# Why do you drive for low pay?



## Bayareadriver (Jul 18, 2017)

Haven't driven in months thought I'd give it a try today results 5 hours $58 130+ miles added to car filled gas before I started and after I finished used $11 total after gas $47 for 5 hours do you just do so you can report lose to IRS LOL


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## Trafficat (Dec 19, 2016)

Unemployability and flexibility are strong reasons.


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## Jufkii (Sep 17, 2015)

Bayareadriver said:


> Haven't driven in months thought I'd give it a try today results 5 hours $58 130+ miles added to car filled gas before I started and after I finished used $11 total after gas $47 for 5 hours do you just do so you can report lose to IRS LOL


Wish you could of fore warned my neighbor down the street about the low pay before he signed up.
He hated his old full time job so he quit to give Uber a try full time.

He bought a brand new Ford Edge. $32995. I saw the sticker on it. Bought a light up Uber sign that attaches on top . Bought an Uber hat and shirt to wear as well. . Proud as a peacock he told people his new job is "Operating a business out of his Car" as a "Professional Uber Driver" . Very dedicated at .85 a mile, .11 a minute.

I finally ran into Mr. "Professional Uber Driver' this morning and asked how it was going. Disappointment in the lack of tips and gas a major expense were 2 gripes right away. Didn't realize he would be picking up so many unfriendly people from bad areas as well. Still accepts every ride request even at long distances because it's the "right thing to do" even if not very profitable. Thinks he "might get in trouble" with Uber if he don't.

I asked him based on his dozens and dozens of spread sheets and stacks of paper work if they are showing him even making a profit . He kind of got mad and avoided the question. I didn't push it.

Neighbor down the street who knows him said he is thinking of returning to his old job he hated .But just on a part time basis . For now.. Same tired old story about another who drank too freely of the Uber Kool Aid.


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## HarveyLB (Jul 19, 2017)

Bayareadriver said:


> Haven't driven in months thought I'd give it a try today results 5 hours $58 130+ miles added to car filled gas before I started and after I finished used $11 total after gas $47 for 5 hours do you just do so you can report lose to IRS LOL


It's not a joke really. If you just do the bare minimum to stay active, you can get a lot of deductions and discounts.


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## Trafficat (Dec 19, 2016)

Jufkii said:


> Wish you could of fore warned my neighbor down the street about the low pay before he signed up.
> He hated his old full time job so he quit to give Uber a try full time.
> 
> He bought a brand new Ford Edge. $32995. I saw the sticker on it


His problem wasn't as much that he tried Uber full time... the problem was that he spent about ten times too much on a car to do it with!


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## HarveyLB (Jul 19, 2017)

Jufkii said:


> Wish you could of fore warned my neighbor down the street about the low pay before he signed up.
> He hated his old full time job so he quit to give Uber a try full time.
> 
> He bought a brand new Ford Edge. $32995. I saw the sticker on it. Bought a light up Uber sign that attaches on top . Bought an Uber hat and shirt to wear as well. . Proud as a peacock he told people his new job is "Operating a business out of his Car" as a "Professional Uber Driver" . Very dedicated at .85 a mile, .11 a minute.
> ...


Anybody who thinks you can make a living doing this is gonna be very disappointed. It's NOT a full time job. I can tell that in just 3 weeks. You'd really have to an idiot to think you can make a decent living doing this. I do this for fun, and I live in a party town that doubles in population every weekend. There's always a price surge at night because there's one bar after the next with thousands of ppl drinking till closing at 4am. The real concern, having driven a real cab 30 years ago, is some drunk, and they're all drunk, throws up in the car. Ya can't get that smell out. Do I have a collapsible garbage can with a barf bag. Me and a friend can make about 250 a night on half a tank of gas. The mialege is the biggest problem cause of the wear and tear. But if it's part time, it's ok. Limiting myself to weekends should lessen the beating on my car.


