Not only is the United States home to a massive manufacturing industry and many farms, but it is also home to a huge transportation network. All of those goods and foods must be delivered to warehouses and retailers, and they are being delivered as freight in trucks, jets, ships, and trains alike. Ships can carry many tons of cargo across the ocean and deliver items to ports around the world, and jets can make very fast deliveries and travel over any type of terrain. The majority of carrier companies today are on the smaller side, though, and can’t afford ships or jets. But they can afford semi trucks, and many of these trucks are traveling across American roads every day to deliver goods all over the place. This is a robust industry, and many of those trucks are in fact reefer trucks. What is a reefer trailer, and how might company owners choose used reefer trailers for sale? Used Thermo King refrigeration units, for example, may appeal due to their discount price, and new reefer trailers, while more expensive, will be in perfect condition. When it comes to choosing used reefer trailers for sale, a buyer should know what they are looking for. Truck finances are another vital aspect of finding used reefer trailers for sale.
All About Reefers
A reefer trailer is a semi truck trailer designed to carry cold items, and they can chill their interior anywhere from 70 degrees to -20 degrees Fahrenheit according to need. Such trailers have insulated walls, as well as air conditioner units to create and maintain those low temperatures. Reefer trailers may vary in size somewhat, ranging from 28 to 53 feet long, and the largest of them may be 13.5 feet tall and weigh as much as 44,000 pounds or so.
The current market for reefer trailers is enormous, and still growing. Over 500,000 reefer trucks are in operation in the United States alone, and more and more are being ordered. Around the world, the reefer trailer market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 4.8% from 2016 to 2022, and it may reach a value of $7.65 billion by the year 2022. Often, these trucks are making deliveries for grocery stores, restaurants, and other food-based businesses, to deliver meats, dairy, frozen processed food, and more. Such cargo would spoil in a regular truck trailer, but not in a reefer unit.
Purchasing Reefers for Work
The owner of a truck carrier company may decide to start making deliveries for grocery stores and restaurants, and that means finding used reefer trailers for sale. When it comes to used units, the buyer may want to choose a gently used unit, and look it over first to check it for any wear and tear. This includes looking over the wheels and axles, as well as testing the cooler units to ensure that they can generate and maintain the desired temperatures inside the reefer. A gently used unit might be bought for a considerable discount. A new unit will almost certainly cost more, but it will be in perfect condition.
Either way, a buyer will probably turn to specialized truck financing services to afford a purchase like this. While big banks are reluctant to make loans to smaller companies (seeing them as a risk), specialized lenders are more generous in their terms. A lender will look over the borrower’s personal and business credit scores, and check for red flags such as a history of delinquent loan payments or previous bankruptcies. If conditions are favorable, the lender may get a generous loan on a reefer truck, potentially getting as much as 100% of the truck’s value in a loan, and at a low interest rate. Even if the borrower has poor credit scores, they might still get approved for a loan, though with less favorable terms. For a loan like this, the truck itself may act as collateral, to make the loan more secure and thus more appealing for the lender. A borrower might also gt a loan for one of their current trucks, and get a sum based on a percentage of that truck’s current value. The lender will want data on that truck to carefully assess its value for a loan.
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