Contractors are just one example of the many businesses that typically go through commercial truck financing and lease all types of vehicles, from passenger vans, to work trucks, to heavy duty dump trucks, whether your trade is logging or waste disposal.
Even a single truck business can enjoy the tax benefits and cash advantages of leasing without the risks associated with retail leasing, such as mileage limits and other restrictions.
If you are looking into commercial truck financing, you should first determine what make and model truck you need. You find the trucks and negotiate your best purchase price with the owner or company. When you find a good deal, contact a financing company for credit approval. Most truck financing and leasing services will work to help locate trucks that meet your requirements, place the order for the truck, and finance trucks and vans with the best lease plan available for you. Sometimes they will even deliver the truck or van to where they are needed anywhere in the United States. At the end of your lease, you have the option of giving the trucks back to the financing company or purchasing them.
Mack Commercial Finance is an example of a service that specializes in commercial truck financing and leasing. A Mack full-service truck lease provides a list of services such as parts, tires, taxes, permits, licensing, fuel cards, truck washing and substitution. You can also invest in vehicle insurance and road-side assistance .
If your company is looking for a van for business trips or company getaways, consider commercial truck financing on a 15-passenger van. Many corporations, federal government agencies, non-profit organizations, shuttle companies, and other state and local agencies decide to lease or finance a vehicle through a commercial vehicle financing and leasing service. These services offer leases on Ford, GMC, Dodge, or Chevy vans for as short as one year or as long as 60 months. Most of these leases offer no down payment, lower payments than if you purchased, fast write-offs for your business and off balance sheet financing (the good kind, not the Enron kind).
There are two types of leasing programs a company can agree to when it comes to commercial truck financing. Open end leases are usually used for commercial business leasing and contain no mileage limits, body damage charges or paint/sign restrictions. You are, however, responsible for paying any differences in the estimated lease-end value (called the residual) and the actual market value at the end of the lease. Sometimes this can be quite a large amount of money if the market value of the vehicle has dropped. Usually the residual for an open-end lease is set much lower than, say that of a non-business closed-end lease. This reduces your lease-end risk, but keep in mind that it will increase your monthly payment. A closed end, or walk away, lease is usually for individual consumers. When your lease ends, you simply return the vehicle and the leasing company takes the financial hit, not you. Some businesses choose a walk away lease because if the vehicle ends up being more than the residual, you have the option to purchase it. Companies may decide that they may want to buy the vehicle and keep driving it, or they may choose to sell it in order to make a profit. This happens quite often.
By Kelley Caner