First time buyer

Sounds like you like it.
Go for it.

We started with a used TT that wasn't perfect but fit our needs and budget. We upgraded to a new one later when we could afford more. Glad we didn't lose the years waiting to buy a new one. Go for it.

Good TT for the price should not be as important as good TT for your needs.

I am picking up on "not exactly what we want" and "figure we can trade up in 3-5 years." The reason most often that people "trade up" is that what they bought turned out not to be what they really wanted. I see this too often in our local RV club, new RV every 2-3 years trying to find the one that works for they way they want to use it. There can be substantial losses trading in, though people sometimes do pretty well on private sales, especially if the RV is old enough to have depreciated to a "floor" price which is more like 10-15 years for TTs, 15-20 years for motorhomes.

I suggest looking for something used that is very similar to the new one you think you really wanted. That way you are more likely to be satisfied enough with your choice to keep it long term, because there isn't really much difference in utility of TTs made today vs 5 years ago or 10 years ago, from most of today's manufacturers. This is assuming that looking at a Gulfstream means that what you really want doesn't include any special or unusual types of TT construction.

Is your tow veh. large enough to pull this trailer? Check ALL the corners and seams for water damage, inside all cabinets for water damage etc. Water damage would be your biggest concern. Do all the appliances work?

Thank you all for the great advice. We do like this TT and what I mean when I say its not the one we really want is to say I would love to have one with slides, outdoor kitchen, quad bunkhouse instead of just the double. But we have three kids, 2 will get the bunks and one the sofa bed. We just see our kids growing up so fast and we don't want to miss this time with them. We do tent camp with them but it is A LOT of work. We rented a TT and like having everything packed up and not have to dig through crates to find stuff. We know we will go more often with TT. Plus we are military and will PCS early summer so we wan to turn our move into a vacation and sightsee along the way.

It is very light weight, 4300lbs and we have a suburban. He is including hitvh, sway control, portable waste tank, cargo carrier. All the appliances do work according to my husband but we are meeting tomorrow to go over it with a fine tooth comb. He has agreed to give us a crash course in how everything works. He has it plugged in and the fridge is very cold. He has two full propane bottles so we plan to check stove, heat, ect. How long does it take the hot water heater to heat so we can check the water temp?

I am sure I will be on here more asking questions when we get it. I appreciate everyone's help!

Tracy

Depending upon how old your children are this RV should serve you well for the next 3-5 years. Trying to find a quad bunk house would seem a bit difficult. I'm not in the market for one, but have always kept an eye on used RV's online and only remember seeing one in about the last year or so. If your kids are old enough they sometimes prefer to sleep in a small tent outside the camper. Mine did anyway, but they had to because we started with just a 20' TT and we had 3 kids in their early teens.

You certainly have enough tow vehicle for that size/weight TT. I believe that size TT would have a 6 gallon water heater and should fully heat the water within 30-45 minutes at most.

The seller sounds like a good person to buy from. He probably keep everything fixed. You might ask to see his repair receipts. I do that for any used vehicle. Good owners keep things like that. I also wouldn't worry about the skylight repair. If a dealer did it it should be ok. But having the receipt just in case of a future leak would be helpful. I stepped through my skylight last year and had it fixed by the dealer. No problems since.

Check the age of the tires... Good idea to replace them.

I did a quick Google Search on your camper, curious about the price so thought what dealerships were selling for. I stumbled onto this. Click here.

The price sounds reasonable. However, if you're not REALLY happy with it, don't settle for second best. If your hesitancy is based on it being used, and that is the only reason, if it were BRAND NEW would you get it then? If so, I think you have your decision.

Good luck. Enjoy this part of the journey. You'll look back someday and say, "Uou know, that was really a lot of fun having to work my way through all those decisions!"

If the price works for you and the owner seems to be honest, go for it. Just go into this knowing that you may have some repair work and definitely will have some maintenance work.

The roof membranes are warrantied for 12 yrs. but not any openings or sealing areas. Those are the spots that leak. Do a very thorough roof inspection and if 90% seems OK, then buy. When you have the trailer, climb up there and seal everything. In fact, I wouldn't buy a used TT without a pressurized leak test. If it did result in some minor leaks, that wouldn't necessarily be a deal breaker but I'd want to know how many there are. I would bet that there will be some.

There will be other issues that you'll have to deal with but a 2 yr. old rig should have some of the bugs out of it. Good luck with your new TT!

I think you're on the right track. To me, the good thing about getting a couple of used ones is you have a chance to really see what you want and just as important what you don't want. After 1 or 2 used ones when you spend the big bucks on a new one, you will know exactly what works best for you. Sounds like a good seller. Comfortable with the price?, for it. Enjoy!