Why not just contact the company directly and by-pass the load boards?

75k gross income as in what I pay myself from my company before income tax is taken off. So the # at the top of t4 in Canada or w2 I think it would be for USA.

 

It amazes me now many owner operators have no idea what the difference between gross and net income is. I learned the difference when I was 14 years old in economics class. On another note, it's interesting how many owner ops I speak to that only work for six months out of the year. I rather make $140k net income instead of sitting on a porch drinking beer for part time at $75k.

 

The more you "make" the more they take.

 

I'm one of those guys that only works 6 months a year. I'd rather roll around on the floor being jumped and climbed on by the baby and take my daughter fishing before ending the day by rolling around in bed with my wife. Making more money won't change our lives. The house is paid for, the money is set aside for the kids to go to college, and the retirement account while not fully funded, is fairly well stocked. I'm gonna die one day regardless of how much money i make between now and then.

Spending as much time as possible with the ones most important to me? Ya that's a life worth living. Fairly certain when im on my death bed i won't be wishing i had spent more of my life working. And i certainly hope my family won't be thinking that i should have worked more and spent less time with them.

Now that being said, it took a long time to reach this point. I might only work 6 months today, but there was a 15 year period where i worked as much as possible so that i could live this life today.

 

Not if you invest it properly

 

same happen too me i had a customer called me too do their loads 3 times a week broker kept messing up. so now i use the load board too get a load going toward my pick up. im avg 9k in 6 days reefer life

 

Tax shelters like SEP and such only offer so much in monetary value a year, and are not dollar for dollar equivalents; add to that that buying investments is wise, but will lead to increment income in the form of rents, dividends or sales, which is also taxed, a la capital gains.

My point is this: if you are an OO and looking to net $150k a year, there's nothing wrong with that. Better have some better investment strategies than the typical ones to come up if you want to keep it however.

 

Work to live > live to work

More power to you if you want to live in a truck. I'm doing it this year (so far at least). At the end of the year if I turn a big profit I'll leave it in my company rather than draw it as salary above 75000. I rather have a steady income year over year, much better for tax purposes, I'll keep more dollars in my pocket. And if 2019 goes in the toilet rates wise? I work a lot less and use the extra cash from 2018 and maintain my income. At some point i buy truck 2 and put a driver in it. Enabling me to work fewer days per year on average. The end goal is to drive only when I feel like it and still make the same. And on top of all that? My life isn't any different at 75 than it was as a company guy working twice as hard for less money (64k).

 

For canada the big income tax deduction is rrsp. Maximum 18% of gross income and what you dont use in previous years gets rolled forward. It is a 100% deduction. Cash goes into an account you can buy stocks, bonds, mutual funds, etc. And it grows tax free. When you decide to retire say this account has $500,000 in it. You draw it and pay yourself and it is then taxed as personal income at the same rate as if you made it working any job.

There is also tfsa. No tax write off, can put 5000 a year into it, not taxed when drawing the money out, same idea buy whatever investments and they grow tax free.
Registered Retirement Savings Plan - Wikipedia
Tax-Free Savings Account - Wikipedia

I don't know the deductions for income tax Americans get. Up here we are taxed on an increasing scale the more you make. And once you get up to about 75k you are giving about 30% to the tax man. Go higher and you are into the 40s and above 200k you're now above 50%. For me, I don't see much point at those levels. The only other big deduction as a truck driver is the meal deduction. Beyond that it's just peanuts for deductions.