I'm just curious.. i'm actually fairly sure i already know the answer. I live in western nc have about 10 years experience. I run pretty hard... i used to run more by thursday am than 90% of drivers do in 7 days.. but im NOT doing that again. I've also run my own business and know how to handle money, paperwork, plan for bad times etc.

I'm curious as to what you think it would cost to start out as an o/o.. a flat dollar figure and can you go o/o and be home every week. I'm not looking to get rich. I dont need a shiney new truck. In fact im thinking something 20-40 grand tops. If the mechanics are great i dont care if i have the ugliest truck in the country. But my hometime is primary to me. I spent too many years losing friends and watchin family drift away. Not missing my niece growing up. I'm thinking if i could find something that took me to az and something back. Even better would be illinois, iowa, kansas whatever.

ANY advice is appreciated

 

I'm having the same thoughts, CD... so, I hope I can help you.

GMAN told me/us along time ago that you shouldn't even think about becoming an O/O without at least 30 grand in the bank to start. GMAN's advice on anything BUT politics is GOLD!

I agree with you about the truck to buy. I saw a 4 yr old Columbia for $18k once or twice. Sounds like a good place to start. Drove one when I first started... had plenty of pulling power for a full 80k load. I figured the payments would be LOW in case the revenues were also LOW to start. If I saw that I could make a living at this.... I'd buy a better truck LATER.

Being home every weekend is probably no easier (or harder) for an O/O. You do get to pick your runs/loads. You should look for companies to lease onto that run "regional" loads mostly. And, I'm not sure how this works... but, before buying a truck... I would want to have some possible "leases" lined up! Schneider (though I hate them) concentrates on regional runs, and not ALL of their I/C trucks are company bought trucks. [one of their indies blew my doors off a few nights ago!]

If you become an O/O... those "mechanics" will probably be ones YOU choose and KNOW. So... you should consider this before jumping. If something happens "out there," you will have to pay what ALL of us (or companies) pay... therefore the reason for the bankroll.

Like I said. I'm NOT an O/O yet. Take what I say with a grain of salt if you wish. I've learned what little I know from reading this forum on this site. These guys are very smart and should chime in here shortly. They may be busy right now, cuz most of them are SUCCESSFUL at it. There are probably MORE who have failed. But, they are not continually posting here!

Good luck, and let me know what YOU learn if you make the jump.

Personally, my "plan" is to wait a little longer to see how the economy recovers.

 

Oh, I don't know, Hobo. I think my political advice is pretty good. But, thanks for the vote of confidence.

How much money you need to start have a lot to do with your credit situation and what you want to do. I assume that you want to lease to a carrier rather than get your own authority? It will cost much less to start by leasing to a carrier than to get your authority. You should still be able to buy a good used truck for less than $20,000. If it is an older truck, which is likely, then you may find it more difficult to finance. There are a lot of clean used trucks in the $20,000-29,000 range. If you plan on financing you will need about 10-20% down, perhaps as much as 30%, depending on your credit. You will also need collision insurance if you finance your purchase. That runs from about 2 1/2-4 1/2% of the stated value of your equipment. You can pay this monthly and some carriers will allow you to purchase this type of insurance through their insurance agent and deduct the premium through your weekly settlements. The ideal situation is to have enough cash on hand to pay for the most expensive repair that can happen. That is usually the engine. It is difficult to finance engine repairs and if you do find someone then the interest rates are likely to be very high. An engine inframe can run from about $10,000-18,000 or more. In addition, you may also need to pay for a wrecker to tow the truck to a shop. If you find a truck that you want to purchase I would recommend that you try to get the maintenance records. Those are not always available. One of the cheapest insurance policies you can get is a dyno and oil analysis. Both will give you a good idea of the condition of your engine. Have a mechanic to hook up to the trucks ECM can also help put a fairly complete picture together for you. The total cost should be no more than $300-400. I would not spend the money until I was absolutely certain that I wanted to purchase the truck. If you feel confident about the truck after having it checked out then you could take a chance and toss the dice. You could go for months or even years without the engine having a problem. If a truck breaks down you need to be in a position of having the resources available to make the repairs. If not, then you are out of business and without the truck you have a lot of debt with no income. This assumes that you finance your purchase.

