New to this

I took a look at some pictures online and do not like what I see. The front of the trailer looks cheaply built with an awkward bend in the front panel. Plus, it does not have any front end diamond plate protection. If you can push on the front panel and it has a lot of flex and give to it - no go.

IIRC the Salem is one of Forest River's lower end lines. We purchased a new Cherokee by Forest River back in 2004. The Cherokee, at that time, was pretty comparable to the Salem in that it was at the lower end of their design spectrum.

What I remember about our Cherokee (we sold it in 2010 to go bigger) was that it wasn't the fanciest of trailers, but it was solid in that regards and was THE most trouble free trailer I ever owned. That included the 1996 Dutchmen we had and the 2008 Jayco Eagle we currently have. Our Eagle has been a great trailer, but I can't recall one thing going wrong on the Cherokee (a faulty slide switch that went bad the day after we got it home notwithstanding) in the 6 years we owned it.

The Eagle has been VERY good, but not quite to that standard. lol

Look at your warranty as only a few manufactures now have a two year plan.

I have owned five RV's, built by four different manufacturers. In my opinion, they were all built with pretty much the same quality. They all require ocassional repairs and routine maintenance. When you drag these things down the road at 60+ MPH, thngs are going to come apart. The rougher the roads, the faster they come apart. Doesn't matter who put it together.

A well maintained, entry level unit, will outlast a high end unit that is not.

If you don't know your way around a tool box, you'll need to be ready to pay someone who does.

BTW ... Forest River is the manufacturer who built two of my five RV's.

Like ReneeG, I am not familiar with the Salem Cruise Lite range, but I do have a FR product (see my sig below) and they are one o fthe largest manufacturers of RVs on the market. That does not happen by accident. That said, in terms of build quality etc. they are probably above average -- most RV manufacturers ten to have build quality that would not cut it in say the automotive or even the housing markets, but put in persepctive, and in comparison to other RVs especially in the same price level, the FR product (IMO) is slightly better.

Focus, instead, on the floor plan you like and (in my opinion, more importantly) whether you can tow the thing.

My 2 cents.

I'm not familiar with that brand but understand the Forest River is reputable. Key is to have a good dealership that will be responsive when you need warranty issues tended to. Check the unit, lite doesn't have to mean cheaply made. We've owned four travel trailers before our current fifth wheel. We've owned three Kit brands - Sportsmaster and Companion, and also a Komfort. All were solidly made and that's what you want to look for. We've been to a lot of RV shows and have walked through a lot of units, opening and closing doors, and cupboards and you can tell the cheaply made ones. Check out the floor plan, is it what you can live with for years to come? On rainy days? On hot days? Is there enough storage? Where will the garbage can go? Where will the bag of dog food go (if you have a dog), etc? Just thoughts. Best of luck with your decision and once you commit, have a good time.