Driver with over 20 years experience making the jump to IC Choice!

Thank them for their service.

 

From FMCSR part 383:

Tank vehicle means any commercial motor vehicle that is designed to transport any liquid or gaseous materials within a tank or tanks having an individual rated capacity of more than 119 gallons and an aggregate rated capacity of 1,000 gallons or more that is either permanently or temporarily attached to the vehicle or the chassis. A commercial motor vehicle transporting an empty storage container tank, not designed for transportation, with a rated capacity of 1,000 gallons or more that is temporarily attached to a flatbed trailer is not considered a tank vehicle.

 

Like anything...you get out of it what you put into it. I try and talk to IC's every chance I get to stay informed. Most seem content but I'm only talking to the ones that are still here. IMO the lease is too expensive. I talked to an IC today that was once a company driver and he is so much happier on IC. I'm still learning but it's nice to know this is an option.

 

Schneider's lease payments are not out of line with purchasing a truck and financing for 5 years. If you lease for 3 and finance for 2 your total expenditure is very close. You also should come out ahead on your taxes in years 4 and 5 by leasing for the first 3.

 

So I did some research and Schneider will always make sure those on Choice have a way to make good money. I'll explain.

Say your lease payment is $700 a week. That comes out to $36,400 a year. Lease for 3 years and you have paid over $109,000. These are lightly spec'd Cascadias that Schneider Finance buys in Bulk and gets a good deal on (around $120,000). The IC pays maintenance, fuel and insurance on the unit. Schneider National pays the driver 65% on the loads so they use the 35% to pay for OC's and admin fees. If the truck isn't purchased by the lease than it can be used as a company truck. After three years there is normally less than 350k miles on the unit. After they use it for a year or two then they sell it for no less than $50,000. I'm being conservative on these numbers but you can see how Schneider makes a nice profit all around.

So you can see how Choice makes Schneider quite a pretty penny. As long as the IC is content and Schneider is content then everyone is happy.

Scenario #2 involves purchasing your own truck and bringing it on-board. I spec'd a 2016 Volvo 670 with what I would want on my truck. Nothing fancy but Bunk heater, extra storage, better tread, power inverter, fridge and minor "Bling Bling". It was $122K and 13K FET so it came out to $135k total. I can put 20K down because being company team has been good for me. Financing for 60 months gets the payment below $2300 a month or $26,400 a year. I can do whatever I want to the truck because it's mine.

Now I'm not saying I'm doing this but I wanted to look at all options. I'd like an even lower payment and maybe 48 months instead of 60. I'll have to research the tax options more.

In closing....Choice isn't going away anytime soon and I'm pretty sure Schneider will make sure those on Choice are well taken care of. They are the ones that will be here awhile and have already proven they can perform.

Okay those on Choice....I am prepared to take a beating so let me have it!!!!

 

I agree with most if not all of what you are saying. The advantage to starting off with Schneider lease is zero down and save your 20,000 for rainy day fund. Everyone will have their own ideas, and there are several ways to make this work.

 

When you finance a truck you can't write off the payments like you can in a lease as a business expense.
Also a lease you have higher payments but you're getting it while under warranty vs having a $2300 a month payments later on in the term when the warranty is out.

There is pros and cons of everything and every should just do what's right for them.
Obviously leasing through a mega carrier you're not going to get the best deal but where else can you lease a new truck for one year for $1k down and no payments for two weeks to start?
Again more pros and cons.

People say 65% sucks and dry van rates suck but I'm seeing Schneider drivers are getting better rates than Prime drivers getting paid a higher % and pulling tanker and Reefer.
I don't see Landstar drivers earning way more than us, some even less.
If anybody finds a place where you can earn wayyyy more than here and can prove it please let me know.

 

When you finance a truck, you can write off the interest on the loan plus depreciation of the truck. The principle portion of the payment has no affect on the taxes.
Accountants have told me, "don't make a business decision based on tax impact." Make the decision based on the businesses profitability.

 

That's right...

It's not the truck that makes you the money.. it's what you do with it.

 

I'm just looking at option of buying my own truck and bringing it on the IC program or leasing one. I would buy one outright but I'm nervous about what I could get with 30-40K and with all the emissions problems I hear about it might be better to just go new and dedicate 5 years to driving.