Labor (I have to get paid as well) $100 a day $304.80

Yes there are other costs. Such as the EZ-Pass on the windshield.
Mileage through states ( road fee?)

That $304.80 left over has to go into the upkeep account. Of which eventually it will go to cover a new engine or transmission. On top of that you really should plan on NEW tires once a year. Recaps are ok, but they do fall apart. If you want guaranteed you buy new and avoid the pitfalls of recaps. Since winter is a slow time and loads may not be so easy to come by, that is a good time to work on the maintenance. You must plan to have a maintenance period. Replace brakes, clutch inspection / replace, oil survey on the engine and trans. Do a complete inspection of the drive train. Plan on replacing something if it has partial damage. You might be down for a month, you might be down longer. You cant rush maintenance.

Remember, you go back out on the road and dont replace that part with slight damage, that can be what parks you in a God forsaken area you dont want to be. [/FONT]

 

Some of those numbers are way off. first off i never pay over 4 bucks for fuel. Get in some discount club and buy in the right states. Unless you only drive in a few states you should be able to average 3.75 or less. Im down to 3.55 right now. You divide everything by 365. Are you working 365 a year? I know i dont. I norm divide by 51 weeks a year and figure everything on a weekly instead if daily. With your 70 hour clock you cant drive 500 miles a day 365 a year. With your model, your truck is costing you money on the days you dont work. New tires every year? WHY? I get at least 2 out of my tires. My drives norm last 320K+ I got 100K on my current set and they still have 3/4 tread. maintenance of 10%? My truck only takes .06/mile, but i set aside .10. Your setting aside .20@10%. At only .10 its enough to pay for an inframe when i need one.

if that extra 304 has to go back into the business you should just be a company driver. If all you make is 100 bucks/500 miles your making .20/mile. You would make more driving someone elses truck. Now if it were me, i would put less away and let the .20/mile your taking for maintenance pay for the inframe. an inframe cost 10-20K Even at 20k saving 304 a day would only take 65 days. After 65 days you coudl keep all your profit and have 20k waiting for you incase of trouble. no need to continue saving that much. if you truck and business really cost that much to maintain, your not making enough.

if you put away .10/mile (50 bucks a day) away for long term maintenance you would be more then fine for large maintenance items and you keep 354 a day or .70/mile. Now thats a salery you could live on.

 

That's what I was saying, his numbers are either waaay of or he got into a lease purchase plan, I don't see how you could consider urself an o/o if you make 350$ a week after expenses. For the plates and highway use tax I look at it as a one time fee annual thing and it's really not that much considering how much u should be making that year. Even if his truck is getting 5mpg, if he was with a company that charges 15% of his load and they give him decent loads, he should be taking home at least 1800 a week after expenses, I still have my Bridgestone M710 from a year and 3 months ago and they have about 65-70% tread left, i don't see how u need to replace sets of tires each year unless u happened to run over spikes and you have to replace all. I average 2.10$ all miles, my truck uses .50cents a mile for fuel, my reefer takes about .10cents a mile b/c I don't have it running all the time my insurance is .10cents a mile I set a side .10cents for repairs/maintenance/tires, and when it comes to plates, ifta, permits I pay that as it comes by, so (2.10-.50-.10-.10-10=1.30 a mile after expenses. I forgot to take extra .8cents for miscellaneous stuff. I'm left with 1.22$ a mile, I work 1month straight and I take off 7 days. I run about 9700miles on each time I'm out, (9700*1.22=11834), sometimes I make less sometimes I make more. The times I make more are spring time to early fall and the times I make less are mid fall to late winter. Btw I'm on my own authority, and I don't get paid quickly, I chose the no charge 28 days waiting period. As for the taxes part I don't know what state ur in but 20% of ur money going to taxes is unheard of for me, no wonder he's making 350$ a week. I personally hire a accountant to take care of my taxes.

 

he was saying 100 per day...700 per week cuz hes running 365 at 500 miles per day lol...i was saying 350/day at his numbers. Unless i miss read, no one said 350/week.

I dont have my own authority, but my truck cost .50 in fuel, .10 in maintenance (inclusing tires and putting away for an inframe). insurance permits and misc cost.06, round up to .10. Truck cost me .70 to run. Your running at .88 but have your own auth and pay for reefer fuel so that understandable that your cost are higher.

Now since you got your own auth, you make more then me, but i can clear $1/mile profit anyway depending on freight. i dont pay for my labor and my profit separate. I make $1/mile and if I choose to invest that back in my business to buy new better trucks and such...that the same as me investing my personal money in the the stockmarket. The business is sustainable at .70/mile and any extra would make it grow. Although i plan to buy more trucks and grow, i coudl spend that whole dollar on personal stuff and not go out of business. The extra maintenance money has already built up to 25K, so the business is certainly sustainable. i dont get they idea of paying your self labor in a single truck operation and then complaining your profit is low. The profit is your salaray. if you take a sallary and then your profit will be less. Your sweat and hard work is what makes you the money. if i take .40/mile as salarly then .60 as profit, or just take 1.00 as profit...its the same. Regardless, I choose how much of my personal profit i want to reinvest in the business. If i have to reinvest it back int he business to keep the business going, then its not profit.