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## S1L1SC (Mar 20, 2017)

Good extra cash on a flexible schedule. Need to pay off some debt, this is a good way to do it.


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## popcollar2014 (Nov 15, 2016)

Finally got lucky on a Pool Shot


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## azndriver87 (Mar 23, 2015)

Jufkii said:


> Wish you could of fore warned my neighbor down the street about the low pay before he signed up.
> He hated his old full time job so he quit to give Uber a try full time.
> 
> He bought a brand new Ford Edge. $32995. I saw the sticker on it. Bought a light up Uber sign that attaches on top . Bought an Uber hat and shirt to wear as well. . Proud as a peacock he told people his new job is "Operating a business out of his Car" as a "Professional Uber Driver" . Very dedicated at .85 a mile, .11 a minute.
> ...


there's a problem with them:
1) new car: greatest depreciation in the 1year/30,000 miles
2) he got a car that eats up a lot of gas
3) new car so insurance is higher.


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## Uberfunitis (Oct 21, 2016)

Flexibility, I like to drive, opportunity to explore parts of the city I would never have seen otherwise.


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## cferrel (Dec 14, 2015)

I have not drove in 2 years and my driver account is still active somehow. I thought they would deactivate me long ago. However, I thought about using my uber referral code for the free ride +$5 and I work the hotel front desk at night while studying.


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## Steve2967 (Jun 14, 2017)

Jufkii said:


> Wish you could of fore warned my neighbor down the street about the low pay before he signed up.
> He hated his old full time job so he quit to give Uber a try full time.
> 
> He bought a brand new Ford Edge. $32995. I saw the sticker on it. Bought a light up Uber sign that attaches on top . Bought an Uber hat and shirt to wear as well. . Proud as a peacock he told people his new job is "Operating a business out of his Car" as a "Professional Uber Driver" . Very dedicated at .85 a mile, .11 a minute.
> ...


That was a really cool made up story, you should write books.


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## Jufkii (Sep 17, 2015)

azndriver87 said:


> there's a problem with them:
> 1) new car: greatest depreciation in the 1year/30,000 miles
> 2) he got a car that eats up a lot of gas
> 3) new car so insurance is higher.





Steve2967 said:


> That was a really cool made up story, you should write books.


I'll forward your opinion to him. That is if he exists. We're meeting up this Fri morn comparing notes over coffee after both driving the morning rush. Whoever does best dollar wise buys. If what you say is true and he doesn't exist then i guess I'll be talking to a wall and buying for myself. .You heard about Uber possibly putting Phantom cars on the map for whatever reason. His must be one of those.


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## Greenghost2212 (Feb 7, 2017)

HarveyLB said:


> Anybody who thinks you can make a living doing this is gonna be very disappointed. It's NOT a full time job. I can tell that in just 3 weeks. You'd really have to an idiot to think you can make a decent living doing this. I do this for fun, and I live in a party town that doubles in population every weekend. There's always a price surge at night because there's one bar after the next with thousands of ppl drinking till closing at 4am. The real concern, having driven a real cab 30 years ago, is some drunk, and they're all drunk, throws up in the car. Ya can't get that smell out. Do I have a collapsible garbage can with a barf bag. Me and a friend can make about 250 a night on half a tank of gas. The mialege is the biggest problem cause of the wear and tear. But if it's part time, it's ok. Limiting myself to weekends should lessen the beating on my car.


Bro u are a rookie. I've been doing this for almost 3 years now FULL time. Everybody's market is different. If u stay in the backwoods or a lil town then of course you aren't going to make a lot of money if u don't wanna work somewhere else. But if u are here in Chicago or San Francisco or something like that then it's easy to make money doing this with way less effort than a 50 k a year normal job.


