Haulin Assets

#169. November 2024 Financials

It's the end of 2024, in fact, this episode with the November 2024 Financials is getting recorded on the last day of the year, but will post on the first day of the new year. 2024 was a tough year, proceeded by another tough year, that honestly was preceded by the start of the drop in the freight market. With three tough years in a row, we deserve some relief. With dropping interest rates, an economy that appears to be decently healthy, and what is likely to be a more trucking friendly presidency coming into office, there is a lot to look forward to.

What To Expect From Episode 169

Sorry there has been a bit of a break since the last episode, with me taking a trip in a truck and the Holidays, I just couldn't get an episode out. November was an interesting month in a few ways, mileage dropped, but revenue increased. That makes for some pretty good talking points. Let's take a look at the numbers:

• Total miles ran– 109,155 (One of the lowest mileage months of the year)
• Deadhead miles– 7,147 (7.1%)
• Total revenue- $236,053.07 (With the holiday, ran fewer miles, but more profitable miles)
• All-in rate-per-mile- $2.16 (Best in several months, third best of the year)

Haulin Assets had a profit of $16,837.14. With as low as our mileage was, profit could have been a lot worse, our saving grace was definitely the better rate per mile.

P&L Items

• Maintenance and Repairs
• IFTA Payments
• Fuel, 26.4% of revenue
• We sold a piece of equipment

#168. October 2024 Financials

Happy Thanksgiving! Some of you will be home for Thanksgiving, some of you won’t, I know what that is like. I want you all to know I am thankful for you. Both that you are listeners and fans of the podcast and that you keep America moving. I am thankful that there is food on my table and a roof over my family's head, both of which would not be possible without what you do everyday. THANK YOU.

What To Expect From Episode 168

Revenue dropped a bit last month. I wish I know what caused it. I think there are several factors, one of them just being that the market is still bad and it is volatile.

• Total miles ran– 119,607 (Higher than last month)
• Deadhead miles– 8,542 (7.1%)
• Total revenue- $227,931.30 (Lower than expected, I think partly due to lower fuel prices, brokers are being more stingy on rate)
• All-in rate-per-mile- $1.96 (Our worst rate per mile all year)

Haulin Assets had a profit of $5,062.43. With as low as our revenue was and as bad as the rate per mile was, I am kind of surprised we turned a profit.

P&L Items

• Work Comp
• Maintenance and Repairs
• Fuel

#167. Getting Ready for 2024 Taxes

Get the full show notes at haulinassetsllc.com

Check out MotorcarrierHQ.com 

Find our courses at haulinassetsacademy.com

 

The end of the year is a crazy busy time with the Holidays and everything else going on so taxes typically are not at the forefront of your mind, but they need to be. There are certain things you can do to improve your tax situation before December 31st that you can't do after January 1st, so you need to have a plan. I usually try to have a general idea about what I want to do by the end of October or the beginning of November. During this episode we are going to give you somethings to think about so you can start to build the right plan for you.

What To Expect From Episode 167

So you own a business, does that mean you need to file a business tax return? The answer is maybe... We are going to help you answer that question and so much more. Here are some of the things we will cover.

Filing deadlines, April 15th, right? Not always. Here are some other deadlines we talk about.

• Partnerships and S-Corps (March 15)
• Single Member LLC, Sole Proprietor, Corporations (April 15)
• Extensions (September 15th and October 15th)
• Quarterly Tax Payments ( 15th of the month after a quarter ends)

One of the most important things you need to decide, is what is more important to you… show a profit or reduce how much you have to pay in taxes. You really can’t do both. No one wants to pay any more taxes than they have to, but to lower your tax bill you have to lower your profit which then hurts when you try to get financing.

