Trucking & logistics
The carrier guide.
Industry guide
Funding for moving companies
Moving is trucking with a summer: half the year’s revenue can land between May and September, paid mostly by card at delivery, while corporate relocations pay in 30 to 60 days. Trucks are the capital cost, and winter is the test.
How the money moves
Residential moves pay deposits and balances by card at delivery. Corporate and government relocations bill on terms and may involve third-party relocation companies that pay slowly. Labor is seasonal and hired in spring; trucks, trailers, and equipment are financed assets; fuel, tolls, and insurance are heavy fixed and variable costs. Claims for damaged goods require a reserve. Interstate operations add DOT registration, insurance minimums, and compliance costs.
Two worked scenarios
Scenario A: adding two 26-foot trucks for the summer
Hypothetically $130,000 of trucks financed as equipment over 5 years at 11% runs about $2,830 a month year-round; an advance for even half that amount would debit $2,773 a week (hypothetical 1.28 factor, 3% fee, 30 weeks) through the winter. Ask the equipment lender about seasonal payment schedules.
Scenario B: $48,000 owed by relocation-management companies on net-60
Invoice financing on corporate relocation receivables (hypothetical 2% per 30 days) costs about $1,920 over 60 days and turns the slow payers into cash the week the move completes.
Hypothetical numbers, labeled as illustrations; not quotes.
What fits what
| Need | Usually fits | Usually doesn’t |
|---|---|---|
| Trucks, trailers, lift gates | Equipment financing (ask about seasonal schedules) | Advance |
| Corporate relocation receivables | Invoice financing | Daily debits |
| Spring hiring and marketing before the peak | Line arranged in the fall | March advance |
| Winter trough | Reserve built in summer; line | Emergency advance in January |
Questions specific to this business
- Does the equipment lender offer seasonal or skip payments for moving trucks?
- Do relocation-management companies allow assignment of receivables?
- What claims reserve does my insurer and my history suggest?
- Do DOT and state licensing costs fall due in the off-season, and can they be financed through the broker?
Watch for. Advances sized on July deposits are repaid in December; this is the single most common failure pattern in seasonal service businesses.
What Fast Mula is and isn't. Fast Mula helps you compare business-funding structures and submit one inquiry. Nothing on this site is an offer, approval, guaranteed rate, or guaranteed timeline. Any funding depends on a provider's own review, and terms vary by state.
Common questions
Can a new moving company finance a truck?
Commonly with a down payment and personal guarantee; used trucks within age limits are financeable. Working-capital products wait for deposit history.
Related
Seasonal financing
Plan the trough.
Equipment financing
Trucks and trailers.
Cleaning & janitorial
Mobilizing a contract paid net-30.
Landscaping & lawn care
The March ramp and the winter gap.
Moving companies? See what fits
Tell us about the timing, the need, and the numbers.