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## Mars Troll Number 4 (Oct 30, 2015)

Greenghost2212 said:


> Bro u are a rookie. I've been doing this for almost 3 years now FULL time. Everybody's market is different. If u stay in the backwoods or a lil town then of course you aren't going to make a lot of money if u don't wanna work somewhere else. But if u are here in Chicago or San Francisco or something like that then it's easy to make money doing this with way less effort than a 50 k a year normal job.


depends on the market entirely,

You'll never make 50K a year after expenses if your getting 53c a paid mile 8 c minute with half your trips being min trips.


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## R James (Apr 25, 2017)

Greenghost2212 said:


> Bro u are a rookie. I've been doing this for almost 3 years now FULL time. Everybody's market is different. If u stay in the backwoods or a lil town then of course you aren't going to make a lot of money if u don't wanna work somewhere else. But if u are here in Chicago or San Francisco or something like that then it's easy to make money doing this with way less effort than a 50 k a year normal job.


Yup - you can do ok in Seattle too - good market, cherry pick hours with best yield, drive a car that's inexpensive to operate ...


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## sellkatsell44 (Oct 25, 2015)

Greenghost2212 said:


> Bro u are a rookie. I've been doing this for almost 3 years now FULL time. Everybody's market is different. If u stay in the backwoods or a lil town then of course you aren't going to make a lot of money if u don't wanna work somewhere else. But if u are here in Chicago or San Francisco or something like that then it's easy to make money doing this with *way less effort than a 50 k a year normal job*.


Not really.

Is it the toughest work in the area? No. But to sit on your arse for more then 40 hrs...I don't know how y'all do it. It's one of the reasons I loathe a desk job but the one I got now let's me stand when I want to and sit when I want to. It's fairly hard for some but pretty easy for me (just tedious with the paperwork, esp when I'm picking up slack for other people). I guess that's why my bf teases me that it's a glorified secretary job. And yes, I make more then 50k not including benefits like the occasional catered lunch, unlimited snacks and gym membership.

Drivers have to drive a lot, even if they're only chasing surges and doing x or above...to get to the 50k a year mark. And that's not counting the expenses (depreciation, gas, insurance, health care, etc).

And if he's from the Bay Area, San Jose specifically, the rent is horrific. He might be better off moving to Chicago and being an uber driver there living in the suburbs then the bay area.


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## Doughie (May 6, 2017)

Jufkii said:


> Wish you could of fore warned my neighbor down the street about the low pay before he signed up.
> He hated his old full time job so he quit to give Uber a try full time.
> 
> He bought a brand new Ford Edge. $32995. I saw the sticker on it. Bought a light up Uber sign that attaches on top . Bought an Uber hat and shirt to wear as well. . Proud as a peacock he told people his new job is "Operating a business out of his Car" as a "Professional Uber Driver" . Very dedicated at .85 a mile, .11 a minute.
> ...


I hope he at least got the 7 seater XL for that price. I'm retiring my 07 Odyssey in December and my next XL will be 7 or 8 years old, clean and with under 80,000 miles. $10,000 should do it.



Mears Troll Number 4 said:


> depends on the market entirely,
> 
> You'll never make 50K a year after expenses if your getting 53c a paid mile 8 c minute with half your trips being min trips.


At that rate you won't show any taxable income at all. It's mathematically impossible after deducting your 53.5 cents per mile, unless 90% of your miles are paid. Any city that considers zero taxable income as a job is going to be sorry when every full time driver qualifies for every welfare benefit ever invented whether they work 10 hours per week or 80.



Steve2967 said:


> That was a really cool made up story, you should write books.


Sure, it's made up. Uber and Lyft wouldn't exist if new drivers weren't falling for their fake earnings claims every day. Half the Ubers on the road are late model expensive cars even in markets like Orlando where the mileage rate is .65 before Uber's cut. Guys quit and new guys take their place.


