Buying new vehicles vs. used

[DMK395]

I have been in business for 4 years, have 2 fulltime employees and do everything legit. Bigger companies seem to have all new trucks, with unfriendly price tags of 30k and above, while the smaller entities like myself are in the 3k used category. At a certain point does it become foolish to buy new. I need a better dumptruck, something that is a real workhorse....just hard justifying 35k for the Mitsubishi cabover. Whats the rational for most?

[GrassMaster]

Welcome to the Lawn Service Forum Community, DMK395!

Hello:

I always bought used for the Company & Now many years later I now buy used for personal use. It's nice to to have a new vehicle, but the price to me is just to much to pay, when I can get something a few years old with 20K or so miles & save many $1,000's doing it.

I would rather take those $1,000's and save, put into my home or reinvest back in the business. It just makes me feel better. Because 4 or 5 years later you will never know the difference, except you have more money in your pocket!

A little over a Year ago I purchased a used 99 300M & just the other day I ran into somebody that thought it was new. I only paid $17K for it, they said wasn't that car about $30K New & I said Yes. It's got 43,000 miles on it & I love it. Only Me & My wallet knows the difference.

A vehicle is one of the poorest investments that you can ever make, because it is depreciating daily & look how much money you lose if you purchase it new & try to sell it 6 months or a year later!

Just my thoughts but I have saved a lot over the years & it's paid off for me very well. My Home & other investments show it!

[Scott]

try talking to Erich about leasing the cabover. He's got all the in's/out's on it. or maybe he just has ALL THE $$$.

[temlawn]

I have to agree..I am in the same boat..I have two trucks a 98 dodge and a 94 chevy both are descent trucks but my mouth drops when I see some of these large companies driving these new chevy 4 door full size trucks , pulling 16-20ft long dual axel trailers with 6-8 walkers on them......heck I have to pay cash for everything and it took me 3 years just to buy my first walk-behind....

Oh yeah one more thing...whats the story when I see 6 guys trimming one bush?.....

If I had six guys hanging around one bush I think I would have to fire five of them and give the one with the hedge trimmer doing all the work a huge raise...


have a great day:p

[DMK395]

Its funny all the old timers have told me that when buying a dump buy it new because dumps get beat on badly....

[CCLS]

If you want new vehicles but don't want to purchase them you can look into leasing vehicles. You get the benefits of a factory warrenty and can get a new vehicle every couple of years. You can also write off the lease expense. Just something to think about.

[Phil Nilsson]

Seems like it's a combination of appearance, reliability and dependence on any one vehicle. You can have a fleet consisting of new, 3-5 years, 10 years or more. If you buy new the truck will outlive the payment booklet. If you buy used it might not without investing in repairs and replacements. It might turn out as broad as it is long but given a choice ... myself I'd buy new but this comes down to financing and cash flow over the long haul ... a matchout of funds is what it comes down to. Just as a rule of thumb number to kick around ... for every $1000 of incoming cash from sales that has a profit attached to it of let's say 30% or $300 if you spend no more than 25% ($75 bucks) of the profit reinvested back into equip you'll probably be okay cash flow wise.

My decision to buy new trucks was mainly because we were almost 100% commercial with year around contracts including snow removal and I didn't want used trucks out in storms that could even "think about" breaking down ... if a truck can think that is? That, plus we got paid snow or no snow so the money was there to pay for them. This was a big part of my buying new decision.

Best of luck,
Phil

[VALLEYWIDE]

does anyone know on how we can get new or used trucks below what the general public pays

[Greenscapes]

You can try to hook up with someone who has a dealer's license and go to an auction. Also, ebay is getting a lot better with buying cars. Just look for one that is relatively nearby and you can inspect.

[tulsa lawn guy]

does anyone know on how we can get new or used trucks below what the general public pays

I don't know about that, but at least we get the tax benefits...

In fact, in 2003 (I presume it's the same for 2004) if you bought a vehicle to use for your business that weighed over 6,000 pounds you are allowed to deduct the full amount in one year. Makes for a pretty awesome deduction!

Pretty much any 3/4 ton truck and up weigh that much...

[dare630]

does anyone know on how we can get new or used trucks below what the general public pays

I don't know how many you mean when you made truck(s) plural...but if its more than 2 you may want to try a Dealers fleet manager. I know while working in law enforcement we get $1,000's off each car when purchasing several new vehicles at a time.

[frezel]

I bought a 2004 chevy silverado 4x4 crew cab 8ft bed and everything and i ma a start up business i hope it works but my thought was yes the reliabilty and the durability vs something used and not so trust worthy and also want to get into snow removal and large commercial jobs so i wanted new to keep peace of mind....

[Lawnworks]

New Truck

The most foolish financial thing you can do is buy a new vehicle. The amount they lose over the first four years is insane. Buy a truck 2-4 years old, lots of good looking work horse trucks that save you thousands. Plus you can work without worrying about scratching it up so bad

[Ground Works]

Valleywide

Hey Valleywide
Not sure how far away u are in PA from the ohio wv area but look for the paper the farm and dairy also look it up online I get that paper every week and it has several auctions in it for ohio wv and PA tons of equipment I am keeping my eye on it every week to see if I can pick up some good used stuff... also we have an auction house here and every once in awhile they sell some very good equip. so look for the auctions who do repo sales alot also

http://www.farmanddairy.com

[Stephen M.]

I have always purchased new since the 1000's that have gone into keeping the old junk running could have bought me worry free driving for at least 5 years of use. That truck is your lifeline to income, and if it's in the shop, do you have a back up plan to service your customers? It's a lesson I learned the hard way when I didn't have alot of cash coming in.

In Feb. we paid off a 1999 heavy duty F150 and it has approx. 49,000 mi after 5 years in the business and looks really good. In April I pay off another 1999 heavy duty F150 with 50,000mi of business use and it still looks really good. My theory is that employees treat a really nice looking truck better than if it looks like a piece of crap. My other truck, a 2001 F150 w/ extra cab has 69,000 mi on it and I have 2 more years to pay on it.

The point is, you are still going to pay somebody now or later in upkeep and I don't like purchasing somebody elses problem; I just want them to purchase mine.