Do you guys think it's worth staying hotshot these days?

When I started the rates were kinda crappy all around so it wasn't a big difference between running a hotshot truck vs a semi. However, rates for semis are astronomical right now and they've been holding for some time. I thought the rates would eventually drop back down but they haven't.

Example.. I was out in Kanas City last week.. trying to pice together either cars or freight to go with a mini-excavator I had booked. I looked at the Van/Reefer market and there were loads going from KSC to OKC paying $1,7k.. That's less than 400 miles.. A return trip was $900 still slightly over $2/mile..

If you look at loads out of Cali.. they are paying $8-9k for cross country.. It's nothing to get a $6k load out of Cali these days for Van or Reefer and that used to be a "good" rate.. Even here in FL I was looking at Van & Reefer and there are $2/mile loads leaving FL. I mean there is a whole page of $2,5k loads out of FL. That used to be unheard of at least when I drove a semi..

I've been waiting for these rates to trickle down to the HS market but it just seems the brokers are now using HS to move cheap freight. Yeah, you might see the occasional good rate but it's nothing like the semi are getting.

I don't really want to do a semi again, but looking at the rates they are getting it seems stupid to stay with hotshot right now. I like the ease of getting cars and COD's but the rates have not gone up on them as everything else has. Even full dedicated HS loads are barely paying $2/mi if you are lucky.

Anyone else thinking the same? That HS is kinda a dead game right now when comparing rates the Semi's are getting?

 

Dude, I drove semi's in the past. Granted was at a mega but you weren't getting $3 & 4 mile out of Cali in 2017 or 2016. This is all because of the pandemic and shortage of trucks because so many outfits went out of business during the trade war. They've never replaced the truck capacity since the dumb trade war put 1000's of trucks and drivers off the road.

Everyone everywhere is crying about shortages. As long as there are shortages the rates will stay high.

 

I think it takes more than 1 month to determine if capacity is oversaturated. I keep tabs on a broker's freight board to see what they are saying and they are still crying for trucks.

edt..

This was from the 15th so 10 days ago... Rates in Sept are above rates from Aug so the industry trend doesn't seem to be seeing what you are saying. Maybe the rates dropped in the last week but I don't buy 75% drop in loads.. No one else is saying that..


DAT.com reports truckload rates remain steady. DAT’s September 13th Trendlines Report shows current national van rate averages are at $2.84 per mile, an $.09 increase from the August average. According to DAT, the highest average van rates are in the Midwest at $2.99 per mile. The lowest average van rates are in the Northeast at $2.53 per mile.

DAT reports the current national load-to-truck ratio is 6.22 loads to truck, compared to the August 22nd average of 6.40. Ratios are high from the Great Lakes states, and central plains. The lowest ratios are in the Southeast and desert Southwest.

 

That's the same story with the truck and equipment I have now. Rates can drop with what I'm hauling now but the reality is they never raised up.. HS rates never saw much of an increase overall compared to other freight and cars certainly didn't. I mean at certain times through the pandemic rates for cars in FL went crazy but it was only a few months now it's back to them trying to pay .50-.60/mile

 

I have a new truck that I just bought this year that was $50k.. However, I've been offered by the dealer that they will buy it back from me due to the chip shortage hence one of the reasons I was thinking of going the Semi route. My trailer is a 25k 40ft flat trailer they sell like hotcakes right now so not even concerned about not being able to sell that.

Getting out of my equipment right now is the easy part because everything has gone up so much and is in short supply. The issue is if I want to buy a Semi, it's a tough choice which way to go. On one hand, I'd like to stay as far away as possible from newer emission trucks. Then on the other hand it takes a while to find the "right" older used truck. Yet if going newer it's easier to get into a newer used truck without using up valuable cash because it can be financed.