Are you ready to sign a lease for a new truck? Can you handle taking care of regular truck payments and managing your own operation? Are you financially responsible? Good at planning loads? Do you understand the industry? Are you motivated to succeed?

If you pay attention to the transportation industry, you probably already have an inkling of what’s happening with the market. Following nearly two years of record highs, freight rates in the spot market are trending down. If the trend continues, you may hear whispers of a declining trucking demand or whispers of a recession. While there’s certainly been a slowdown in demand, that doesn’t mean your career in trucking is futile; it just means you have to learn to run a bit differently.

Do you feel like you’re always waiting for your next load? Does it seem like, more often than not, you’re waiting for the perfect load and the perfect load never comes?

Maybe you’re new to leasing and you don’t know where to start.

Are you ready to hop into a truck lease? Congratulations! Taking the next step in your trucking career and deciding to lease your truck is a big move, and an exciting one at that! Now that you’ve decided becoming an independent contractor is the right choice for you, there are a few more decisions you need to make.

When you hear the phrase, balloon payment, what comes to mind? Do you think about a bouquet of balloons and a clown asking for your money? Well, if that’s where your head is going, you’re in the wrong direction, my friend. A balloon payment is not, in fact, payment for balloons. It is the final payment you make at the end of a lease. As this applies to the trucking industry, it’s the final payment you’ll make on your leased truck if you decide to purchase it.

Truck and equipment insurance. Health insurance. Vision. Dental. Life. Retirement planning. Stocks. Bonds. Mutual funds. Where do you start when there’s so much to do?

Are you an independent contractor who leases your truck from a leasing company or a trucking company? Chances are, you’ve probably heard horror stories from other drivers about specific companies or leasing programs that didn’t treat their drivers well. Whether it was because there were hidden fees in the contract or the driver signed the contract without reading it, it can be frustrating to feel like you’ve been misled.