[joe horab]

hello,

i am piledriver in the carpenters union and have been working around big machinary for a few years now... i started to get the idea to invest in rental some rental equipment such as maybe fork trucks, lifts, and if i can afford it in the future, loaders for plowing plaza parking lots.. i would plan on buying a few years old (no older than 2010-2012) i also own a few apartment complexes so i am always looking for new things to invest in outside of real estate.. i understand that with buying heavy equipment comes insurance, trailer, permits to drive on the road, etc.... would it be smart to buy a few lifts and try to rent them out to contractors? i have talked to a few contractors on job sites before and i get good and bad feedback.. does anyone have any personal relation to this or an opinion? open to ideas... thanks a lot

 

[Kingcarpenter1]

Depends on what your willing to invest in insurance. The risk goes well beyond the equiptment not to mention maintenance, breakdowns, a service guy to send out. Downtime gets in your pocket quick

Mike

 

[griz]

you will also need a certified tech to make repairs, do maintenance and certify the machine is in good safe working order.

many individuals treat rental equipment like it is someone else's garbage.

like mike said, delivery/pick up guy, service guy, storage yard, insurances....

and when you get the call...hey this POS broke down, its at whatever location, come and get it....

 

[Seven-Delta-FortyOne]

I have a few pieces of equipment, and while I thought about it for about 7 seconds, I would never do it.

1, there are certified inspections and maintenance that MUST Abe completed every year at the minimum.

2, renters tend to beat up equipment , and when it breaks down, it’s costing them money every second it’s down.
It’s your responsibility to get a tech out there NOW, or a new unit.

I would not rent from anyone who could not provide that.

3, with needing to have a garage for repairs, a service tech, transportation, and enough equipment to be competitive, you’ll need a lot of units before you become profitable.

For me, it’s FAR more profitable for me/my company to perform work with the equipment, or loan it to a buddy in return for some help on one of my projects, 😬 than to try to go onto the rental business.

 

[VinylHanger]

Liability is a huge one. And buying old used equipment can be an OSHA nightmare. Everything needs to be kept in running order, especially on lifts and stuff that has life safety issues.

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[Fishindude]

Why would anyone want to rent (2010-12) older equipment from you when they can get brand new stuff from any of the big rental houses?

Equipment rental is a highly competitive business and I am often baffled at how cheaply we can rent this stuff. I don't know why anyone in their right mind would want to get in the middle of that dog fight.

 

[StabMasterArs0n]

I have problems with tools being abused in house. I would hate to see what happened to my equipment if we loaned it out.

 

[Randy Bush]

Being I rent equipment fairly often and have bought a fair amount from the place I deal with I try to take care of it , feel I get treated better for it.

 

[Ken360]

That's a tough racket to break into, and all it would take is one major breakdown or theft to suck all the profit out of it. You'd be better off investing in a few dumpsters or dump trailers and renting those out. Whatever you decide to rent out, GPS the hell out of it, theft is a major problem on construction sites.