Tax Strategies

• Reduce Taxes
• Maximize Profits

Strategies for reducing income:

• Business Strategies
  • Purchasing equipment and different types of depreciation
    • Use of accelerated depreciation
  • Expense planning
    • Prepaying expenses
    • Negotiating payment plans or future payments
  • Ensure you capture all your expenses, and account for all your deductions
    • Home Office
    • Business use of personal vehicle
    • Child Care
  • Revenue Recognition
    • Cash Basis vs Accrual
    • When does it need to be
• Personal Tax Planning
  • Retirement accounts
    • SEP
    • Traditional IRA
    • 529 College savings account
  • Health Savings Plans
  • Itemized Deductions
    • Mortgage Interest
    • Charitable Contributions
    • None-reimbursed medical expenses

If you have been slacking on your bookkeeping, get caught up now so you don’t have surprises early next year when you can’t do much about it

• Be ready to provide a summary of your business operation
  • Factoring company statements
  • Business bank account and transaction categorization
    • Some banks track your spending and categorize expenses. May require specific accounts or
  • Use an accounting firm
  • Multiple years of taxes needed, start with today and filed the current year. Don’t get overwhelmed. Strategically work your way backwards until it’s done. Small wins will get you there.

#166. September 2024 Financials

Get the full show notes at haulinassetsllc.com

Check out MotorcarrierHQ.com 

Find our courses at haulinassetsacademy.com

 

It's Halloween, which is a fun time of year. I love driving down the road and seeing how drivers deck out their trucks. It's fun to see their personalities come through.

What To Expect From Episode 166

We are still slugging through this unprecedented freight market. I wish I knew when things would turn around, I keep thinking it has to be right around the corner, but I have thought that for a year now. I expect we'll see at least a little relief due to the holiday push, but I don't expect it to blow anyone's socks off. Here are the numbers for September.

• Total miles ran– 107,902
• Deadhead miles– 5,141 (4.8%)
• Total revenue- $227,931.30
• All-in rate-per-mile- $2.11 ($0.02 better than last month, $0.20 better than last year)

Haulin Assets had a profit of $16,024.48. Which is more than I would have guessed, based on the revenue number. Still not close to where we want to be, but… all things considered, it could have been worse.

Here are the P&L items that we'll talk about.

• Maintenance and Repairs
• Fuel

#165. Staying Healthy on the Road (thoughts from someone who struggles)

Get the full show notes at haulinassetsllc.com

Check out MotorcarrierHQ.com 

Find our courses at haulinassetsacademy.com

 

In this episode we are going to step out of the truck and away from the business and focus on you and your health. This can be a sensitive topic and it's something I have struggled with most of my adult life. I have found something that is working for me better than anything else I have done and want to share it. I'm no health expert, but want to share my story. It a change is something you are looking for, I hope this helps. Before we get into the meat and potatoes of the topic, Craig and I talk about some of the challenges the trucking industry is facing because of the crazy amount of fraud going on.

What To Expect From Episode 165

Not everyone cares about their weight. With this and most things in life I take the attitude of to each their own. Do whatever makes you happy in life as long as it isn't impacting someone else. For me, weight is one of those things I love and hate. Because I am in the National Guard, I have to maintain a certain weight standard and it is something I constantly struggle with. I like food too much and I like to eat too much food. I tend to yo-yo. Most years during the summer I lose 20-30 pounds and then gain it back in the winter. This summer I tried something different that is working better than anything else I have ever tried. It is something you can do while on the road so I thought it would be good to share it with you.

It's nothing new, you have probably heard of it. I've been counting macronutrients, commonly referred to as macro nutrients. Neither Craig or I are nutritionists so I am not going to go into the science of it, but I talk about my experience and share what I have been doing in more detail. Basically, I figure out what my macro breakdown needed to by, actually a professional figured that out for me. I use an app to track my macros on a daily basis to make sure I am eating a little less than what my body actually needs so that I lose about a pound a week. Like I said, we go into this in more detail during the episode.

Here are some of the things I typically eat for each meal.

