Buying used out of state?

[kenzmad]

Are there rv surveyors like there is for boats? Gonna start looking this spring for an Eagle Cap. Not many for sale around here, so expanding the search parameters.

[TxGearhead]

Bought my Bigfoot used in Maryland. Saw it on RVT.com. Called and talked to the owner. Thought about it and called back next day. Settled on price assuming what he said the condition was. Got a cashiers check, drove 2 days to Maryland. Bought it. Loaded it. Drove it home.
You just have to make some judgements. Is the guy full of BS? Is his home maintained? Are his vehicles junk?

[Hemi_Joel]

I bought an eagle cap 1165 this year from New Hampshire, and I live in Minnesota. I've bought stuff out of state before, and because of past experience I like to get my eyes on it before parting with my $$. Especially if it is a big ticket item like this. The phone call to the seller left me feeling confident, but still, I googled his name, address, phone number, and email address just to make sure no scam alerts came up. Then I checked on flight info from my location to his. Then called him back, and made a deal over the phone, subject to my inspection. He agreed to hold it until I got there a few days later. Booked the flight, then 2 days later, flew out in the morning, rented a car, checked out the camper, viewed his proof of ownership, wrote up a bill of sale, agreed on free storage at his place for the next month till I came back, wrote him a check, and flew home in the afternoon. So I had many opportunities to back out if anything was awry, but all was legit, and now I was committed. I put full coverage insurance on it right away. Then drove out with my truck and picked it up a month or so later.
I had the cost of the flight at risk, if the deal wouldn't have worked. But that was something I factored into the purchase price I was willing to pay. And in my opinion, buying something this expensive and complicated sight unseen is too risky. Playing ti safe helps me sleep good!

Good luck with your endeavor!

[thedavidzoo]

We had a negative experience with trying to buy out of state used. We chatted multiple times on the phone about a year old Adventurer TC. Asked every question imaginable. Everything sounded great. Pictures looked good. Guy sounded like a good person. What could be so bad in a camper 1 year old and barely used? Plus the guy had added solar which we wanted.

Well, on a Sunday morning we drove 1/2 day to take a look with the ability to pay on the spot, possibly also buying his Ford as a package deal as he was planning on getting a DP.

The owner had left the TC sitting out on his lawn in humid North Carolina with a compartment door open, rain had warped the ply. Inside had greenish mold growth on and in cabinetry throughout, warped trim, torn gasket around slide, evidence of a leak around slide, gross bathroom, awning had been snagged on something and partially ripped out, dirty all around, signs of all kinds of potential problems/neglect. The Ford was a dump with a crack across the back. We just had to tell him thanks but no thanks and turn around all the way back home. What a colossal waste of our time and energy and of a rig that deserved a better owner. Some folks must live in a parallel universe and have a totally different sense of quality, pride, and decency.

Just make sure the unit is inspected with a fine-toothed comb. Use your (or inspector's) nose and eyes, touch all surfaces for anything not quite right. Follow your gut. Good luck!

[camperdave]

I bought my motorhome out of state. After a few phone calls I was pretty sure I was dealing with an up and up person, she also gave me the name of the local shop where all the work had been done on the motorhome. I called and chatted with him, and while not a full inspection or anything I at least felt convinced that it was well maintained. I suppose it could have been an elaborate scheme between the two of them, but I didn't get that vibe lol.

I didn't do a deposit (seller didn't ask for one), but I did rent a car and drive 8 hours to go check it out. Paid cash, returned the car to a local airport, and drove the motorhome back home.

I do think though that at least the threat of a local mobile mechanic coming out to inspect should be used. See if the seller has any negative reactions to the idea or not.

[Reality_Check]

I often buy out of state.. current camper being one of them. In just the past 4-5 years, I've picked up a boat and a couple of 550's long distance too.

Normal course is locate what I want, get in contact and have a chat. Phone calls are amazing and without it, I wouldn't move forward. As in our camper, the seller had already posted good pictures. I asked for a few more. Whether they come through or not, how decent the shots are, timing, etc, all comes into play I guess. Kind of an informal vetting process.

Most of the time I'll offer up a deposit. It doesn't have to be ridiculous..500, 1k for a 20-30k item seems reasonable. You're telling the person you're serious and asking them to hold something. If you fail, they deserve to be compensated for taking the risk. This whole thing works both ways. Most of the time, this isn't Ebay with all the protections. You need to trust and they do too.

Hook a flight up and fly and look it over. I've had 40 min deals, I've been picked up at the airport, I've used Uber... hell, I slept in the camper we have now one night in the guy's yard because of the timing of the flights.

Cash is great... or you can just run to the bank together. Cashiers check..whatever you're both comfortable with. Vehicles, I usually just jump in and drive home. For the camper, I bought it, flew back home and hung it on U-ship until someone bit. That of course, was worked out ahead of time with the seller.

I suppose if you weren't comfortable leaving it 'there' until you could get it picked up, you could work a deal to have it dropped at a storage unit for a month, or something. Options are only limited by you.

I've not only found deals that were worthwhile and offered large savings, but in the case of trucks, I've been able to locate what we want...which would rarely happen just hanging around home.

[Big_Katuna]

Many mobile RV techs will do it BUT don’t expect as high of a degree of neutrality.

They both live in the same area and an RV tech has to worry about word of mouth.

[sbryan]

Just for giggles you can always post here to see if someone in the neighborhood of where you found a camper would be willing to take a look. Seen it done here more than once.

[jplante4]

Check NRVIA. Their website has a "find an inspector" feature that may help.

[work2much]

Gotcha. Googling RV inspectors it seems there are such services including through the NRVIA although I suspect inspector availability varies with regions and populations.

https://www.google.com/search?num=20&client=safari&channel=mac_bm&source=hp&ei=3G3qW5b9JeSg0wKY8obgC...

[kenzmad]

work2much wrote:
I'm not sure what a boat surveyed is exactly. I suspect someone that helps you locate for a finders fee?

Here are a couple tools to help locate a camper outside your area:

All of Craigslist

You can search all Craigslist markets with your descriptors.

RV Traders has a nationwide searches or you can narrow markets, price ranges, models etc. Here is a quick search for Eagle Cap nationwide.

RVT.com

Good luck finding the perfect camper.

Boat surveyor is an inspector with no bias. Paid for by the buyer. Makes commiting to something from, say Texas, a bit easier when you live in Seattle.

[work2much]

I'm not sure what a boat surveyed is exactly. I suspect someone that helps you locate for a finders fee?

Here are a couple tools to help locate a camper outside your area:

All of Craigslist

You can search all Craigslist markets with your descriptors.

RV Traders has a nationwide searches or you can narrow markets, price ranges, models etc. Here is a quick search for Eagle Cap nationwide.

RVT.com

Good luck finding the perfect camper.

[Kayteg1]

I pick up my Fleetwood over 2000 miles from home.
One of those winters with negative 20F as well.
But I buy cheap and I buy fixers, so don't expect perfection.
You can always find local technician who for $2-300 will do PPI, but I am skeptic about efficiency.
Just ask for good quality pictures, arrange the deal, go there with cash in hand and negotiate all misrepresentations on spot.