First Time Buyer...Updated 03/06/2006

ke4d wrote:
Libby and I sold Rvs for about 18 month during an interlude in our fulltime lifestyle. We learned lots about buying and selling RVs. In our experience, many folks buy simply on emotion. Many folks trade perfectly good rigs for new rigs where you get to go through the "shakedown" phase again. While we don't object to that, it certainly puts a nice hole in your bank account. We are not likely to ever buy another new rig. We have had three new ones and three used ones. There is just way too much loss in buying new. As an example, we sold new diesel pushers. The list price was around 200k. We were paying about $145k for those rigs and selling them for between $150k and $165k. Many folks came in to trade a year or two old rig and found they owed more on their old rig than we were selling the current new version for.
We ran into folks who would tell us that the last time they traded, the dealer gave them more for their old rig than they paid for it. Simply not true. The dealer just didn't discount the new rig as much as he could and showed their trade to be worth more than it really was to make the deal.
We tried to treat our customers like we would want to be treated. It paid off because in our 18 months, we had a number of repeat customers. Libby had one customer who bought three rigs from her in that time span.
We think the bottom line on buying a class A or any other RV for that matter, is to make sure it fits your lifestyle. If you are fulltimers like we are, then the house is probably more important than the chassis and engine. If you are a weekender or vacation type traveler where you travel often and stay only a night or two at one place, then the moving aspect of an Rv could be more important. We don't care how the rig is closed up, we move once in a while and stay a long time.
No Rv has everything any buyer wants and the moderator is absolutely correct in stating that you need to list your wants and needs. Wants are one thing, needs are something totally different.
Needs determine what your rig should be like, wants are what you might spend some extra bucks on.
While there are lots of tips I could give on buying an Rv, I would just remind you of a few things.
1. Extended maintenance contracts are money makers for the dealership. If you are buying a new pusher the engine, chassis and tranny are going to be covered for 5 years on a new rig.
2. Never expect to get all your money out of a trade. It depreciates faster than you can pay it off. (paying cash is a good way to deal with that)
3. New rigs, no matter what you pay for them, have problems. Used rigs may or may not. Talk to the previous owner if possible. Find out why they traded the rig.
4. Buy at the end of the month. Dealers want to close out the month and often are getting ready to wholesale used rigs. If they wholesale a rig, they won't get wholesale, but something less. Make an offer.
5. Never buy the first time you see rig. You will be buying on emotion. The national average is 5 visits and 4 and a half months for a person to buy a new rig.
6. Remember, this is a depreciating asset, not an investment. Its to have fun and enjoy yourself. If you are looking to invest, buy real estate!