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## Greenghost2212 (Feb 7, 2017)

sellkatsell44 said:


> Not really.
> 
> Is it the toughest work in the area? No. But to sit on your arse for more then 40 hrs...I don't know how y'all do it. It's one of the reasons I loathe a desk job but the one I got now let's me stand when I want to and sit when I want to. It's fairly hard for some but pretty easy for me (just tedious with the paperwork, esp when I'm picking up slack for other people). I guess that's why my bf teases me that it's a glorified secretary job. And yes, I make more then 50k not including benefits like the occasional catered lunch, unlimited snacks and gym membership.
> 
> ...


U just said it in your statement. U are allowed to stand when u want to. So can I. Plus can smoke when I want to and take as many breaks as I want. And you right rent and expenses are cheaper here in Chicago than the west coast.



Doughie said:


> I hope he at least got the 7 seater XL for that price. I'm retiring my 07 Odyssey in December and my next XL will be 7 or 8 years old, clean and with under 80,000 miles. $10,000 should do it.
> 
> At that rate you won't show any taxable income at all. It's mathematically impossible after deducting your 53.5 cents per mile, unless 90% of your miles are paid. Any city that considers zero taxable income as a job is going to be sorry when every full time driver qualifies for every welfare benefit ever invented whether they work 10 hours per week or 80.
> 
> Sure, it's made up. Uber and Lyft wouldn't exist if new drivers weren't falling for their fake earnings claims every day. Half the Ubers on the road are late model expensive cars even in markets like Orlando where the mileage rate is .65 before Uber's cut. Guys quit and new guys take their place.


Those earning rates are definitely not fake in my market and a lot of others.


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## Steve2967 (Jun 14, 2017)

Jufkii said:


> I'll forward your opinion to him. That is if he exists. We're meeting up this Fri morn comparing notes over coffee after both driving the morning rush. Whoever does best dollar wise buys. If what you say is true and he doesn't exist then i guess I'll be talking to a wall and buying for myself. .You heard about Uber possibly putting Phantom cars on the map for whatever reason. His must be one of those.


It's funny your post refers to him as just a "neighbor up the street." And you "finally ran into him one day."

Yet now your breakfast buddies...

Lol you guys are too easy....


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## Nomad (Jul 30, 2015)

Bayareadriver said:


> Haven't driven in months thought I'd give it a try today results 5 hours $58 130+ miles added to car filled gas before I started and after I finished used $11 total after gas $47 for 5 hours do you just do so you can report lose to IRS LOL


There are 2 main types of Uber drivers: (1) the ignorant, and (2) the desperate.

(1) By ignorant, I don't mean stupid - I mean there's a lack of knowledge. I'm ignorant of rocket science, poodles, and Indian cuisine. But back to my point, the ignorant ones are usually the ones bragging about all the money they make and then clamming up when they're asked what is their cost per mile. They are ignorant of their expenses.

It also includes those that are retired and using Uber losses to offset other taxable income. As an Uber driver, your liability is through the roof and to put one's retirement home and the nest egg up against that is... well... ignorant. So this group is ignorant of the liability involved and the potential for losing it all at any given time.

I'll also throw the "this is the easiest minimum wage job I've ever had" drivers into this category. While I can somewhat agree with that theory, being a pizza delivery driver is so easy that most do it stoned out of their gourd - and they make better money and generally set their own shifts. So this group would be ignorant of the other options to make money that are out there.

(2) The desperate can be ignorant, but it's usually by choice. These are the drivers that don't care what their costs are because they need cash in hand now. It could be from a litany of things such as overdue bills or an inability to qualify for a "legitimate" job (I'm not calling driving for Uber illegitimate, I'm mocking the legitimacy of other jobs that have qualifiers that exclude 80% of applications).

Now there are those out there who do make a decent hourly rate and know and keep their expenses and liability low, but it is an extremely small percentage and I bet if you could find one and ask, they would agree that they fall into the "desperate" category despite their profitability.

And *THAT*, folks, is the true success story of Uber: successfully exploiting the mass of ignorant and/or desperate citizens in order to provide a public service and profit insanely from it. It's genius, really.



