start up costs

[Chip]

I hope this is the right place for this, Well here goes I am very intereted in the Expediter field. I have talk to fed ex CC and filled out some applications on line here to diffrent companies, But my question is this what are the day to day expences you can expect have while out on the road. I use to drive triaxels dump trucks for a friend but that was local, what I am looking at for expenses Fuel,ETC, this will also help me out because as I have read on this site ( very good site I might add) I will do the smart thing and drive for someone first but I am truely intersted in becoming a O/O in the future so any answers would help.


Ps This will driving a 22-24 straight truck also what are the start up cost for some thing like this? Is it hard to do on your own with no exp? Does it cost a lot ? and could some one make a good living doing this? I have no kids and I am not married and I would be a solo driver Thanks in advance for the help.

 

[raceman]

Well, single, no kids and solo are all good things in this business. I will tell you I have gotten to the point where I get nervous when people worry about day to day expenses and start up costs.

Now before you get ticked the reason I say this is because what ruins many people is they try to start up a business with no money. That is most likely not your case but I want to point out that is a diaster waiting to happen. You must have money to weather the slow times and the rough times and they both happen.

Now let me give you my thoughts. It takes some amount of money and it varies, to buy the truck. From there you need running plates which will also vary depending on how you plate. I would figure $400 to $700. You will need some amount when you sign up with a carrier. I would figure $500 to $1500 and this varies. It can be as low as $0 and higher. You insurance is in there in some cases and not in others. That will be somewhat based on your truck value and then will run you something per month on going.

Those are some rough figures and there is more. You may need to outfit your truck with securement equipment and so on. I then recommend you have a minimum of $5000 in the bank. I suggest $10,000 but $5000 may do it. I do not know your personal expenses and the truck you want.

Daily costs on an average day is simple fuel and food and maybe tolls. I normally spend about $10.00 a day in food stuff and fuel varies. some days you may need washer fluid, oil, coolant, tire, belt, tow. It is just hard to say.

I suggest you hook up with an owner and do it for 3 to 6 months and you can then get real numbers for your self. This is an overview only see what others say and then if you want more, contact me and I will break it out exactly and clearly.

Best of luck

Raceman
Owner Two Straight Truck.
Part time driver of one of my trucks and local TT.
2 years OTR Expediting
1 yr local Expediting
Line Haul TT 2mon.
OTR Straight Truck Plt to Plt off and on 5 years.
Based in Cincy Ohio
Currently at Express-1
Father of 4 children
Grandfather of 1 boy
3 years without full use of my mind

 

[Chip]

Thanks friend you brought some very valuable points to the front Thank you

 

[davekc]

Great advise from Raceman
Davekc

 

[LDB]

As far as startup costs go that depends primarily on which carrier you will run with and if you are driving someone else's truck it's basically all their expense anyway. As a driver you may need to buy clothes with the company logo on them. You'll also have to pay for a physical at orientation even if you've just had one the day before. That's really about the only expenses you should have as a driver to get started.

As to daily expenses that will depend on the runs you get and how you operate as far as meals go. You'll have to buy fuel and pay tolls but that should be your only expenses out of your own money. You might also have to buy a gallon of oil and turn in the receipt for reimbursement or maybe a set of wiper blades or headlight or something small like that. Your contract with the truck owner should spell out what you pay for and get reimbursed and what he wires payment for.

Food can be as little as a few dollars a day up to a pile of money. If the truck you get has a refrigerator that's great. If not go to Walmart and for about $68 get an Igloo style chest that plugs into the lighter socket and will cool your food. It's not perfect but it will keep stuff about 40 degrees cooler than the air around it. If you keep the truck 70 something degrees to keep you comfortable your food will stay around 40 degrees. If you eat truckstop meals all the time plan on food being 20 something dollars a day.

You'll need some money for laundry etc. also but none of that will add up to a fortune.

All that being said, it doesn't take a whole lot to get started however having a good reserve as raceman pointed out is a far better position to be in. Driving someone else's truck you'll be in a better position in case of repairs in that the cost isn't coming out of your pocket however your pocket is being it with the cost of lost income opportunity for as long as the truck is down. If you have no reserve how do you survive sitting 5 days in whereverville waiting on a repair to be finished.

Keep reading the website. It's a great one. Keep asking questions. There are lots of guys on here who know a lot. Until someone that knows stuff comes along I'll keep posting. Good luck to you.

Leo
truck 4958

Support the entire Constitution, not just the parts you like.

 

[RobA]

I read a posting on another website from a guy who has a small trucking company that runs from Ontario to the States.
HE said that a prospective owner operator should have a reserve fund of 6 MONTHS expenses; including house and personal expenses.
Too many owner operators run into problems by being under capitalized.

