Rent vs Purchase Used (selling after trip): 4-6 month trip

[DCrvnewbie]

Trying to get some advice on renting vs purchasing a 30ft Class C motorhome.

Scenario:

-Myself, wife, toddler.
-4-6 month trip, DC-San Diego-Seattle-Chicago-DC, 8-9 thousand miles total
-plan is to sell RV upon completion of trip (so depreciation vs rental costs).

Any thoughts? Buy slightly used 2010-2013 vs very used 2005-2009 knowing I will sell after the trip? Rent for the trip instead?

Many thanks,

Bryan

[bigdogger]

Your biggest risk with buying is how much time it would take to sell it. There is no way the depreciation over 6 months on a 6 or 7 year old used unit would come anywhere close to rental costs for a six month rental. But, you may be time crunched at the end of your trip and if it took 3 weeks to sell it, that could be a big problem.
I stayed in a park a couple of years back on the pacific coast. They also have numerous rental cabins. They were close enough to Sea-Tac airport that they got a lot of overseas visitors who were at the end of their vacations. The park owner had a big sign saying he would buy your car for cash. I asked about it, and he said that many foreign visitors (especially young people on college summer break) spending a couple of months in the states would buy a cheap used car when they arrive, drive it for the duration and then just abandon it at the airport. He figured why not offer them a few hundred dollars and a ride to the airport and resell the cars. He said in a good year, he might end up with 20 or more cars, all bought for $500.00 or less. Said he averaged over $1000.00 profit per car. Buying, using for a few months and then selling is not as rare as I first thought.

[IAMICHABOD]

I am still wayne_tw wrote:
If I were you, I would research buying an ex rental unit. They can be had for a reasonable price, have been well maintained, have a warranty that you could use at the rental sites throughout the country, and could resell it afterwards. Use the search function on this site for many discussions about ex rental units.

I would agree with this as being a way to go, as seen in my signature I own an Ex Rental and have had no problems with it at all.

It came with a 1 year warranty that was good at any of their rental locations throughout the country and was completely refurbished and maintained quite well with all the records to prove it. High mileage on a Modern Vehicle that has been well maintained is not a problem.

There are a few on This Thread that have bought and sold more that than one Ex Rental and were happy with them and would do it again.

The up side is you don't take the initial hit on depreciation as buying a new one and having a RV that was fully refurbished with a warranty and a record of all maintenance that was done as mine was. At a much lower cost.

[beemerphile1]

If it was me;
I would buy used and pay cash. Use how ever long I wish and then sell. If buying a used unit and selling in 6 months depreciation is virtually nonexistent.

If you buy at a good price you may even be able to resell at a profit. I have bought and sold several units that I never used for a single night, just bought low and sold high.

On the other hand after this trip you may wish to keep the unit, you cannot do that with a rental.

[tatest]

You will have the smallest depreciation loss on the oldest vehicle. Sale prices on mass production motorhomes tend to decline exponentially, on a small negative exponent, flattening out to a floor price of around $3000 to $5000 for something in usable condition at 25-30 years old. I worked this out while shopping 10 years ago, asking and sale prices on about 100 samples.

So it is a matter of deciding how new a motorhome you want to use vs how much you will pay for depreciation. If you are going to use it for a year, you could probably buy it new and come out ahead vs rental costs, but something 10 years old is going to cost a lot less than something new or something 3-5 years old.

Also an issue about desperation inthe market. You will probably pay close to average retail to buy, though you can buy for less from a desperate seller. When ready to sell, if you want to sell "right now" what you can expect is something lower than auction wholesale prices, 20-30% below retail. If you can wait several months to a couple years for a retail buyer, selling yourself, you might get even more than what you paid for it.

License fees, taxes, insurance, cost of money (usally interest on a loan), and maintenance costs are usually built into rental rates. As an owner, you pick these up on your own. At 10 years, mine are a little over $1000 a year, excluding cost of money. They were about twice that when the RV was new. Cost of money, depends on interest rates, or earnings on the money you've tied up. When I got started it was about 8%, but money is a whole lot cheaper the past few years.

[mlts22]

I'd rent one just for a few days before sinking the big money. Were I to buy a motorhome, I'd probably go for a new rig or something made in the past year or two, especially if it has a fiberglass roof and nose/tail cap to help protect against water intrusion.

[I_am_still_wayn]

If I were you, I would research buying an ex rental unit. They can be had for a reasonable price, have been well maintained, have a warranty that you could use at the rental sites throughout the country, and could resell it afterwards. Use the search function on this site for many discussions about ex rental units.

[bsinmich]

Have you ever done anything in an RV before this or is this a trial? If this is a trial I would suggest renting one for a weekend to see if you really enjoy this way to travel. Without a toad you will find a few places you won't be able to go to with a MH. If you find you really like this hobby you may want to buy and keep.

[camp-n-family]

The cost of renting one for that amount of time would far exceed the cost of purchasing a decent used one. I read an article recently about a reporter who rented one for 3 weeks to take his family from Toronto to Vancouver. The trip cost over $20,000 once the mileage costs were added in. Buy one and sell it when you're done.

[Bumpyroad]

do you have a vehicle that will tow a small TT? those are available new for $15,000 or so and up.
should be able to sell for $10,000???
bumpy

[rmasonschneider]

I'd go with the very used (under 100k miles) 05-09 option.
I'd look for a popular brand, floor plan and options and strike the best possible deal with cash and sell after i'm done with it.
Or for the newer units you can pull a loan on it but if you're buying from a dealer, the markup will likely put you upside down on the loan the moment you drive off the lot. If you know what you're looking at, try to purchase from a private party with cash, if you're lucky you may even come up or sell for the price you purchased it.

[vermilye]

Even with a long term rental discounts, I believe you will find buying & reselling is less expensive. On the other hand, the hassles of purchasing a used RV, maintaining it, and selling it when done are not insignificant.

The last time I rented was a 31' Fiesta Class A for two weeks - Rental - $2093.61. While you might get a better deal with a 6 month rental, it is still going to be large portion of the purchase price.

[mockturtle]

Chuck_thehammer wrote:
$200.00 per day?// times 180 days = $36,000 plus fuel.

I should think that a six month rental would be less. If not, then I retract my above statement. 🙂

[Chuck_thehammer]

$200.00 per day?// times 180 days = $36,000 plus fuel.

[mockturtle]

Purchasing would add the costs of licensing, taxes and insurance. And there's no guarantee you could sell for the price you paid. Renting is the best solution if you are sure it's temporary. If there is a chance you will love RV-ing so much you want to continue, then you might want to buy.