Mears Troll Number 4 said:


> depends on the market entirely,
> 
> You'll never make 50K a year after expenses if your getting 53c a paid mile 8 c minute with half your trips being min trips.


I think he was comparing his effort to that of a "legitimate" job that pays 50K... saying that his effort with Uber is "way less."



HarveyLB said:


> Anybody who thinks you can make a living doing this is gonna be very disappointed. It's NOT a full time job. I can tell that in just 3 weeks.


Hindsight is 20/20, but congrats on recognizing it so soon. The problem that a lot of drivers have, though, is that pre-2016 this job wasn't promoted as a part-time gig. I remember the "make $1k a week" ads. And a lot of us saw the potential of it being full-time and ran with it. Week by week, the rates dropped, the immoral actions by Uber increased, and here we are being told that this is a skill-less job not designed to be full-time.

And surprisingly, pax have clearly implied that they want to ride with the skill-less driver that cut them off yesterday because "it's cheap."


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## Nick781 (Dec 7, 2014)

Bayareadriver said:


> Haven't driven in months thought I'd give it a try today results 5 hours $58 130+ miles added to car filled gas before I started and after I finished used $11 total after gas $47 for 5 hours do you just do so you can report lose to IRS LOL


I made 110 in 5 hours last night in Boston. You must be in a bad area or just a bad night.


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## HarveyLB (Jul 19, 2017)

Jufkii said:


> Wish you could of fore warned my neighbor down the street about the low pay before he signed up.
> He hated his old full time job so he quit to give Uber a try full time.
> 
> He bought a brand new Ford Edge. $32995. I saw the sticker on it. Bought a light up Uber sign that attaches on top . Bought an Uber hat and shirt to wear as well. . Proud as a peacock he told people his new job is "Operating a business out of his Car" as a "Professional Uber Driver" . Very dedicated at .85 a mile, .11 a minute.
> ...


This is a damn joke. Glad I'm a teacher and don't need this shit. Was using it for steak and lobster dinners. I happen to be lucky in many ways: I own a 2017. I live in a summer town that turns fire engine RED on Fri and Sat nights. I was making 200-250 each night. And STILL, according to my spread sheet, I'd be lucky to break even if I didn't go out during the day driving for base fare. The mileage and wear and tear on the breaks and suspension system are gonna wipe out any profits soon. MY ADVICE: IF YOU'RE NOT AS LUCKY TO LIVE IN A SPOT THAT GLOWS RED CONSISTENTLY? QUIT! NOW, there are idiots driving all the way from upstate to my area and saturating it. No turf barriers. They ruined it for themselves and the rest of us. The map doesn't glow red anymore because of too many drivers. You'd make more money and probably get medical benefits at your local McDonalds.



Uberfunitis said:


> Flexibility, I like to drive, opportunity to explore parts of the city I would never have seen otherwise.


You really need to reassess


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## Mars Troll Number 4 (Oct 30, 2015)

Nick781 said:


> I made 110 in 5 hours last night in Boston. You must be in a bad area or just a bad night.


Some areas pay as little as..

71c (53c)
http://uberestimate.com/prices/Orlando/
11c (8c) per minute

VS
1.29 (.96) per mile? is this correct for Boston?
20c (15) per minute
http://uberestimate.com/prices/Boston/

So some markets are getting as little as 55% what you are getting per mile and aren't in as busy markets as Boston is, with more empty time and more deadheading around.

So.. rough guess... with Orlando rates in 5 hours you would have mad about $55-60 give or take.



Nick781 said:


> I made 110 in 5 hours last night in Boston. You must be in a bad area or just a bad night.


So yes.. bad area your 100% correct. Some markets are just 100% crap areas to work, you are correct.


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## Nick781 (Dec 7, 2014)

Mears Troll Number 4 said:


> Some areas pay as little as..
> 
> 71c (53c)
> http://uberestimate.com/prices/Orlando/
> ...