A few years ago I had to spend over $11,000 on maintenance and repairs on one truck. If I had not had the resources and that was my only truck then I could have been out of business. Some people do start on a shoe string. Sometimes, they do get lucky. Successful people are good planners. They plan for contingencies. In fact, they plan for the worst that could happen so that they are prepared if and when the worst does happen. There are those who buy a truck and wihin weeks they have one breakdown after another. It is a nuisance if you are prepared and have the funds to take care of the repairs, but it can be devastating if you are one of those who started on a shoestring. We don't need money for our successes. We need money to get us through the bad times.

If you lease to a carrier you will have less start up costs. The carrier will take care of the liability and cargo insurance. They may also finance your base plates and insurance. You should start to earn money the first week or so after orientation. I would expect to have money within 2-3 weeks from the time you sign the contract with a carrier. You can even get fuel advances from them. If everything goes well and you can make it for a few months without anything major happening, then you are on your way. Tires can blow without notice. New tires can run from a little over $300 to over $700 at a truck stop. Road service will add an additional $200-300 or more. The $30,000 that Hobo mentioned can evaporate very quickly when things start to go wrong. You may get some tire discounts with your new carrier, but the money still needs to be paid. Most carriers will not help with major repairs for new owner operators. It is a very high risk. They could pay for your truck to be overhauled and you could leave the next day. The carrier would be out as much as $18,000 or more. I have a good friend who lost pretty much everything due to having surgery and being out of work for several months. He previously ran his authority. When he was able to work again, he leased on to a carrier since all his resources and credit was pretty much shot at that point. A short time into his new lease he blew his engine. He didn't have the $10,000 that was needed to put a used engine in the truck and that was about half what a rebuilt engine would have cost. He wound up losing both his truck and trailer.

In an ideal situation you want to have enough to rebuild your engine and still have enough to pay the bills. You will also need enough for a down payment and operating capital until the money starts to come in. It usually takes a few months to learn the system of any new company. Some barely get along for a few months until they get their bearings. Best scenario is you have enough in the bank to pay all your bill for 6 months as well as covering the cost of a major overhaul.

One thing that you need to do is change your way of thinking. Making money in trucking is not about running more miles. It is about maximizing the rate. I don't run the wheels off my trucks. I find loads that pay well that I don't have to run the wheels off to make money. Sometimes, it is better to sit for a day or two and get a really great paying load than to take something that does little more than pay fuel money but keeps you running. There are a lot of cheap rates around. If you are a company driver who is paid by the miles you run, then miles are very important to you. When you own the truck, that changes. Most carriers still pay owner operators mileage. Most owner operators should do better on percentage. Being paid on percentage requires the owner operator to be much more proactive. There are still cheap loads and if you are willing to haul them then there are those who are more than willing to allow you to take them. When you run percentage you look at things a little differently. Once you buy a truck you are no longer a truck driver. You are a businessman. Although you still drive a truck you are first and foremost a businessman. Many fail to make that distinction and that is one reason so many fail in this business. I didn't mean to get up on my soapbox, but I think that it is important for you or anyone else who is thinking of buying a truck to reevaluate your thinking before you spend the first penny.

 

You're welcome, GMAN. You're WRONG of course... about your politics.... but, when it comes to questions of Owning and Operating... I KNOW, that YOU KNOW your stuff!

Thanks for chiming in as you did. Another GREAT post from you about what it takes to "take the jump."

But, there was one question you didn't address... and, I too, would like to know your opinion and experiences....

IS it easier to get more "regulated" home-time as an O/O??

Hometime is very important to MOST drivers. I think I can predict your answer, but.... we'd all like to hear it.

