Should I invest in trucking in 2017?

Why purchase new?

You are likely going to be better off buying used. Lower down payment and lower monthly payments will go a long way to helping you be more profitable.

But you want the comfort of a full warranty? Bear in mind warranty work requires taking it to a dealership. Plan on about a week waiting to get it in the shop. Down time means lost revenue and needing to hire another driver, because a good driver won't go unpaid waiting for your truck to get repaired.

If you are serious about this, then start going to local mechanics and interview them. Ask them for recommendations regarding the specifications of the truck and trailer you are looking to buy. If you want to buy used, pay your chosen mechanic to inspect it. Take it for a Dyno test. Then you will know a little more about what you are buying.

If you want to be an owner in this business you must plan to become knowledgeable about truck maintenance and repair. Enough to at least develop good relationships with reputable mechanics. Your driver should also be handy with wrenches and screw drivers.

Plan on down time for PM's and repairs as part of your plan. A truck can't run 100% of the time.

 

Where are you going to get your loads from? We have some of our own coustemers outbound but have to book spot market freight back. You can expect to make at least 10 calls with diffrent brokers to land a return trip. I know sometimes we make over 100 calls a day easy for just 5 trucks. Then you will have at min 3 driver check ins and 3 coustemer check ins. You have to email packets and rate confirmations on each brokered load.

All this dispatching stuff takes time and can essay swallow 3 hours a day if everything is going smoothly. Can your other responsibilities afford the missing time?

Also trucking is an around the clock operation so when your driver lets the batteries die on his 34 and needs a service call on Sunday morning at 4 am...... guess what he will call you like it's your fault the batteries are dead and want to know how YOU are going to get him rolling? Oh yea at that point he will let you know he will now be late for his Walmart DC appointment.

I always heard you needed to have at least 3 trucks running before it made enough to cover itself? I guess at $20k per year per truck that would be a shy even at that point?

Good luck in your adventures.

I know if I was making over $200k a year doing things other than trucking industry I would invest my time and capital somewhere else. Unless you had an inside track on freight sources. That could change everything.

 

If that's all the expenses you have, making 250k/yr, and your somewhat smart with money, you should have no problem buying a truck and trailer with cash. But...
There are much better places to throw 180k and get a better ROI. Of course I'm just a truck driver I don't know where to invest it lol