What to buy with $25k?

I saw great deals on well maintained RVs in Florida at every campground.

Make sure that whatever you look at has enough seat belts for six persons. Some Class C's do not, or some of the seats that do are what I consider dangerous to ride in. I have a rear facing dinette seat with a low back and seat belts. This could be a neck or back breaker in an accident, even a mild one, and the cheezy wooden seat structure could easily fail in an impact also.

So even if you can sleep the entire family, make sure you can legally seat all of them too.

Charles

The price you will pay for the used rig is not the total price, plan on cost of insurance, DMV costs, storage lot if required, any necessary repairs and improvements, tires and replacement of house batteries, converter charger and fresh water pump. The 12 volt electrical system is critical to the operation of appliances, furnace, fresh water pump, and lighting. An RV generator is handy but approved use of generators around other campers may be limited to certain hours of the day.

Friend of mine bought a very nice but older class A for that price. Big slideout, diesel pusher. No over head bed but big couch and dinette to work with. It was about a 32-35 footer so would also look in that direction. I know there are a bunch on the local craigs list for close to what you have to spend.

A 28 ft C would be pretty claustrophobic for 6 when in motion and parked IMO. The only ones I can think of with bunk beds were jaycos from about 6 years ago and they will be more pricey than your budget and were in the 31-32 ft range.

I dont think builders build for families any more, most are set up for 2 with some thought to KIDS in the overhead bunk. Some super c's had nice sidewall bunks but those are very $$. Expand your CL search out to several areas and be prepared to travel to find a good one. the same friend went with other friends to LV to check out a "super clean" according to the seller A and it turned out to be anything but!

Lotsa luck, BTW most of the C's in your price range are early 2000's and older and many did not have slides then.

Consider using an equalizing hitch on the trailer. A friend talked me to using one, a big improvement.

Dusty

Being all the great idea above, also look at rvtrader for private sellers who are downsizing and have been meticulous in their maintenance.

Lots of great advice here. Mine is just sharing my experience. Had 5 so far. Best of all , quality of construction wise, is 2003 Winnebago Mini 24V. Use it much like you describe (even to wheelers also) Be real careful checking for leaks under cab over mattress. Remove it and inspect on each one you look at. Suggest the big names: Winnebago, Tioga,

For a used motorhome, the most important thing to look for (besides whether the layout etc. would work for you) is its condition--more important than brand name, age to a large extent, etc. More specifically, look for freedom from water damage (or, at the very least, any water damage has been properly and thoroughly repaired); for appliances and systems that are demonstrated to work properly; for evidence of proper preventative maintenance; and, of course, for overall signs of good care and not being trashed.

Mileage in and of itself is not all that important for a motorhome, in my opinion. The E450 chassis is quite capable of going for several hundred thousand miles, and in nearly all motorhomes the house part will wear out long before the chassis.

Finding rear twin beds or bunks will be hard.. They do exist, but are quite rare relatively speaking.

For towing the four wheelers, pay close attention to the hitch ratings, particularly the tongue weight rating, and the rear axle payload capacity. Many class C's are limited in the tongue weight they can carry due to the long overhang behind the rear axle, if not by the hitch then by the available payload. Bear in mind that the tongue weight will cause weight shifting from the front to the back, so the actual extra payload on the rear axle will be something like half again more than the tongue weight. Once you add water and people and people's stuff the payload can disappear pretty quickly.

I'd also suggest budgeting some money for repairs and upgrades/upkeep. A set of six decent but not top-of-the-line tires will run you $1000 or so. Shocks, brakes, and myriad other things can and do wear out on older vehicles. It is unwise to stretch your purchase budget so much that you can't afford these other things if needed, and chances are fairly good that something will be needed.

Keep an eye on Craigslist. That's where I sold mine and where we bought our second one. Also be aware that the seller's idea of their RV's value and reality will often be way apart.

If you see something that catches your eye, check NADA values.
Not that NADA numbers are gospel, they're just going to be closer to reality that most sellers.

I thought my first RV was worth high-20's. NADA said high teens.
I priced it accordingly and it sold.

Dave post is very comprehensive.