So you want to hot-shot? (Will be updated/edited frequently)

$2.00 per mile is earning drivers wages, but, you are the boss.

I would rather work for myself.

 

Working for yourself is a great perk but you also have all the paperwork and equipment headache.
Gotta aim higher than $2 a mile to make it all worth it.

 

Your rate per mile will be all over the place in this business. We run a lot of loads in the $2.25 to $2.50 range but we move a lot of loads paying well over $3.00 per mile also. And yes there’s even some $1.80 per mile in the mix. If we can turn a profit, we will haul it.

Here’s the thing, you don’t have to put 80,000 to 100,000 miles per year on your equipment if you have good freight connections and you are being selective. In the last months the lowest rate per mile that I bid on stuff for my own truck was $3.59 per mile. The highest was $4.06 per mile. These were with Brokers and Shippers I had never worked with before. I have other irons in the fire here so I’m very selective about what I’ll haul, and when I’ll haul. I tend to wait for that expedited high paying stuff most of the time but I will hook on to one of my trailers and get out there and roll with the rest of them when needed. One of these loads that I’m talking about was a power only move for Union Pacific Railroad. It was a small cargo trailer that couldn’t of weighed more than 5,000 lbs. The other stuff I moved fit in the back of my pickup bed and I averaged 19.9 mpg. Had I of had one of our Owner Operators in the areas that these picked up in at the time, I would’ve been booking these shipments for them.

Most new owner operators think they need to run a lot of miles to make their weekly, or monthly financial goal. The reason a lot of them think that way is because they worked as a company driver for a large carrier getting paid pennies per mile. If you were a company driver, don’t get into this with that same frame of mind because all you’ll be doing is wearing out your equipment.

if you’re thinking of getting into this business, re think how you’re going to run your truck. Run those $2.00 plus per mile loads but always be on the hunt for a higher rate per mile. As your bank account grows you’ll be able to be a lot more selective.

I’m not telling any of you this to influence your decision one way or another about getting into this line of work. Being a independent owner operator isn’t what you’d call a easy job.

 

Yelp, some of the best loads don’t require a trailer.

 

Has anyone read the article from 2014 on Overdrive in relation to Owner / Operator Tax Deductions? Owner-operator tax deductions

If so, does the article seem correct in that the information is still valid currently 9/15/2020? I am just having a hard time believing some of the items they say you can deduct....

Appreciate any and all insight!

 

Thanks for the article. In short anything purchased for your operation. We have a office at the house however my wife uses it for teleworking so not 100% deductible for me.

 

If you can relate it to the business, it is deductible. Your home is your “office”. Get creative but don’t get greedy.

 

How is the non cdl hotshotting ?
I was wanting to try this but although I been driving for 13 years I know nothing about load boards or flatbeds for that matter.
Was thinking of a ram 3500 but all done it will be around 70K or so as near as I can figure. Would sure hate to fail.
So I thought non cdl. However all I have heard is that it is not worth it.

 

I know, old old thread but I thought perhaps someone , like me, might come along and read it. So I would add in that you will need load securement , fuel tank, maybe build a bed in the cab, tarps... I am thinking close to 2K for the load securement.
Not that I know anything about hotshot, but seems like something you need.

 

What size chains do you prefer ?