Has anyone here...

..started to feel like you are just tired of bounty hunting? I used to love this part of my business, but now it just seems like more and more of a hassle and a bore. I still really dig general investigations, repos, PPO work and especially teaching. Bounty hunting? Meh

_________________

Bryan A. Mondy
SPECIAL SERVICES BUREAU
TX DPS PSB LIC #A14012
Owner/Manger/Investigator
General Investigations-Fugitive Recovery-Vehicle Repossession-Personal Protection

(214) 402-2059

Well as for Bounty Hunting .. it is Illegal in FL.. ya have to be a Licensed Surety Agent by the State to Write Bail and Do Pick Up's within FL...

I hate doing pick up's as I have been shot and also had to shoot several people in my days as a cop .. so knocking a door or going after a defendant who has a bench warrant does not make me a happy camper nor excite me the least.. but the clients I personally write bonds for know they BETTER NOT MAKE ME LOOK FOR THEM .. and They BETTER SHOW UP @ their court dates..cause I will hunt them down and not be the nice guy I was when I got them out originally.... also there is not much money in doing pick up's..

The money here is executing bonds for the Company and Writing my Personal Client's Bonds when they are in trouble.. (yes, I have my regs that get arrested monthly).. that is where my money is.. I unfortunately lost a $27,000 DUI Bond Today .. the wife of the Defendant used some other Bondsman .. that was $1350 I almost had in my pocket if I got the bond.. oh well, win some lose some..

I do P.I. work here for a nice hourly fee plus my costs .. (Ex: Vehicle Tracker $150 per day, Driver Lic Checks, DMV ... Work.. Property Appraiser...etc..all to the Clients Bill) getting my Agency License very soon to sub contract out all the work so I can just sit back a little..

Also do Body Guard work for Dignitaries and Celebs... when they are in town.. I am offered to Travel all the time but usually turn it down due to my Beach Business I have here and need to be on top of my employees..plus I dont like to dabble in other states that are not familiar with carry laws under HR 218 for Former LEO's.. I always seem to bump into that one cop out of state that does not know his azz from his elbow and thinks he has a gun collar... but when he gets schooled and learns that I can carry in ANY STATE.. they usually bow their head and walk away with a Low Whisper.. saying Sorry to me.. my FL CCW allows carry in 34 States and I use the HR 218 Permit for the the rest that dont cover my FL Carry Permit.. so it all works out for me..

As for teaching .. that might be in my future but I hate being indoors.. so I would really have to think about teaching..

Over all I like the Bail Bond Business .. it is cut throat here and you gotta hustle to make money .. I am lazy and do not hustle.. I have supplemental incomes coming in from my Pension and Business here so if I make money in the Bail Bond Business great.. if no money is made this month writing bonds .. oh well .. I am still floating well..

Guess if you are burnt out .. start looking at your options.. that is what I always told cops I worked with that started bitching to me how the job succks so much for 8 hours when I rode with these miserable guys .. I always told them .. well I dont hate it that much yet like you do... so why dont you do me a favor .. either stop complaining to me .. or Quit the Police Force.. Mc D's is always hiring !

Good Luck in your career.. hope you find that "Nook" you are looking for

_________________
JEFF P.
Limited Surety Agent (FL) - License # P_2O8124_
Private Investigator (FL) - License # C_27OOO33_
NABBI Member



"Surprise Sex is the Best Thing to Wake up to, UNLESS, You are in Jail... "

Blue, I am exactly the same position and I think that gives us a very big edge... I suppose that is why I am so laid back... frankly, if I don't write something... I still have a little coming in... that tends to make you a little less stressed as the day wears on.

I don't particularly like chasing skips either but in this business, if you write bonds, you will ultimately have skips... if you ain't gettin' skips, you ain't writing... I write very close to the hip but even so, I have my moments and I do have a few running from time to time... thank God there aren't that many.

I do enjoy the bond business however, it keeps my toys in the garage running smooth and gas in my boat... and motorcycles... and a few bucks in my pocket... so I can get me a nice little new gun from time to time.............. the overall business however, on a national level it seems is on the slow down... we will see where it goes.... hopefully it will pick back up soon.

_________________
Bill Marx, Sr.
"FREE STATE BAIL BONDS"
"FREE STATE INVESTIGATIONS"
DCJS: 99-176979
Cell: 434-294-0222

"Endeavor to Persevere" "Lone Watie"

"Good judgment comes from experience, and a lot of that , comes from bad judgment" "Will Rogers"

See, now I know, I should have started writing before the economy went south. With all the areas that I cover, I still can't get ends to meet. If I wrote, that would be one more stream to pull from. I have got to get that started, soon.

_________________
********************
Thomas SnoWolf
FRN# 1999
GAPB 20120726
NSIS ST0707
http://www.rocksolidrg.com
"The hero is not the man that acts without fear,
He is the man that acts inspite of fear"

I wish I had more business. We are from a rural area and the bondsman do not want to lose that money anymore so I am slow. Any suggestions???

Queston D Huff
Absolute Apprehension
Central Pa
(717)994-3132
24/7/365

Not to be short or funny .... but get a day job... or as I have been saying for many, many years... do not get into this business without having a regular job... this will only be a "regular" job after many years of struggling and then... only a few will ever really succeed in making a good living... you can do it but you damn well better have .............. as some of the more astute members here have said............ "MULTIPLE STREAMS OF INCOME"

and I have said again............... DO NOT QUIT YOUR DAY JOB!!!