 

You are wrong in your assessment on my politics, but thanks for the compliment on by business side.

It should be easier to get home as an owner operator than a company driver. I say should. That isn't always the case. It depends on the carrier to whom you decide to lease your equipment. If you lease to a carrier that pays mileage and has dispatchers assigned to owner operators then you may not always be able to get home as you would prefer. The reason is two fold. Those carriers that pay mileage usually pay for ALL miles driven. That includes loaded and empty. Another is the dispatcher. Many carriers hire dispatchers fresh out of college or in other professions who may have never sat in a truck. They are not always the best at scheduling and may look at owner operators as company drivers. Leasing to a carrier that pays percentage and is agent based enables you more flexibility to get home when needed. Carriers such as Landstar, Universal Am Can, Mason Dixon or CRST Malone are some of those percentage carriers who don't have dispatchers, other than CRST Malone. As far as I know, they still assign dispatchers to each truck. There are others than I mentioned, but these are some that I am most familiar. The downside is that you dispatch yourself. It is more like running your own authority. It is up to you to find a load to get yourself home and when you get ready to run you will need to find a load to get moving again. Most of these carriers won't bug you about staying home. It only costs them pennies for insurance if you are not running unless you finance your base plates or other expenses for you. Unless you sit home for three weeks or longer, nothing will usually be said about the amount of time you spend at home.


I would not want to lease a truck to any carrier that had control over my home time. On primary reason to own the truck, rather than being a company driver, is so that you can have more freedom. If you go to an area and want to do some sightseeing and are not under a load, then you can get a cab or rent a car and see the sights if you own the truck. It can be more difficult in a company truck. Leasing a truck to a carrier that puts all the responsibiilty on the owner operator has it's good and bad points. I think the pros outweigh any negatives. I don't think that everyone who can drive a truck should become an owner operator. Not everyone is good at running a business. Some are great truck drivers but poor businessmen. If you are willing to spend the time then you can certainly learn how to run a successful business. You must be willing to be objective and look at your shortcomings and find a way to work with them. If you want to be a successful owner operator you must learn how to RUN your business. It is fine to take time off, but stay too long and you may not be able to pay the bills. For those who want to become an owner operator and have more home time, it is good for you to find a truck with low payments. The bigger the payment the more pressure to run. Smaller payments enable you to be more selective in the loads you take. You can actually make more money by being selective.

 

On G-mans politics. G.M think alike.

 

GMAN and I are just having a bit of fun about his (or my) politics. His business model is what is of interest here.

 

Right now getting your own truck will either destroy your mind or your wallet.

maybe both.

 

Great info G.

 

Rostyc: is freight that bad right now? or just pay that bad? It still blows my mind people run for 95 cents a mile. Theyre working for the truck....

Gman thanks this is the first post ive ever seen that i literally want to print out and study. It sounds just as i thought and i do understand the 18 grand emergency fee. One thing im good at is being tight and i did this in my previous business... too many people assume "things are awesome so nothing can ever really go wrong!".

Honestly my real wish to be an o/o is really about freedom. I run very very hard. Ive always had incredible dispatchers (maybe because i work hard). But im all about my family and friends. So ill run my brains out to chicago and back 3 times a week.. then i expect to be home and have cash in my pocket. Occasionally i like to be out a little longer especially if youre in a new area of the country. But then sometimes i want to just take a week off. It isnt about the money at all. Ive learned through bedbugging that one of t he SMARTEST things a stressed driver who's out on the road.. especially on a layover.. can do is rent a hotel room. Go to the hotel bar drink some beers and talk to some people. Or stop at a friends house for the weekend.

I think im going to drive for my buddy for a bit and save some money. If not im gonna look for a home weekends company and save some cash. 6 months to a year i'll try to buy a truck and maybe even pay cash or mostly cash. That should make life infinitely easier. I look forward to any other advice this thread is slap FULL of it. Thanks a lot to all three of you.