Boston is 1.03 per mile and 0.16 per minute


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## Mars Troll Number 4 (Oct 30, 2015)

Nick781 said:


> Boston is 1.03 per mile and 0.16 per minute


Paid to you?
Or the rate uber charges before marking it up?

Either way that's like 20c+ more than orlando per mile.

Looking at it, your on the 20% commission rate right?

well new drivers fall under the 25% rate.

Orlando drivers used to get A LOT more than they currently do.

I used to get $1.32, now the Orlando rate is .53... That's a 60% rate cut over what i used to get.

So the rates in Boston aren't as low as they could be. They may not stay that high forever.

And people wonder why i drive a taxi


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## Leo1983 (Jul 3, 2017)

Trafficat said:


> Unemployability and flexibility are strong reasons.


Those aren't reasons. You're working for free. Get any minimum wage job and you will have given yourself a 100% raise


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## Trafficat (Dec 19, 2016)

Leo1983 said:


> Those aren't reasons. You're working for free. Get any minimum wage job and you will have given yourself a 100% raise


I actually make a profit, although it may be less than minimum wage, I believe it is within a couple of dollars either way.

If you are unemployable you can't keep a minimum wage job, so the fact that you could make more is irrelevant.

Minimum wage jobs tend to be extremely hard work, and you have to be able to punch a clock on time each day, and get along at least somewhat well with bosses.


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## Leo1983 (Jul 3, 2017)

Trafficat said:


> I actually make a profit, although it may be less than minimum wage, I believe it is within a couple of dollars either way.
> 
> If you are unemployable you can't keep a minimum wage job, so the fact that you could make more is irrelevant.
> 
> Minimum wage jobs tend to be extremely hard work, and you have to be able to punch a clock on time each day, and get along at least somewhat well with bosses.


 I don't know man here in California there are so many easy minimum wage jobs. Mostly doing retail tasks (airhead work) they pay $12 an hr and full time gets benefits which equals to $6 an hr value. If you add retirement into the aspect it's even more. Plus if you get sick your lights won't be turned off. 
If you get fired you will have a little extra to get you through the tough job search process. God forbit you hurt yourself on the job you won't have to pay a $1000 deductible. 
And so so many other beautiful socialist safety net we have here don't apply to a rideshare driver. Because we are considered independent contractors. 
The most dangerous thing a human being can do is drive. And we do it for a living. And on top of that we get paid less than Timmy down the street mowing lawns?! Wtf seriously you're injesting 26 x the polution in the air. 
And people still drive. Wow this in itself is enough to lose faith in humanity. 
Fun fact. A full time driver injests enough carcinogens to be considered a pack a day smoker. 
So what happened to this generation? You are slaves and you're fighting to prove that you're not. Unite and fight the powers that be. Take your voices back. The census Bureau says a lower middle class person living in Los Angeles has to make minimum $33 an hour to be considered lower middle class. 
How many of you make $33 an hr?? And how many of you think you're middle class ($75 hr minimum)??
Well you're not. You're poor. Either deal with it or march. I say. 
Wow I need to sleep.


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## RealCheetahz (Jun 6, 2017)

Nomad said:


> There are 2 main types of Uber drivers: (1) the ignorant, and (2) the desperate.
> 
> (1) By ignorant, I don't mean stupid - I mean there's a lack of knowledge. I'm ignorant of rocket science, poodles, and Indian cuisine. But back to my point, the ignorant ones are usually the ones bragging about all the money they make and then clamming up when they're asked what is their cost per mile. They are ignorant of their expenses.
> 
> ...


There is a 3rd group.. starting business owner.. I drive just for Lyft, but I am in the process of starting my own transportation business.. very good money can be made and profitable in the transporting business. Uber/Lyft give you access to countless number of ppl, which you truly can't get access to any other way. For me it is a way to plant bugs in ppl ears about my upcoming transportation business and to get a feel for my market.

