[hdman1973]

Hey everyone,

I have been a class b driver for 4 years now. I am in the process of preparing a rental property for sale. I own it free and clear so the 150k or so that i will make from it will be all mine. I looked into getting a tractor trailer, but i really dont know them and would have to get a class a and pay high insurance (if i could find any)
So now i'm thinking that expiditwed would be better for me. I would have enough to buy a brand new truck and still have 50-70k leftover. I would have to maybe start solo until my wife gets her b and comes along with me a a team ( from what i gather teams get alot more work) My questions to you are as follows:

1) i have been arrested twice in my life. I had a misdemeanor in 1993 and a misdemeanor in 2000. Will this hurt my chances of being picked up?

2)Can I be pre-qualified to run for someone? I don't want to buy a 90,000 dollar truck to find out noone will hire me.

3) what is the most in demand size and gvw of truck to buy?

4) i have heard that sometimes you have long waits for another load? Is this so?

5) how much deadheading comes with the buisness?


Any help or advice you exp. drivers can give me is appreciated

[LDB]

Given your history I would definitely find the company I'd drive for and get prequalified. You will have waits between most jobs and some of them can be long (as in a day or maybe two). My deadhead runs 17%. I'd do my calculations based on 22-25% and if the numbers are good then they'll be better when you run smart and keep d/h at or below 20%.

Give some thought to driving for an owner for a few months to learn the nuances of expediting. If it's not for you then you can give notice and walk away without owning expensive equipment you've lost 20-25% on.

Keep your rental property and pay for your truck from the rent. If you sell the rental you'll be trading a $150k asset that appreciates in value for a $125k piece of equipment that depreciates to worthlessness. Even if you have to put a hundred or two a week on top of the rent you'll be ahead in the long term.

If your primary residence isn't paid off then sell the rental and pay off your mortgage and use what's left for a down payment and operating capital. You can live a lot more comfortably in a paid off home than a paid off truck if expediting doesn't work for you. Good luck.

Leo Bricker, 73's K5LDB, OOIDA 677319
Owner, Panther trucks 5508, 5509, 5641
Highway Watch Participant, Truckerbuddy
EO Forum Moderator
----------
Support the entire Constitution, not just the parts you like.

[hdman1973]

>Given your history I would definitely find the company I'd
>drive for and get prequalified. You will have waits between
>most jobs and some of them can be long (as in a day or maybe
>two). My deadhead runs 17%. I'd do my calculations based on
>22-25% and if the numbers are good then they'll be better
>when you run smart and keep d/h at or below 20%.
>
>Give some thought to driving for an owner for a few months
>to learn the nuances of expediting. If it's not for you then
>you can give notice and walk away without owning expensive
>equipment you've lost 20-25% on.
>
>Keep your rental property and pay for your truck from the
>rent. If you sell the rental you'll be trading a $150k asset
>that appreciates in value for a $125k piece of equipment
>that depreciates to worthlessness. Even if you have to put a
>hundred or two a week on top of the rent you'll be ahead in
>the long term.

Thanks for the advice. I guess youre right about keeping the rental. I just dont know if I can get financed or not. that is the problem with that. I maybe can after we sell our townhome (primary residence) and get rid of the big mortgage. We plan to take the profits from that sale as a downpaymenton a place in arkansas. I really like it there and the land and homes are about a third of the price of here in maryland. I'm just afraid that we are going to be running hard just to cover payments and fuel. Seems like i could relax alot more if the truck is paid for.
>
>If your primary residence isn't paid off then sell the
>rental and pay off your mortgage and use what's left for a
>down payment and operating capital. You can live a lot more
>comfortably in a paid off home than a paid off truck if
>expediting doesn't work for you. Good luck.
>
>Leo Bricker, 73's K5LDB, OOIDA 677319
>Owner, Panther trucks 5508, 5509, 5641
>Highway Watch Participant, Truckerbuddy
>EO Forum Moderator
>----------
>Support the entire Constitution, not just the parts you
>like.

[Paul56]

>I have been a class b driver for 4 years now. I am in the
>process of preparing a rental property for sale. I own it
>free and clear so the 150k or so that i will make from it
>will be all mine. I looked into getting a tractor trailer,
>but i really dont know them and would have to get a class a
>and pay high insurance (if i could find any)
>So now i'm thinking that expiditwed would be better for me.
>I would have enough to buy a brand new truck and still have
>50-70k leftover. I would have to maybe start solo until my
>wife gets her b and comes along with me a a team ( from what
>i gather teams get alot more work) My questions to you are
>as follows:

Rental property is an extremely good investment.

I don't know the specifics of your property; however, that property now provides you with some security in terms of providing some measure of income and a place to live if needed.

Think very long and hard before dumping it in favour of a truck.

>1) i have been arrested twice in my life. I had a
>misdemeanor in 1993 and a misdemeanor in 2000. Will this
>hurt my chances of being picked up?

This one makes me very nervous and I will be blunt, but don't take it personally...

I have no problem with someone who once had a troubled past, put it behind them and moved on. But the first event showed poor judgment that continued 7 years later. Given the pattern it may be due again.

