Southern Cal.......53 foot air ride, vented, 2001 freightliner dont look too shaby n no immediate problems, been a pretty dependable truck although im rebuilding it when I go to Asia cuz the engine is getting tired I notice and I try to grap the lighter loads.
Hmmm I actualy live in Asia, but my godparents house is in Ontario Ca area, I dont have to be there other then I do my banking there so like to get back as much as I can...I run all 48 but havent bought an Orgon permit cuz they wanted too much IMO.....dont run north or south from Ca cuz I dont like Ca nazi DOT.....n staying away from new england and southern florida.
Hmmm im in findlay ohio tonight, been struggling all day to get at least 1.20 going back to LA.....n hopefully at least slightly under 40k pounds, there were lots of loads that fit that, but by the tme i overslept the were gone :=p plus being a new carrier they give them to the other guy they know over me.....well tommorows another day so hope to get going earlier :-p

 

are you making what you expect to make and are you staying loaded and would you do it again

 

Hmmm good question but hard for me to answer.....Ive always wanted to have my own business, and determined to make it no matter what the pay, n I have kind of a unique situation due to my asian wife in Asia, living there and I am working here.
Yeah many brokers think they are doing me a favor just getting me a load, yeah I have to constantly re-mind myself I dont just need a load like a company driver, I need a load I can make some $ on.
Hmmm I didnt really know exactly what I would make, I just knew I had had it with working for companies, and needed more cuz of my situation, I had 30k to start, and even sometimes moving cheap freight (dont like to but i do when desperate) I have made half that back so far, n want to get the whiole amount by the time December roles around.

 

Pepe, check your pm, I sent you a present of $30k by Thanksgiving.

 

cool thks....yeah il hit em up when im back in Chino.....wont hurt to try :-)

 

I stumbled upon this forum and wanted to reply. I have a friend of mine who is over shipping and receiving at a large plant in Atlanta. We got to talking about this exact subject. "How do you know what to charge when you have your own authority?" He told me there is an exact book out there called Freight Rates that all companies use. Does anyone know about this book? Or the exact name of it. He told me he was going to call a friend at huge distribution center and try to get me more info.

 

wow...if there is one i need one desperatly!

But from what little i know of this buiz, this supposed book would be 5 feet thick and weigh a ton, just too many factors to consider n ive only been biding loads a few months now.

 

There are a few site that you can get a subscription to that have rates. Truckloadrate.com is one of them. You can put in any 2 cities and you get the rate from the month before.

 

yeah makes more sense from a board, where they can constantly update due to changing factors affecting rates.;;;;;eeek tho....29.50 a month start up fee....kinda steep since i have only 1 truck :-p why they outta throw in a few minutes of a web-cam gal for that much!

 

Rates vary according to a number of factors including type of freight, where you go and time of year. One reason some shippers lower rates is because someone went in and hauled a load cheap and they know it will move for a low rate. The number of trucks trying to find a load in a particular area can also suppress rates. When there are more trucks, there is more competition to find a load. Unfortunately, there are still too many people who are willing to give their services away. When someone gets into this business and is under capitalized, they tend to panic. When you panic you take what ever is offered, because you don't have the money to sit a day or so to find a good paying load or deadhead out to a better area.

I don't go into Florida for less than $3/mile. The only exception would be if I had a guaranteed load coming right back out which paid very well. That rarely happens. That is what I expect for my business. You may have different expectations. One way to find out what rates are running is to ask others what they are charging. Keep in mind that rates will vary according to whether someone leases to a carrier or runs their own authority.

If you want to run for $1/mile, that is your business. If you want to prosper and do well, you will need to operate at a profit. That is why I and others have suggested to those starting out to know your break even point. You cannot operate at or below cost and make it. You can succeed if you make a profit. The only way to know whether you are making a profit or not is to know your operating costs. It really doesn't matter what I charge for what I do. You must decide for yourself how much profit you need to make.