You are always going to have expenses in a business, transportation is no different. As far as vehicles go, that depreciation and maintenance bit is well over played A LOT. A well taken care of and driven vehicle can well outlast it's depreciation. You cannot compare a hourly job with a profit driven job.. and you must define what profit means. Profit at the end of the day means you have more money coming in then going out. So if you have $300 left over at the end of the month after all Expenses both business and personal are concerned... then guess what your coming out ahead. And I MEan all expenses, food gas, bills, savings, etc.

In fact did you know if you start your own legit business, with name and all and you buy a vehicle for said business and use it for 50+% business. You can deduct the ENTIRE cost of the vehicle for tax deductible for that year. And I'm pretty sure you can include uber lyft into your business earnings and expenses. Again some of us are doing this for bigger reasons.


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## Ridester_Staff (Aug 25, 2017)

Am I the only one here who drives because it's fun? I guess I'm a social person, but I just really enjoy driving and meeting new people. Some of the stories you here from talking with people really open your eyes to how other people live


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## Leo1983 (Jul 3, 2017)

It would be a blast if it wasn't volunteer work.


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## Solidwolf34 (Aug 16, 2017)

HarveyLB said:


> Anybody who thinks you can make a living doing this is gonna be very disappointed. It's NOT a full time job. I can tell that in just 3 weeks. You'd really have to an idiot to think you can make a decent living doing this. I do this for fun, and I live in a party town that doubles in population every weekend. There's always a price surge at night because there's one bar after the next with thousands of ppl drinking till closing at 4am. The real concern, having driven a real cab 30 years ago, is some drunk, and they're all drunk, throws up in the car. Ya can't get that smell out. Do I have a collapsible garbage can with a barf bag. Me and a friend can make about 250 a night on half a tank of gas. The mialege is the biggest problem cause of the wear and tear. But if it's part time, it's ok. Limiting myself to weekends should lessen the beating on my car.


It's called report the vomiting and bank on 150 cleaning fee each time.


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## Trafficat (Dec 19, 2016)

Leo1983 said:


> And how many of you think you're middle class ($75 hr minimum)??
> Well you're not. You're poor. Either deal with it or march. I say.
> Wow I need to sleep.


There is probably a better standard of living being poor today than rich 100-200 years ago.

According to the Census Bereau they do not define middle class.
https://www.census.gov/topics/income-poverty/income/about/faqs.html#par_textimage_5


> *What is the income of the "middle class"?*
> 
> The Census Bureau does not have an official definition of "middle class."


$75 an hour is middle class? That's $156K a year. That's a lot higher than most professionals make.

Even $33 an hour will probably not be obtainable without a college degree.

Per the Census Bureau:


> *What is the median earnings for a man or woman with a Bachelor's Degree?*
> 
> Men 25 years old and over who work full-time year-round and have a Bachelor's Degree have 2001 median annual earnings of $53,108. The comparable figure for women is $39,818. You may access more data on earnings by education through our detailed income tabulations page our detailed income tabulations page or our historical income tables.


According to the government, I doubt any full time Uber driver is even in poverty until you take the standard mileage deduction out of his income. If Uber drivers had to use "actual expenses" rather than the standard mileage deduction, probably you could stay above the FPL as long as you drove a small sedan and lived in a market that gave regular pings.

https://www.healthcare.gov/glossary/federal-poverty-level-FPL/



> The 2017 federal poverty level (FPL) income numbers below are used to calculate eligibility for Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP). 2016 numbers are slightly lower, and are used to calculate savings on Marketplace insurance plans for 2017.
> 
> 
> $12,060 for individuals
> ...


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## Leo1983 (Jul 3, 2017)

Yup minimum standard of living in Los Angeles is $33 an hr for the household. 
The census does point out that most working class people are underpaid.


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