• Breakfast
  • Greek yogurt (It's higher in protein than regular yogurt)
  • Cottage cheese
  • I often mix the cottage cheese and yogurt (I like it my wife doesn't)
  • Oatmeal Mix (Oatmeal with water or milk, protein powder, I like vanilla, and fruit)
  • Reese's peanut butter cup protein shake (8 ounces of milk, ice cubes, spinach, half a banana, two scoops of PB Fit, one scoop of chocolate protein power, mix it in a blender)
• Lunch
  • Chicken breasts 8-11 ounces, grilled or baked with seasoning. You can cook it with a Road Pro 12 volt stove.
  • Sandwiches using pitta bread and filled with cold cut lunch meats and cheese or healthy chicken salad.
  • Cold cut lunch meat wrapped in cheese for a lower carb option
• Dinner
  • Rotisserie chicken from the grocery store, makes several meals
  • Breakfast burritos or an omelet
  • Fish
  • Shrimp cocktail, if I want to treat myself
  • Tons of healthy dinner recipes, we make a big meal and eat leftovers. I always took as many leftovers as I could when on the road.
• Snacks
  • Protein drinks
  • Protein bars
  • Snickers, not the king size
  • Beef jerky
  • Boiled eggs
  • Egg muffins
• Eating Out
  • I still tend to get a burger and fries at least once a week. I just usually don't have the bun, some places call it protein style others call it a lettuce wrap and I only get a regular fry.
  • I make healthier choices. When I go to Texas Roadhouse I only eat one roll instead of five
  • For example, I recently went to Buffalo Wild Wings. I got the traditional 10 piece non-breaded wings, half with a dry rub half with a sauce and I only dipped a few of them in ranch.

Tips for being successful

• Don't let yourself get hungry
• Focus on hitting your protein goal
  • You'll feel fuller and have less cravings
• Don't drink sugary drinks
  • Coffee and diet sodas are good
  • Water is the best
• Don't beat yourself up if you aren't perfect, you are going to have bad days. If you can follow the plan 80-90% of the time you are going to be successful.
• Eat for fuel, not for fun

#164. August 2024 Financials

Get the full show notes at haulinassetsllc.com

Check out MotorcarrierHQ.com 

Find our courses at haulinassetsacademy.com

 

Holy cow, Hurricane Helene has caused some serious problems. It seems like it has been a while since we have had a hurricane that was this bad. Ashville, NC received over 2 feet of rain and is a zone of devastation. It's not an area we deliver to often, but guess what, we have a load trying to deliver there now. The receiver's parking lot is full of mud and can't take trucks. It could be weeks before they are up and running again. I'll keep you posted on what happens.

We are constantly trying to improve. We start off this episode talking about a few things we have decided to do a little different. We hope both changes will improve our bottom line. One of them should also have a positive impact on our maintenance BASIC score and hopefully on our overall maintenance costs.

What To Expect From Episode 164

We had a really good revenue month, but overall numbers are still not where we want them to be. There are some positives in the numbers that we will talk about throughout this episode.

• Total miles ran– 136,000 (That's a new record)
• Deadhead miles– 10,513 (7.7%, down a little from last month.)
• Total revenue- $283,586.73
• All-in rate-per-mile- $2.09 ($0.03 better than last month, $0.10 better than last year)

Haulin Assets had a profit of $5,189.78. With the big revenue month, I was expecting more. There were some P&L items that impacted net profit.

Here are the P&L items that stick out, we'll talk about them.

• Damages
• Payroll
• Maintenance and Repairs
• Fuel

#163. The Road to Better Safety, pt.2

In episode 160, we talked about CSA scores and how they work and some best practices. Managing the safety program for a trucking company is not an easy job, whether you are an O/O or have a fleet. There is a lot to know and do. So, what happens if you didn’t do a good job with those things and you are under the FMCSA’s microscope?

In these two episodes, Craig and Chris are joined by Alex from Motor Carrier HQ to pick her brain about her experience with the FMCSA, maintaining good ISS scores, and how to get yourself out of a hole if you find yourself in one.

Get the full show notes at haulinassetsllc.com

Check out MotorcarrierHQ.com 

Find our courses at haulinassetsacademy.com

#162. The Road to Better Safety, pt.1

In the last episode on safety, we talked about CSA scores and how they work and some best practices. Managing the safety program for a trucking company is not an easy job, whether you are an O/O or have a fleet. There is a lot to know and do. So, what happens if you didn’t do a good job with those things and you are under the FMCSA’s microscope?

In these two episodes, Craig and Chris are joined by Alex from Motor Carrier HQ to pick her brain about her experience with the FMCSA, maintaining good ISS scores, and how to get yourself out of a hole if you find yourself in one.