>2)Can I be pre-qualified to run for someone? I don't want to
>buy a 90,000 dollar truck to find out noone will hire me.

That would be a good thing to do and ensure they need the kind of truck you purchase as well.

[hdman1973]

Hey Paul,

Thank you for your honesty. I never thought of the two being 7 years apart and it now being almost 7 years later. The 2 instances are totally unrelated but still dumb either way. Hopefully I can find someone who can see my character has improved and they might give me a chance. I love to drive and it is my lifelong dream to be an owner operator. I will put it in gods hands and he will make a way. Are you a company rep or a truck owner? I kind of get that impression. Thanks again for your sound advice.

[LDB]

>Thanks for the advice. I guess youre right about keeping the
>rental. I just dont know if I can get financed or not. that
>is the problem with that. I maybe can after we sell our
>townhome (primary residence) and get rid of the big
>mortgage. We plan to take the profits from that sale as a
>downpaymenton a place in arkansas. I really like it there
>and the land and homes are about a third of the price of
>here in maryland. I'm just afraid that we are going to be
>running hard just to cover payments and fuel. Seems like i
>could relax alot more if the truck is paid for.

Certainly it would be better if everything was paid for and make life less stressful. My reasoning, not just for you but for anyone considering this, is that your rental property worth $150k today should appreciate in value year to year. If it only appreciate 1% annually in 10 years it will be worth $166k and it should average more than a 1% average annual appreciation.

Let's say you sell the rental and purchase a good class 8 truck. You should be able to run that truck 10 years with proper upkeep. You spend $125k on the truck and in 10 years with 1.4 million miles on it it's worth $14k if you're lucky.

Granted you didn't have a truck payment during that time but your money is all gone. I don't know what income the rental generates but with a value of $150k it should be making at least $1k a month and probably more. Most of that should be able to go into savings to use toward the new roof etc. that it will need over time but you could always draw some of it toward your truck payment.

I have 2 teams running and they each do about 3k paid miles a week. You and your s.o. should do about the same. That will comfortably manage your truck payment as well as let you put some away each week to offset the slower times, provided you are a good money manager.

Obviously it's your call to make but it seems to me making a truck payment to keep a property potentially worth $175k+ in 10 years versus having no payment to have a piece of equipment worth a few thousand in 10 years is no contest.

Leo Bricker, 73's K5LDB, OOIDA 677319
Owner, Panther trucks 5508, 5509, 5641
Highway Watch Participant, Truckerbuddy
EO Forum Moderator
----------
Support the entire Constitution, not just the parts you like.

[yaaintdeadyet]

Robert you stated that you had been "arrested" twice in the last 13 years. Not that you were convicted. Not that you were charged with a lesser misdemeanor crime. Nor that both charges were dropped. When applying for a DOT commercial license, as well as with a carrier you're asked about tickets ranging back 3-5 years. A misdemeanor arrest does not a habitual criminal make. You put your quest into perfect perspective when you said, "I'll put it God's hands". Good fortune to you Robert.

[ATeam]

I understand your desire to be debt free on the truck. That would certainly take some of the stress out of being on the road with one. But if you did finance the truck as others recommend, you could also take comfort in the fact that in a worst-case scenerio, you will have the reserves with which to deal with things. It would not be like your truck is everything and all is dependent on it.

Regarding your past, and assuming your arrests did result in convictions (correct me if I am wrong about that), you should understand that others looking at your record will quickly think, "repeat offender." It will be something to overcome when you present yourself to carriers. You should focus on that issue first before proceeding with any truck purchase or career change.

[Paul56]

>Hey Paul,
>
>Thank you for your honesty. I never thought of the two being
>7 years apart and it now being almost 7 years later. The 2
>instances are totally unrelated but still dumb either way.
>Hopefully I can find someone who can see my character has
>improved and they might give me a chance. I love to drive
>and it is my lifelong dream to be an owner operator. I will
>put it in gods hands and he will make a way. Are you a
>company rep or a truck owner? I kind of get that impression.
>Thanks again for your sound advice.

Nicole and I are in partnership with her father.

We have a truck/automotive dealership, a fleet of trucks (mostly b-train chip wagons + our class 8 straight truck) and some property.

Credit goes to her father for starting up the operation many years ago and going through the growing pains. We've stepped into the business because we grew increasingly disatisfied with the regular 9 - 5 life and to some degree in preparation for the day when Nicole's father decides to start stepping back gradually into retirement.

We have direct relationships with the customers whose freight we haul and spend a good deal of our time on the road mostly in northern regions of Canada.

I wish you the best of luck with your venture. :)

[hdman1973]

Hi everyone. It has been some time since I started this thread, Well suprise I'm back. I had considered cdl a schools for awhile but have found that getting into TT driving requires some 1 to 2 years of wheel slavery and/or indentured servitude. So, I said to myself, you have a CDL B, you're comfortable driving even the biggest straight trucks, go for the expedite side. I have found a potential employer that is working with me to get qualified with fed ex white glove. I suppose I have a packet coming in the mail tommorrow. Just wondered what to expect, how long to wait. Also what is required to start the processes in getting a HAZMAT these days. Do you still take the test first. Any replies appreciated!! Thanks:)