Travel Trailer Buying/Financing Questions

[Rjpoog1989]

Hello all, this is my first post here. I’ve been lurking here a while looking for info on campers. I’m looking to buy a TT for the 2020 camping season and I’m trying to plan my finances accordingly. I’ll start with these three questions and go from there.

1: Do most dealers require a down payment to finance and if so, what % is typically required.

2: From what I’ve observed, it seems the best incentives are in December. Is this an accurate observation? I’m looking to get the best price by buying at the right time.

3: it seems like Camping World has the best prices and selection. Are there reasons not to buy from them?

[Lwiddis]

I don’t finance any toys.

[delwhjr]

Ralph Cramden wrote:

delwhjr wrote:


Nothing wrong with going long as long as you don't actually go all the way.
With the lower monthly payment it allows for emergencies. A huge medical bill or catastrophic problem could make a large payment on a short time note difficult or impossible but the smaller payment may still be manageable, keeping your credit clean. Pay off the long note quick(maybe in half the time or shorter), saving interest and prevent being upside down.

Woulda, Coulda, Shoulda.

It seems to me that if one takes out a 15 yr drag and then proceeds to pay off the long term loan quick, maybe in half the time or shorter (7 years or 6 or 5), saving interest and preventing being upside down, that would require you to up the payment from the get go to what it would of been on a 5 or 6 year drag anyway, or close to it?

You then need to have a tuned up crystal ball so you can predict the catastrophic problem you mention will not hit until after year 6 or 7? Or do you wait until year 6, when you'll still owe close to the original amount financed on the 15 year drag, and then make massive payments in the order of minimum + 900% or something, for a year to pay it off.

Not even taking into account typically you get a better rate on a 4 or 5 year loan than you'll get on a 15.

You miss the point. It is not saving money on payments. You would pay close or more than the payment of the shorter term. The use of the longer term is a fail safe point to allow for the POSSIBILITY of those events. Sure it may cost more in a higher % but it may be what a person needs for their piece of mind and the cost of the difference will be less than the bigger hit in your credit if you have to miss/reduce payments.
It is just like insurance, many people feel the need to insure for every little thing. Others will take the gamble on everything or some things. It may not be the best option but it is an option.

[rbpru]

This is a "which is the best beer" question. It is based on the individuals and their needs.

The only advise I give is, the floor plan remains when all else is forgotten or accepted.

We did not know that we wanted, so we took our best guess and rented a similar model for 10 days on the road.

After that, we had a far better feel for what we could tow, park and afford. We ended up buying a three year old, 25 ft. TT. That was 35,000 miles and five years ago.

We had been saving for a TT and were able to pay cash when we purchased it. Otherwise, I would have financed it through the dealer or bank, which ever would have given the best deal.

Good luck and remember, buying a TT is not a race.

[Rjpoog1989]

time2roll wrote:
Go big and go long.... as long as you get the lowest interest rate. Some loans go out 20 years and this is good as long as you make more than the minimum payments to be on maybe a 5 year schedule.

With good credit a minimal or no down payment is possible. I would go with the minimum.

Camping World is a mixed bag. Plenty of purchase and service complaints. I am sure there are some good transactions too but they tend to be under reported.

You’re basically saying what I’ve been thinking. Right now my car payment (to be paid off before TT purchase) is triple what I’m wanting my minimum TT payment to be. I’ll essentially be making payments in triple the amount 90% of the time, but if I have a bad month I can just make the minimum. I’ve realized there are sometimes things that come out of the blue that can really wreck a budget. I’m no financial guru, but I have yet to run completely out of money, so whatever I’m doing has worked thus far.

[Rjpoog1989]

ZINGERLITE wrote:


I agree with the junk laying around comment. we financed and bought new because i want vacation to be vacation. eliminate the chance of the "everything i own is junk" anger moments lol. I want to relax. not stress over things that are broken.

I’ve been trying to get away from the “everything I own is junk” moments. I do still mow my yard with a 70 year old tractor that I have to hand crank. That’s the type of thing I’m trying to get away from when I go on vacations.

[time2roll]

Re-read my post. I covered both. Be prepared to pay in 5 yrs, don't pay a higher interest rate to go long. RV finance is a misfit and the rates are not always different for different terms same as a mortgage.

This gives flexibility if conditions go bad OP can revert to the minimum payment to keep from drowning.

And certainly if you have $100k+ languishing in a money market account then by all means pay cash.