Get the full show notes at haulinassetsllc.com

Check out MotorcarrierHQ.com 

Find our courses at haulinassetsacademy.com

#161. July 2024 Financials

Haulin Assets Academy

Full Show Notes

Haulin Assets T-shirts and More

 

This year has been better than last year, but we are still not where we want to be. Hopefully, things continue to gradually improve as the year goes on. Here is what July looked like.

• Total miles ran– 118,563
• Deadhead miles– 9,649
• Total revenue- $243,804.91
• All-in rate-per-mile- $2.06

Haulin Assets realized another small profit of $10,342.41. That continues our profitability streak of 10 months, but cashflow is still negative and we talk about that a bit, including a big change to help alleviate some of the pressure that causes.

Here are some areas of the P&L that we highlight.

• Factoring
• Fuel
• Repairs
• Taxes and licenses

#160. Boosting Your CSA Scores: Navigating DOT Inspections and Safety Ratings

What do peaches and the FMCSA Safety program have in common. You'll have to listen to find out, but I will tell you, understanding the low hanging fruit principle can help you stay out of hot water with the FMCSA. We cover a lot in this first episode of a two part series on the FMCSA Safety program. It can be tempting to neglect safety, especially when you are struggling to survive in a tough market. However, failing to manage your safety and your FMCSA scores can sink your company faster than low freight rates. Listen to the episode as Craig and I share some great tips when it comes to safety.

What To Expect From Episode 160

BLUF (Bottom Line Up Front), If you want to have good CSA scores, be safe, maintain your vehicles, obey traffic laws, and don't break the hours of service rules. With that being said, we give a lot of tips about what the CSA scores are, how they are calculated, and some of the best practices to keep them low. Lower is better. Here is an outline of what we cover.

What Are CSA Scores

Most Motor Carriers receive scores in 7 Behavior Analysis and Safety Improvement Categories, which wrapped up in a nice little acronym called BASICs. The categories are:

• Unsafe Driving 65%
• Crash Indicator 65%
• Hours-of-Service Compliance 65%
• Vehicle Maintenance 80%
• Controlled Substance 80%
• Hazardous Materials Compliance 80%
• Driver Fitness 80%
• Insurance and Other (This one isn't really scored, it's more like pass or fail)

The percentages are the thresholds, we explain those during the episode.

How You Get Your CSA Score

The simple answer to this question is they come from interventions with the FMCSA/DOT Officers. Those can be anything from roadside inspections to an audit. Most inspections occur at Ports of Entry or because of an inspection that happens when a driver is pulled over for a moving violation or obvious vehicle maintenance issue. One of the biggest contributors to the number of inspections you get is your ISS Score (Inspection Selection System). You can check your score and a lot of other important things regarding your company's history with the FMCSA by logging into their system here.

Understanding The Scoring System

The scoring process is a bit complicated. I am going to over simplify it, but here is the general idea. Every time you are inspected your company receives a score. If there is a violation, you get bad points. If the inspection report is clean, you get good points. The formula the FMCSA uses basically divides the bad points by the good points. If you have more good points than bad, your resulting "measure" will be less than one. If you have more bad points than good points, your "measure" will be higher than one. Good inspections will give you more good points and lower your "measure". Your "measure" is then compared to all the other fleets that are roughly your same size. If you are right in the middle, meaning half the companies have a "measure" lower than yours and half the companies have a "measure" higher than yours, your BASIC score will be 50%. If you are in the top 10%, your score will be 10%, etc. Every BASIC has a threshold, if you are above the threshold you are going to be on the FMCSA's radar. You just became low hanging fruit, if you don't know what that means, listen to the episode.

If you really want to nerd out and dive deep into the methodology and calculations, you can learn a lot by clicking on this link and reading the document.

Understanding The Consequences Of Your CSA Scores

There are several things that happen if your CSA Score exceeds the threshold.

• You are going to get a letter from the FMCSA saying you need to behave and do better
• Your ISS Score is going to increase and your are going to get inspected more, when that happens, most scores get even worse
• If your score stays elevated for a while or if you exceed the threshold in multiple categories, you are way more likely to be audited, that's when the fun really begins

Most audits result in a Safety Rating, either Satisfactory, Conditional or Unsatisfactory. In part two of the series we will talk about what happens if you get a bad safety rating or if the FMCSA tells you that you need to complete Corrective Action Plan.