Absolutely the truth...


PS... let me add a little something here... you can get creative with your advertising... you can start going to bond hearings... even though you are not supposed to solicit on court property... I have gone to many bond hearings and had people approach me because I have a clip on ID that is issued by DCJS, which is legal and also I have the words "Bail Bonds" embroidered on the back of one of my jackets and also on the front breast pocket... it is small but legal and visible and I sit on the front row and say nothing... everyone behind me knows exactly who I am and I do not approach anyone... but they do approach me... you can set up billboards and signs on property close to the courthouse or the jail... phones and ads are not that expensive if you use your head and don't go overboard... my total cost in monthly phone ads and bills is about $500... I know guys in northern Virginia that are spending thousands monthly for ads... maybe they are paying off.... maybe not.................. but you can get creative and use your head... you can do things that do not cost a lot but will generate business... hand out cards when proper... put card holders in your local establishments... ask local businesses if you can put a small sign in their window... you can do all sorts of stuff to get business... but always be above board and professional in your appearance and approach.

... and keep this thought in your mind.... "You are in control, do not sit and say.... ghee, I wish I had more business... get out there and create it... " That is the difference between successful people and failures... if you want it bad enough... you can get it............. regardless of the economy or the slowdown... it is still there if you want it.

_________________
Bill Marx, Sr.
"FREE STATE BAIL BONDS"
"FREE STATE INVESTIGATIONS"
DCJS: 99-176979
Cell: 434-294-0222

"Endeavor to Persevere" "Lone Watie"

"Good judgment comes from experience, and a lot of that , comes from bad judgment" "Will Rogers"

Multiple revenue streams is essential, having multiple disciplines for those revenue streams is key to surviving economic turmoil. As long as they don't repo the blocks holding up my double wide, I will be ok.

Now, for a pearl of wisdom I don't believe that I have previously shared here before:

The 10 year success rule

Do what ever you do for ten years, then hire someone else to run it and try something new. If you apply all that you have learned from your previous failures, you will ensure your success in your latest venture. The excitement for starting something new will invigorate you. As the world famous plunderer, L. Scott Harrell has said, "rinse, lather and repeat!"

There are negatives, like you will never generate the same revenue with an employee as you will if you run it yourself. This is due to the salary that would have been your income, as well as they will never work as hard for you as youbwill for yourself. You only have so many hours to sell in one day, so you need a force multiplier to increase your statio in life.

Now I have to go check my thump tank and propane... Maintaining 180 degrees in this weather can get expensive!

Scott

_________________
R.E. "Scott" MacLean III

"Leaders are like Eagles, you never see them in a flock, but one at a time"

Chesapeake Group Investigations, Inc.
Chesapeake Bail Bonds
877-574-0500
301-392-1100 (fax)
301-392-1900 (Office)

First, thank you all for your input. I have been a PI for the past 16 years. I love this field. I have always been the type to have multiple irons in the fire with multiple sources of income in the field and it has done me well. Its just that over the past year, the fugitive thing has just not excited or interested me like it used to. All of my other areas of interest remain at a high level, especially teaching. I think when I started teaching last year and getting questions from students about bounty hunting and the industry in general, that's when it started to change. Don't get me wrong, I will go out and snatch someone up if it is worth the time and money. Now, however, I distribute most of that work out to my younger team members who do a damn good job.

_________________

Bryan A. Mondy
SPECIAL SERVICES BUREAU
TX DPS PSB LIC #A14012
Owner/Manger/Investigator
General Investigations-Fugitive Recovery-Vehicle Repossession-Personal Protection

(214) 402-2059

As they say in the hood here in Dallas, "I'll co-sign that":

_________________

Bryan A. Mondy
SPECIAL SERVICES BUREAU
TX DPS PSB LIC #A14012
Owner/Manger/Investigator
General Investigations-Fugitive Recovery-Vehicle Repossession-Personal Protection

(214) 402-2059

As we all know,business has been slowing down for awhile now.Some places are slower than others but ultimately slow in general.The people that truly enjoy what they are doing will stick it out and see where this road goes,others will give up and move on leaving more work for the rest of us . As Bill and others have stated numerous times "Dont quit your day job" and if you dont have a day job than I would suggest you get one.Personally my A/O has slowed drasticly since i started in this business.I fully intend on sticking it out and yes it is difficult to do so in these trying times but I am hopeful that one day business will pick back up.I try to work alot more for out of A/O bondsmen lately as well to try and make up for the slower work schedule here in my A/O.That said...Anyone that needs me I am always willing to work with any of you on skips,my fees are negotiable only to our forum members.Ok now that my self plug is out of the way!! lol I am always looking for new ventures to work as another income,matter of fact i just applied for a job today about an hour ago!! Been trying to get Scott harrell to open up shop in my area for awhile now!! or if any of you other leaders of Industry decide you need another office I would be honored to work for ya
Scott,you have in part stated something I live by when you said"If you apply all that you have learned from your previous failures, you will ensure your success in your latest venture." I am constantly learning something,whether it is from my own mistakes(as well as others)or just from more experienced people.When we quit learning we end up in a stalemate and pretty much lose ourselves in the everyday mundane routines.

_________________
Jay Crawford
Eagle Eye Fugitive Recovery
"based out of Bethpage Tn."
Cell:(931)551-5020