Who has completed a lease purchase and fully owns truck with title?

That's actually a good deal compared to others..

At TranScam trucking their flease deal pays a whopping .84CPM

http://www.transamtruck.com/Leasing-Services/About-TransAm-Leasing

 

I guess that may be the difference. You bought a plastic truck that was halfway to an engine inframe. Like I said,from the figures you posted, I really dont see how you feed your family.If you are still making the same as you were as a driver I would say something to your employer because you are being taken advantage of.

 

It isn't any wonder why the margins in this industry get tighter and tighter as more and more folks seem to think running a trucking business for a drivers wage is normal!
It goes hand in hand with their train of thought that buying/adding more trucks will make them even more drivers wages and soon they will be a mega carrier! Lol.
There's no substitute for common sense or experience!

 

Common sense will get you most of the way. I can understand paying yourself a drivers wage while you are paying off that first truck. That way your profit margin, which most people dont even include in their pricing, of 15-20% should be going to the business. Now, in the case of a lease purchase, you are probably giving that up to the carrier you are leased to, which is ok until you pay off the truck. Thats just the sacrifice I believe you have to make. But, you have to make enough to keep things at home afloat too. Dont cut yourself short. There has to be enough money in the lease purchase to keep everyone happy

 

What engine is such a piece of junk that you need to do an inframe at 500,000 miles? Maybe you missed the part where I said the truck had 240,000 when I first took possession of the truck. Frankly this was the foot in the door step, I'm not planning on getting any additional trucks through lease/purchase. I got to this point even though almost everyone said it couldn't be done. I did the numbers and they worked, I was right and the naysayers were wrong. Now I'm looking at what comes next both in life and in business. I'll listen to constructive advice, but just like I ignored the know-it-alls, victims and naysayers to get to this point I'll do the same over the next 6-10 years of my business plan. If the numbers work I'll move forward and if they don't work I won't. As I said before I am a business man who happens to drive a truck, success is when I am still a business man and no longer drive a truck. You make real money when you have others making money for you.

 

Congratulations. With the lp fail rate around 80% you certainly beat the odds. Like yourself, the next step always seems to be moving on. Don't understand this flight after someone has been so gracious to you. Unfortunately most of them seem to end up around a port city pulling cans.

 

Gracious to me? Seriously? They did everything to make things as hard as possible and even now try to run my truck like it's a company truck. Why would I move on? Money! Everyone I have talked to says the same thing and that is I can run Landstar or even get my own authority and run load boards and make way more than the $1.38 a mile I make now. Moving on has always been part of my plan. Businesses are like children, there are times they need the help of a parent, but there comes a point they need to grow up and move out on their own. For my business to be successful there needs to come a day that I no longer need to run it day to day.

 

We are going based on your numbers that you posted. $1.38 mile for an average of 1800 miles per week. That is $2484 a week. YOU said that you had a truck payment of $480 a week. That leaves $2004 for everything else including fuel. Which is running you at least $850 a week and that a stretch. That leaves you $1154 for everything else. In my opinion thats slave wages! Again I do understand there is a sacrifice to be an owner/operator and im all for it. But seriously? Thats not enough money for a single wide in an Iowa cornfield

 

When your only personal debt is a mortgage your monthly income needs go way down. With my wife's income combined with my net settlements life has been rough, but doable. Are you familiar with Dave Ramsey's little tag lines that start his show? "If you live like no one else, later you can live like no one else." How about, "The paid off mortgage is replacing the BMW as the status symbol of choice."? I'm not a devotee, but I do believe in much of his advice since it has been around since the days of our great-grandparents. We knew going in that the last 4 years would be brutal, but unless we made major life changes we were headed down a dead-end path. We spent over a year planning and preparing and took the plunge. Now we are reaping the reward. For the first time in our 25 year marriage my wife knows that her entire pay is discretionary income and when she has had enough she can quit. Frankly I'll share my business figures, but not my personal. Suffice it to say my home is a bit bigger than a double wide and is located on a double lot. We have no credit cards, if we need it, we pay cash.

 

Like I said dont want much dont need much.Im glad you are income dependant like most americans. Good for you. However now that you are a truck owner you are goona need credit like it or not. Unless you wanna run around with thousands of dollars in cash on you, your gonna need that emergency credit card. Because there will come that day of the major breakdown and you wont have enough cash. Or, giving up the cash will break you and you will have no cushion. The absolute saddest part of this whole conversation has been the fact that you think getting a $1.60 a mile is like hitting the lottery. My cheapest freight pays $2.43 per mile. Its that mentality that has us fighting shippers everyday. I dont gouge customers. Its a simple formula. My costs + 15-20% profit margin. Costs are based on new truck payments. Because to stay in business you will have to replace it one day. Realistic maintence and insurance costs. Top driver wages, because you want to be able to attract and keep the cream of the crop. Fuel. The other expenses most people overlook. Trust me my friend you are not making enough to replace the truck when the time comes. And yes, I love enjoying the perks of making good money. The vacations, taking care of my family, my racing, the sporting events I attend. I didnt loose my house in the reccession. Who wants to live just to pay off a mortgage? Even if it is a double lot.