QuestionQUESTION: Hi. My sister’s boyfriend has a small trucking company and seemed to be making good money with it, so I decided to buy a semi truck & reefer trailer with the intent of having him run everything for me and I would pay him a percentage. Unfortunately things have not worked out well so far (personal reasons, not business) and I need to make a change.
The way I see it I can either 1). Sell the truck & trailer and be done with it all. 2). Get my own authority, hire a driver and find loads on load boards. 3). Lease my trucker & trailer onto a company. I guess my real question is how to find a company that would lease my truck & trailer here in Michigan and what the pro’s & con’s are of doing this?
Thank you!
ANSWER: Hi Steven.
Your almost home, so to speak. If you can find a dependable driver, you should get your own DOT and MC number, fuel stickers and run under your own authority. Now, truth be told, it's more work than leasing out and letting someone else have the headaches. Then again, you get to keep ALL the profits. Contact the Michigan Department of Transportation to get everything to be legal. Sites like www.dotauthority.com can help you too. I would start an LLC or Corporation. Get cargo insurance on top of your truck and bobtail insurance and go to work.
I try to focus on long, coast to coast loads. Most drivers hate running the East coast and it will be easier on you if you don't have to worry about finding loads on a daily basis. Many drivers, including myself, prefer to run West. In California there is a lot of produce that pays good coming back East. It pays better than running 500 mile loads and sitting at a dock every day.
If you decide to lease out to a company, you may end up selling the trailer as many companies have drop and hook freight, or drivers may swap trailers out for various reasons.
I use to haul Hoover vacuum cleaners out of a warehouse in Grand Rapids to LA and backhaul produce to Chicago. There are runs like that, and when you get in with a broker or a company, you could make that your regular run. Just make sure when you use a broker, they have a good credit rating. Sites like www.getloaded.com will tell you their rating.
There are a lot of trucking companies in Michigan and you will just have to make some calls and find out if you can lease out to them. There is also a lot of furniture that runs out of Michigan, where companies like Steelcase make good money with. One of my favorite Michigan trucking companies is Van Eerden (http://www.vetrucking.com), but I'm not sure if you can lease to them. Make some calls, learn some info and then make a decision. I love trucking, so I would never tell you to sell the truck!
Good luck!
Bob Stephens
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: Thank you so much for the great detail in your answer!! I have another question: given the current economy, price of diesel, etc., what is a good number to use when trying to determine how many miles a single driver will do each month (I heard 10,000 miles before but don't know if that is accurate)? ...and if it is 10,000 miles, how much might I expect to Gross & Net each month hauling reefer freight?
Thanks again!
AnswerHi Steven.
10,000 to 14,000 miles a month is about accurate. Your gross and net is hard for me to calculate. Every company is different. Milk, beef, produce, seafood, and ice cream all pay differently. There are many variables. Call some brokers in your area and see what they're paying. You should be in the $1.25 to $2 a mile range.
Bob Stephens
