Blasphemy or naw??

Read a recent post, a driver is doing the lease/purchase with Jim Palmer Trucking and is content with the deal. He's been a company driver for a year or so with the company.
I've never done one, so can't give any valid details.

 

I know what 'The Most Interesting Man In the World' will say about L/O's............NO!!!

 

ok, that got a laugh.

OP, what do you want to lease a truck for anyway? There's piles of good old semis that you can buy for less than a new pickup. A 06-07 387 Pete goes for about $16,000.

 

That will just rub right out LOL

 

..... Are you in Guatamala @G.Anthony .... ?

 

no, but in my "hood" there are so many, i feel like i am..?????

 

Bastachitches

 

I knew him too. He trained two trainees in his truck at a time. He was a real go getter and probably the best trucker to ever live.

 

Some thoughts o the LP pipe dream

You have no equity in the truck until the lease is completely finished, and often after a balloon payment is made. Most leases can be canceled by the company at any time. You may work the truck and keep up with the payments and expenses for a couple of years on a three year lease, but you don't have two years worth of ownership equity in the truck..... you have zero equity. If the company cancels your lease, you worked and struggled for nothing.... you walk away with nothing. If the company is sold, or goes bankrupt before the end of your lease, you lose everything you worked for.... because you have built zero equity as a renter.

Someone is taking a risk in setting up the lease, allowing you to run and maintain it, while they own it and they are going to make a profit on that risk. This translates into the LP dreamer paying way more than the truck is worth if, in the unlikely event they ever reach the balloon payment stage.

The party you owe the money to... at arms length or otherwise, is usually the party that determines what freight and at what rate goes into your truck. If you get close to the end of your lease, the company can slow the amount of freight available to your truck, leave you sitting or hauling cheap freight, purposefully running you out of business, so they can lease that overpriced truck to the next sucker in line. At this point you still have zero ownership interest.... all you can do is walk away from the time and effort you spent on the dream of one day having your name on the title.

As already mentioned, you can make a decent living with zero risk as a company driver. Suck it up and save up your money, and buy a starter truck in two or three years. If your bills are so high that there is no money left at the end of each payday, then you need to work to get your finances in shape.... your ability to do so will train you in good money management that will be essential to your success as a OO. If you can't mange your household expenses in such a way that you can save money, if you don't have the money discipline to pay off debt, do without toys etc to get yourself into a place where you can save money for a truck, you have zero chance of ever being a successful OO because your poor money management skills at home will be the same in your business.

If you think you are a good business person, with all the skills necessary to beat the odds on a lease, and just HAVE to have more control over your life than a company driver can, why not do a straight one year lease. Schneider and others do such a lease. As a Pumpkin you can work the Choice program... if you work extremely hard, pick freight better than your FM can, and get lucky enough not to have an emissions truck run you into bankruptcy, you gain some freedom, while earning what a company driver would, and can save for a starter truck while you do it.