Lease Purchase of Truck Needed

I have been coming out of a hole with JCT despite what u hear. I think the key is getting into a truck that gets at least 6mpg. Probably a Cummings or Detroit but from personal experience the Cat I am in only averages 5mpg. You will come out better if u can utilize conventional financing on your own for your truck purchase. But if you cannot JCT is not a bad option in my opinion. You will gain the much needed business experience needed to survive in this industry. Miles is not a problem with JCT if your willing to run. I think some get into trouble when they don't put back enough for Uncle Sam. The support is there also if u follow what they say & offer in the ATBS book keeping service.

 

We have a 2005 International Eagle 9400, are lease is 3yrs we've been paying on it for a year so far. There is no buy out at the end of our lease. It is a no questions asked walk away lease but if you decide to pay it off there is no balloon payment at the end. Most that complain about AEL are one who don't like the way they handle their escrow accounts. They way they handle them is that while you are paying off your truck they take .06 a mile out that goes into an account, anytime you have work done on your truck it comes out of there, but just say your truck breaks down and you don't have the money in there to cover it, AEL will cover it and then charge you .12 a mile instead of the .06 just till you get out of the hole. If when you pay it off your truck off you're still in the hole AEL will hold your title until the escrow is paid off. I personal don't understand why people would be upset over that they invested their money to fix your truck and they want that money back. Also if at the end of your lease you have money in it you can pay it off early or they cut you a check that day for what is in you account and hand you their title. If anyone wants more proof on people actually paying there trucks go look at AEL office their walls are covered with pictures of drivers who have paid there truck(s) off, what more proof do ya want.

 

BEDSPREAD COMMUNICATIONS AND USED TRUCK SALES INDUSTRY DEFINITIONS -

LEASE DRIVER-

An individual who did not find enough discomfort being a dweller. He now supplies power and operations costs directly to the carrier for no increased revenue. He is also not able to move his equipment (not actually his) to another carrier as he gave up that right also.

But he can have his name painted on the driver's door so that he will know which side of the cab to enter.

 

I was a Fleeced operator.Please just find a company that pays more.

 

You have no rights whatsoever EXCEPT PAY THE COMPANIES COST OF OPERATING THAT TRUCK.

 

I'm thiking of the movie "Running Man" with Arnold. Bunch of old trucks parked some place with bones in the sleeper.

Sorry, couldn't resist.

 

I applaud anyone who has the desire to be their own boss and run their own truck, I really do, that being said, please listen.....

You have to find a small carrier that is big enough to provide logistical support and small enough to actually view you as a business partner and to care about you, and your success, personally......

You have to save the money to put down and finance the truck yourself, this way you have something to offer.

Why do I say this? Because you need to find someone who values you enough to share the wealth and treat you fairly, this means someone who will compensate you with a large percentage of the rate, (think high 80's as in 87% of the gross), someone who is willing, or more accurately, already working their ##### off, and someone who is shrewd at negotiating rates and booking and consolidating loads.....

A lot of loads right now are paying well north of 2.00 per mile, and this is necessary as the price of fuel is up.....

I recently spoke to a driver who was comfortable getting .98 cpm and a fuel surcharge of .40 cpm....

that's $1.38 per mile, and he's leased to a large carrier..... he confidently told me that he was doing really well, as he was running team and turning over 5,000 miles per week......

but then explained that he couldn't afford to purchase 8 new drive tires......

????

Listen, if you are paying for a truck then you need to be making more than just a living, you need to be getting a return on your investment. That's the whole point of making a business investment, and when you become an o/o you are making an investment......

You have to be willing to stay out on the road for AS LONG AS IT TAKES to earn enough money to come home and take time off..... and these things WILL HAPPEN, especially if you are are working on a razor thin margin....

And if you're not making at least $1.65 per mile right now, then it just isn't worth it...... and in all seriousness you really should be getting $1.70 or better.

You can do it, but, lease purchase line haul with a major carrier is a losing proposition.

There's a reason why these carriers are doing this, and it isn't because they want you to make money.....

It's because they want to make money, and they've figured out a way to transfer the "costs" of doing business to someone other than themselves......

 

I have a little different situation, but maybe not much. I'm in a lease/purchase and want to find third party financing to buy out my truck. I like the truck and it's reasonably priced, but I'm fed up with the company. They just changed our fuel purchase from paying their price to giving us a discount of $.05-$.08 a gallon and pocketing the rest of the discount that they get which could be as much as $.30 a gallon. In the past the fuel purchase program made up for a lot of their low rate. This is going to cost me between $200-$400 a month. I could walk away, but that leaves me with looking for another truck and company. I would also take a big financial hit to end the lease early. I'm sure it would end up around $4000-$5000, just about the money they are holding in escrow between a security deposit, trailer damage insurance deductible deposit and maintenance fund.

On the other side, if I can buy out the truck I can walk away and get all of my money within 45 days of leaving. I and the Blue Lemon can go wherever we want.

 

You need to look at your contract. See what they are allowed to markup and what they can't. It is all right there in print. You may find that they agreed to pass costs thru and just charge an administration fee.

And if it is a large carrier, you may be like many before you that have the false impression that you can buyout that truck at market value. I have never seen a lease agreement with a large carrier that works like traditional finance agreement. So before you spend a lot of energy looking to find financing, make a call and ask what the buyout is. Then check the truck paper for what comps are selling for.

 

Actually I have a monthly amortization schedule for purchasing the truck. At the end of the lease the truck is a $12,000 buyout maximum regardless of market value. As far as comparables, that is why I want to stay with this truck. Buying it out is a better deal for the same make and model with same features and mileage than anything I have seen in the Truck Paper. I have a trac lease with purchase option. There will be incidental fees such as title transfer, taxes etc., but these are to be expected. Right now the buyout would be about $57,000 on a 2009 Cascadia with MBE 4000 engine. It has 375,000+ miles with a clean oil analysis. I have been maintaining it to o/o standards. It has a ThermoKing apu with a new starter, alternator, mounting brackets and motor mounts. The truck has a new radiator and starter. Plus I made the mistake of naming the truck. You know the old farm thing of never name the animal you plan to slaughter? Her name is the Blue Lemon (yes there is a story behind the name.)