[Ralph_Cramden]

delwhjr wrote:


Nothing wrong with going long as long as you don't actually go all the way.
With the lower monthly payment it allows for emergencies. A huge medical bill or catastrophic problem could make a large payment on a short time note difficult or impossible but the smaller payment may still be manageable, keeping your credit clean. Pay off the long note quick(maybe in half the time or shorter), saving interest and prevent being upside down.

Woulda, Coulda, Shoulda.

It seems to me that if one takes out a 15 yr drag and then proceeds to pay off the long term loan quick, maybe in half the time or shorter (7 years or 6 or 5), saving interest and preventing being upside down, that would require you to up the payment from the get go to what it would of been on a 5 or 6 year drag anyway, or close to it?

You then need to have a tuned up crystal ball so you can predict the catastrophic problem you mention will not hit until after year 6 or 7? Or do you wait until year 6, when you'll still owe close to the original amount financed on the 15 year drag, and then make massive payments in the order of minimum + 900% or something, for a year to pay it off.

Not even taking into account typically you get a better rate on a 4 or 5 year loan than you'll get on a 15.

[delwhjr]

Ralph Cramden wrote:

time2roll wrote:
Go big and go long.... as long as you get the lowest interest rate. Some loans go out 20 years and this is good as long as you make more than the minimum payments to be on maybe a 5 year schedule.

With good credit a minimal or no down payment is possible. I would go with the minimum.

Camping World is a mixed bag. Plenty of purchase and service complaints. I am sure there are some good transactions too but they tend to be under reported.

I don't know about the go long, maybe only if going big. A week or so ago we received a card from the Camping World located near Pittsburgh. It was touting 180 month financing @ 6.99% for a stick and tin Wildwood POS.

Not the best idea to buy a trailer worth about $16-17K at most (CW ad price was $20K) and spend more than $32K over 15 years. When the thing is falling apart 8-10 years down the road you'll still owe over $10-13K on it. Or if you want to upgrade and sell it off in 3-5 years good luck getting $14K or up to $17K out of it to pay the loan off.

Nothing wrong with going long as long as you don't actually go all the way.
With the lower monthly payment it allows for emergencies. A huge medical bill or catastrophic problem could make a large payment on a short time note difficult or impossible but the smaller payment may still be manageable, keeping your credit clean. Pay off the long note quick(maybe in half the time or shorter), saving interest and prevent being upside down.

[sgfrye]

2012Coleman wrote:

Rjpoog1989 wrote:
I wish there was a like or thank you button on this forum. I appreciate everyone who has tried to answer my questions. I’ll clarify a few things here:

We are looking at a small unit. We know the limits of my truck and we’ve found several floor plans we like. I want to get something as short as possible, with bunks, to eliminate the risk of scraping the backend coming into my steep driveway. I also am limited by garage space for it, as I plan to keep it indoors when not in use.

I’ve only ever bought 1 thing I didn’t need. I don’t live some extravagant lifestyle spending endless amounts of money. There’s not much to just simply cut from my budget and start saving on the scale needed to buy what we want. That being said if we get one we like we will keep it for a long time.

Case and point: I will absolutely be buying a camper prior to March 2020 and will absolutely be financing it.


My in-laws have a camper and we have gone on some trips with them. I have a pretty good understanding of what goes into all of this.

Please don't feel the need to justify your choices to the trolls on this forum. My credit score is like yours because like the poster above states - I use it and make on time payments.

But you are a lot better off getting your own financing - Here is some good reading on what people have found by going with the other alternative you mentioned.

BTW, no matter what, if you are buying new, you should negotiate at least 30% off the MSRP - do it after they give you their sale price. 30% off the MSRP will most likely be lower. Be ready to walk if they don't bargain with you. Seriously - have your calculator on your phone and do the calculation while sitting there. You can google to find RV buying strategies. You can look on RVTrader.com and see prices for new and used to get an idea.

One more thing - pass on the extended warranty, interior fabric protection, and exterior sealers. The fabric inside isn't worth the money you spend on some protection plan, and you can wax the thing your self once or twice a year.

Good luck and happy camping!

yes very good advice on the fabric protection, extended warranty etc. upsale add ons.

[Ralph_Cramden]

time2roll wrote:
Go big and go long.... as long as you get the lowest interest rate. Some loans go out 20 years and this is good as long as you make more than the minimum payments to be on maybe a 5 year schedule.

With good credit a minimal or no down payment is possible. I would go with the minimum.