 

[FrankC]

forget start up cost. stay driving a dump truck. want to be an owner operator...well plan on making 8 bucks an hour for your trouble
dont beleive me?
heres a breakdown of appx cost invovled per year
truck payment 18000
insurance 2500
fuel 21000
cell phone-pager 1000
maintenance 1800
repairs 2000
qualcomm 1300
tolls 1500
fuel tax 600
registration 800
meals 4000
tires 500
washes 300
supplies 500

based upon you driving 105000 miles and gross income 0f 85K
260 days on the road and a 70 hour work week.

dont be fooled by people saying how great expediting is and how much you make.

thats why they say you need lots of startup cash

Q. how to make a small fortune in the trucking buss.
A. start out with a large fortune

 

[davekc]

I agree that you need 6 months of living expenses and the same for operating capital.
On FrankC numbers, I would agree, $1500 a month truck payments and associated costs are too high for a single driver.
It gets worse when you either have no warranty (used equipment) or your current warranty is about to run out. If so, it would be advisable to have at least $10,000 to $15,000 in reserves. Doesn't take long to get to those numbers when figuring repair costs,lost income, and additional expenses while waiting.
A few may question my numbers, but wait until a major failure has occurred like a blown engine, transmission, or accident.
Remember as well, just because you think it is covered under a warranty doesn't make it so. It may take a period of time to get an issue resolved or adjusted. Through that duration of time, you must pay to get your vehicle back or sit there and go financially backwards. The truck payment and other fixed costs will keep coming.

On a side note; FrankC is missing a large cost out of his numbers. I don't see workerscomp(or simular) and no health insurance. Not too smart to operate without these'
That hourly rate is starting to look scary!
Davekc
owner
20 years

 

[unvme2]

Frank,

Seeing how that was your first post and all, I'll give you a mulligan. Expediting as it is today has been around for over 30 years. It is a segment of business that companies may have to encounter one time or another. When they need something yesterday and in a safe manner, they turn to the expediters.

Expediting is surely a niche market, but is available and utilized when necessary. You or I can throw out random numbers and the only thing that does is give people (new) a faithless notion of "your" ideologies.

Please do not discount how hard expediters work to serve the infrastructure of America as we know it.

Remember - If people did not have the opportunity to make money in this business, this site wouldn't even exist.

 

[LDB]

>heres a breakdown of appx cost invovled per year
>truck pmt 18000 can't estimate, get pmt amt based on your situation
>insurance 2500 4260
>fuel 21000 25000
>cell phone-pager 1000 720
>maintenance 1800 1080
>repairs 2000 new w/ warr 1080 w/out 2400
>qualcomm 1300 1820
>tolls 1500 360
>fuel tax 600 incl in fuel
>registration 800 600
>meals 4000 3000 eating from fridge in trk
>tires 500 750
>washes 300 240
>supplies 500 600
>
>based upon you driving 105000 miles and gross income 0f 85K
>260 days on the road and a 70 hour work week.

I've put some numbers in above based on what I've seen and found talking to others. Most weeks you don't work a 70 hr week although you are available 24/7 when in service. Some of the amounts were too high and some were too low.

The original post inquired about start up costs which I took to be the amount needed walking into orientation and getting out making runs. Operating costs are a different matter however this should give a reasonable range to consider.

Leo
truck 4958

Support the entire Constitution, not just the parts you like.

 

[davekc]

The post is relating to startup costs
Davekc
unv2me wrote;
Expediting is surely a niche market, but is available and utilized when necessary. You or I can throw out random numbers and the only thing that does is give people (new) a faithless notion of "your" ideologies

You have only 7 posts which indicated simular comparisons.
His fixed costs seem to fit well into the industry average.
The ability for many is shrinking. LDB added his and quite frankly, they are simular in total except for the truck payment and health insurance.(not listed)
His post is not saying expediters don't work hard. The question is, are they making any money? It is becoming a valid issue with todays market and environment. Whether it is a niche industry isn't relevant to the post.
Davekc
owner
20 years

 

[Broompilot]

Frank is right on except for the hourly rate, now that may be a 24/7. But he is right on the #s. You than must HOPE do gross 120K or higher to be profitable. The upfront expenses are high and the six months reserves is essential or you will go broke.

If your carrier of choice will not show you #s of the fleet doing those #s forget it the numbers will not make $ only problems six months down the road.

 

[davekc]

Broompilot wrote;

Frank is right on except for the hourly rate, now that may be a 24/7. But he is right on the #s. You than must HOPE do gross 120K or higher to be profitable. The upfront expenses are high and the six months reserves is essential or you will go broke.
If your carrier of choice will not show you #s of the fleet doing those #s forget it the numbers will not make $ only problems six months down the road.




Your observations are right on target.
Davekc