A long-time Northlend client called us with a tough question:
“How do we keep our trucks on the road when cash flow’s this tight?”
This customer hauls refrigerated freight year-round — produce and frozen goods from California and Florida up to Canada, then whatever loads they can find back down south. It’s a high-demand business, but also one that lives and dies by cash flow.
They’ve got five refrigerated trailers, all 2019–2020 models, and still owe about twenty grand on each. The problem? Those payments are adding up fast — nearly ten thousand dollars a month — and the freight market hasn’t been kind lately.
They’re not behind yet, but you can see the wall coming. Another slow season and the math won’t work.
Most people in that situation just try to hang on, hoping things will turn around. But by the time they realize they can’t keep up, their credit’s taken a hit — and by then, it’s too late to do anything about it.
That’s why we suggested something counterintuitive: refinance now, before it becomes a problem.
We ran the numbers and showed them that by consolidating the remaining $100,000 across the five trailers into a new four-year term, they could drop their payments to around $2,500 a month. That’s a $7,500 difference — every single month — without losing a single trailer.
Of course, it’s not a perfect solution. They’d extend their term from twelve months to forty-eight, and yes, they’d pay more interest over time. But it gives them something more valuable than savings — breathing room. The kind of flexibility that can keep a business alive through the slow season.
We’ve worked with this customer for almost a decade. So, this wasn’t about chasing a commission. It was about being honest — even if that means telling them something they might not want to hear.
Right now, they’re still deciding. They’re hesitant to commit to another four years when they’re so close to the end of the current term. But the truth is, if they wait until the pressure hits, refinancing won’t even be an option.
Sometimes, the smartest move isn’t paying less — it’s buying yourself time.
If your truck or trailer payments are strangling your cash flow, don’t wait until you’re out of options. Talk to us before the numbers start dictating your choices.
Because in equipment finance, timing is everything.