Camping World is a mixed bag. Plenty of purchase and service complaints. I am sure there are some good transactions too but they tend to be under reported.

I don't know about the go long, maybe only if going big. A week or so ago we received a card from the Camping World located near Pittsburgh. It was touting 180 month financing @ 6.99% for a stick and tin Wildwood POS.

Not the best idea to buy a trailer worth about $16-17K at most (CW ad price was $20K) and spend more than $32K over 15 years. When the thing is falling apart 8-10 years down the road you'll still owe over $10-13K on it. Or if you want to upgrade and sell it off in 3-5 years good luck getting $14K or up to $17K out of it to pay the loan off.

[time2roll]

Go big and go long.... as long as you get the lowest interest rate. Some loans go out 20 years and this is good as long as you make more than the minimum payments to be on maybe a 5 year schedule.

With good credit a minimal or no down payment is possible. I would go with the minimum.

Camping World is a mixed bag. Plenty of purchase and service complaints. I am sure there are some good transactions too but they tend to be under reported.

[2012Coleman]

Rjpoog1989 wrote:
I wish there was a like or thank you button on this forum. I appreciate everyone who has tried to answer my questions. I’ll clarify a few things here:

We are looking at a small unit. We know the limits of my truck and we’ve found several floor plans we like. I want to get something as short as possible, with bunks, to eliminate the risk of scraping the backend coming into my steep driveway. I also am limited by garage space for it, as I plan to keep it indoors when not in use.

I’ve only ever bought 1 thing I didn’t need. I don’t live some extravagant lifestyle spending endless amounts of money. There’s not much to just simply cut from my budget and start saving on the scale needed to buy what we want. That being said if we get one we like we will keep it for a long time.

Case and point: I will absolutely be buying a camper prior to March 2020 and will absolutely be financing it.


My in-laws have a camper and we have gone on some trips with them. I have a pretty good understanding of what goes into all of this.

Please don't feel the need to justify your choices to the trolls on this forum. My credit score is like yours because like the poster above states - I use it and make on time payments.

But you are a lot better off getting your own financing - Here is some good reading on what people have found by going with the other alternative you mentioned.

BTW, no matter what, if you are buying new, you should negotiate at least 30% off the MSRP - do it after they give you their sale price. 30% off the MSRP will most likely be lower. Be ready to walk if they don't bargain with you. Seriously - have your calculator on your phone and do the calculation while sitting there. You can google to find RV buying strategies. You can look on RVTrader.com and see prices for new and used to get an idea.

One more thing - pass on the extended warranty, interior fabric protection, and exterior sealers. The fabric inside isn't worth the money you spend on some protection plan, and you can wax the thing your self once or twice a year.

Good luck and happy camping!

[ZINGERLITE]

Rjpoog1989 wrote:
I should have stated that I’m not interested in anything David Ramsey would say. Yes I could save money and go camping 5-10 years from now. My goal however, is to get out camping with my daughter while she’s young and get her interested in the outdoors.

I’ve looked at used, but I’ve got enough used junk laying around that I have to work on all the time. I don’t want to be fixing things when I’m trying to take a relaxing trip.

I’ve looked at rates from my credit union and will possibly use them. I have an 800+ credit score. My car will be paid off soon and I have plenty of money to make the payments.

I agree with the junk laying around comment. we financed and bought new because i want vacation to be vacation. eliminate the chance of the "everything i own is junk" anger moments lol. I want to relax. not stress over things that are broken.

[Hondavalk]

Every time I go to make a large purchase I call my bank, credit union and insurance company and get their rate. Most of the time when I go to a dealer and let them know what rate I have found,their finance person will find a better rate knowing its their only shot.

[Rjpoog1989]

I wish there was a like or thank you button on this forum. I appreciate everyone who has tried to answer my questions. I’ll clarify a few things here:

We are looking at a small unit. We know the limits of my truck and we’ve found several floor plans we like. I want to get something as short as possible, with bunks, to eliminate the risk of scraping the backend coming into my steep driveway. I also am limited by garage space for it, as I plan to keep it indoors when not in use.

I’ve only ever bought 1 thing I didn’t need. I don’t live some extravagant lifestyle spending endless amounts of money. There’s not much to just simply cut from my budget and start saving on the scale needed to buy what we want. That being said if we get one we like we will keep it for a long time.

Case and point: I will absolutely be buying a camper prior to March 2020 and will absolutely be financing it.


My in-laws have a camper and we have gone on some trips with them. I have a pretty good understanding of what goes into all of this.