Is there any financial advantage for buying out of state

dadwolf2 wrote:
From my experience it's never better to buy from the factory. They cannot undercut their dealers.

The only factories that sell direct are those that have no dealer network.
If a given manufacturer has a dealer network, you can't "buy it" from the factory.

Local pickup at the factory might be an option, so long as the "sale" goes through a dealer. But, that might not even be a possibility.

Factories general aren't equipped with the manpower to deal with end-user customers, aside from maybe giving factory tours.

Example of one factory that DOES sell dealer direct, and has no delaer network, is Casita Travel Trailers, in Texas.

True that no sales tax is due for an out of state purchase in PA. However, a use tax of 6% is due. State law requires pmt when you bring it home. The PA Dept. of revenue is aggressively collecting this tax and if you get caught they can and will collect the tax plus penalties which can be very steep. I decided it wasn't worth the chance and paid the tax even though I purchased the camper in NH and paid no tax.

From my experience it's never better to buy from the factory. They cannot undercut their dealers.

From Texas, no way would I drive all the way to Oregon for a camper. Plenty of dealers in AZ. I went from my home in Sacramento area of California to Tucson, AZ at Happy Daze RV. A great dealership there really did right by me and had the lowest prices of any Lance dealer I could find in 7 Western states.

You will either be charged AZ sales taxes if you pick you your camper in AZ, or they will meet you at the Texas border and you'll have to pay TX sales tax.

jim1632 wrote:
The "service is important" idea for RVs is more an invention of the salesman than the service department in my experience.

I completely agree with this statement. The idea that service is important from the dealer (or even the manufacturer for that matter) also presupposes that they have the ability to fix whatever is wrong. That is certainly outside of my experience, though I suppose it might happen at the extraordinary service department.

I've purchased two truck campers out of state and saved a bunch. Nevada doesn't require the truck camper to be registered.

No sales tax in Oregon. In Arizona a truck camper is considered cargo. Take the license plate off of the truck and screw it onto the camper. Done and done.

REX

Kerry4951 is right. My new Host Mammoth purchased in oregon has the disclaimer in bold print on my contract. "FOB Oregon. Purchaser is responsible for all applicable taxes and registration fees". New signature coming soon-

Be careful about using TCM as the source of the truth. There are several manufacturers who don't advertise there, and so they don't exist there. Furthermore, there are lots of used models of companies that no longer exist. Those manufacturers aren't going to be advertising at TCM either.

Cast a very wide net to find "all" that is available, and that will require you to do a lot of work on your own. This site has a comprehensive list of manufacturers but there might not be websites for those companies any more.

I use Truck Camper Magazine (free on internet) as a source of model info. Most of the major producers are members of the Mag. There are also dealer-members that offer info about available models. RV Trader or other internet sources also have listing of available models.

Once you know what you want, then you can call the different dealers to get pricing. As to the service issue, I always plan to do the work myself because even my selling dealer has given me the "no appts for at least a month, even for simple stuff" response. Problems with A/c and applicances can be covered by RV repair shops, as most equipment warranty is covered by the equip manufacturer, not the camper manufacturer. Most of my problems occur on the road so I don't have access to the selling dealer anyway. The "service is important" idea for RVs is more an invention of the salesman than the service department in my experience.

If a local dealer can't come within $1000 or so of competing prices, you should plan to purchase elsewhere. Best way to negotiate is to find same model at another dealer with a discount price listed in the ad. Manufacturers are limiting dealer advertising so you may need to get an e-mail from dealer as source of evidence. Having something in writing before you travel!!

I am in VA. No registration is required for campers. Also no property tax.

Camping World has lots of outlets. I don't think prices are the same at all.