Trailers left loaded killing small to mid size companies…

Short r, what a joke, ill give you this, if things dont turn around fast and i mean deflation or significant wage increases coupled with much higher job growth, or a 15% suicide rate (not a % jump, i mean across the population tomorrow) youre not looking at "r" recession, youre looking at revolution. You gonna tell me any of thats going to happen?

I dont care if its self inflicted that people have no money, genuinely, the fact is that a huge number of young people are heavily divided, with 0 hope for the future and theyre not doing anything. They have nothing to lose, plain and simple, they get hungry, we are SCREWED, heads on pikes style.

 

I think you have either been reading too much negative stuff, or watching/ listening to too many doomsday forecasts. People are trying to scare you and it's working.

The economy is fine, housing is strong. Yeah the stock market is in the gutter, but that's happened before. Not everyone is in stocks and crypto. Inflation is there but so are jobs. If someone wants to work they can..

As for trucking, I don't see any weaknesses. I haul food and food products. Was hauling meat for another carrier. Everything is strong. I was unemployed (by choice) for a short time had a few companies looking to hire as soon as I was available.

In trucking there will be a shakeout, that's for sure. But doomsday or a massive slowdown, I don't think so. Also I'm surprised home construction hasn't picked up. Housing is in demand, why not build? In fact, if I wasn't in trucking right now, I would be looking to get into that field.

 

Youre out of touch with reality
Define "housing is strong"

In 2011 i bought a 65k house
1100 sq ft, .5 acres, 30x60 pile barn + 2 car garage. Built 1920
3.125 apr 30 year 0 down, i paid all closing on a 560 credit score and 36k gross taxable salary, was approved for 120k (2k in the bank) house needed work but could barely pass appraisal/inspection, it was about the median

Today, now
804 credit score
60k taxable income
13k in the bank
Best offer im getting is a 120k loan on 5.5 apr

In my hunt for just comparable, not better than my existing property im seeing 200k+ , same area

Do please tell ME how perfectly fine and normal tripling housing costs while less than doubling income and 0 increase in borrowing power signals strength in the economy and everything is just fine

Live in reality, im at the "average" median income both then and now, so 50 % are in a worse off place than me

 

Big customer is putting you out of business. Good customers are using someone else. Bad business is the same as no business, and you still have your trailers.

 

When your begging for freight, you have no leverage.
The customer can keep your trailer for months.

Complain about it to much,
They'll tell you to come get it,
And make sure your company gets no more
Loads from them.

There's 500 more trucks who will happily play
By their rules.

Especially if your a small company.
That's the way it's always been.
Ain't nothing changed.

If your company could do something about it they would.
But they need them way more then the customer needs your company.
It's just common sense.

 

So you work in food, an industry only dependent on the number of living human bodies with inelastic demand, and base the entire economy off of this necessity of life? People don’t stop eating when they can’t afford vacations.

 

Let's see...

The effects of doubling the money supply in a couple years ensure that inflation isn't going away soon. And they're still wanting to continue the spending spree in DC.

Like it or not, the engine that drives the economy is fueled by oil. Between government regulation, ESG drying up investors, and the rhetoric against that industries investors, our status as a net oil exporter might never come back.

Real estate is in as big a bubble as just before the Great Recession, and that's showing signs of bursting.

But "All is well, remain calm!"???

We're in for a tough patch. And it won't be a quick rebound from all this foolishness.

 

Great Post , bump

 

You have been insulated by reefer. People don't stop eating, they just change what they eat. This means less beef, more pork. The volume of your freight will not change with the downturn, only the contents in the trailer.

Dry van, however, has seen a massive slamming on the brakes. Rates are in the toilet because freight volumes are way down and capacity has been rising to meet the demand of yesterday. Combined with the current fuel prices, and there's a reckoning on the near horizon. Companies will go belly-up, drivers will be out of work. Reefer companies will be very selective of whom they hire, as they will have multiple drivers applying for every position. We're already seeing the beginnings... less advertising money spent, more people cold-calling looking for work. Near-full driver capacity. If this keeps up for even 2 more weeks, we're going to have to have a serious talk about leasing more trucks for the part-time drivers to use and releasing all of their trucks to be assigned to full-time hires.

A very close realtor friend of mine was talking about a lot of figures and forecasts... her interpretation in early June was 7-8% by July. We're almost there. Last week's 30-yr fixed rate average was 5.78%... and this week's rate will be released in 2 days. On 5-26, the rate was 5.10% and a week later, it was 5.23%, so it jumped over 1/2 percent last week, and probably will again this week. Don't be surprised to see the average rate at 6.32% (or higher) in 48 hours.

30-Year Fixed Rate Mortgage Average in the United States