MS your giving yourself very good advice. We have wanted a camper for years. The payments looked good but we just didn't want to strap ourselves. I work on the road so the last couple of years we have been looking at them again and running the numbers. We figured that out that we could afford one. I finally got tired of living in motels and bit the bullet. I can afford it with only my normal pay but, I am paying for it with my per diem. If all goes well it should be paid off with in 2 years.
One of the good things for me is that my wife now spends more time on the road with me than she did when I was in the motels.

 

LOLOLOL.. that is bad azzzz.. for sure.. wonder how it pulls on the interstate..

too funny.. but cool as heck

 

We bought our 30' Palomino Puma in September, we used it one time before winter, went to Myrtle Beach, it was a good trip.


I found out things the Excursion needed and did them in November and December. We are going to make sure we use it at least once a month starting in Feb. Part of the deal when we got the Ex 5 years ago was we would get a camper.


Cost wise the unit was around $20K, the wife only wanted new. We looked for two years before we decided on a unit. She was interested in features, I was concerned about tongue weight and GVWR.

 

Still RVless but went to the show again this year. Still not in position to buy but I found "the one". It was a 40' fifth wheel bunk house with the perfect floor plan. Quite a large trailer and unnecessary but compared to the other 20-30 I was in it just felt right. It was $45k "show price". I hate large loans so to even consider this I'd need at least half in cash. But then my brain says "hell, for that amount just get a cheaper one to start and pay it in cash". Something to consider........

Here is what I liked,

http://crossroadsrv.com/model/rezerve/RFZ36DB

 

Nice! A non-bunkhouse model would only be like 29 feet long, that's all we need without kids.
Of course, our 25 foot pull behind cost about half that!

 

There were smaller BH travel trailers that were nice. I just like how this BH was like its own separate room! I'm sure I'll end up in a smaller trailer but I just hate the thought of feeling the desire to upgrade when these things depreciate so poorly. I'd rather save up and get what I want vs settling. We'll see how the saving goes....

Used isn't out of the question either....

 

Proverb quote...“It is better to want what you have than to have what you want.”

 

I like that a lot.

I've come to a point in life where I no longer wish to add on more loans but to pay off the ones I have and start to use cash for most things. Unfortunately I'm paying for my dumb younger years and I want to grab Doc Browns Delorean time machine and go back in time and beat the hell out of myself. Haha.

But this is a family investment as we all love to camp and is one thing that if I can pay in cash I will or at least a significant portion in cash. I'm really hoping by mid summer or next summer I can make a move on something. Kids aren't getting any younger and soon enough mom and dad won't be so cool in their minds anymore......

 

One thing to consider, when thnking about money, is interest rates! Now what I am going to say does not take depreciation into account.
IF one can get a good return on your money....4-6% which can be done with some long term accounts if you shop around, and get financing rates of 2-3%, then it does make sense to use someone else's money, rather than your own!
I know, not all have the spare money laying around to do this, and many, when raising a famly and saving for college funds, are pretty strapped, but it is something to think about. If you have saved enough money to pay cash for an RV of some sort, go talk to some investment brokers and see what they can do for you before plopping the dollars down. Just something to think about. And yes, I hate payments, too, but if your money is working harder than their money, it is to your advantage. Have a great day, guys!

 

I'm not against loans, and low interest ones at that. I also understand investments and making money. That's why the next goal is stockpiling my retirement account more than usual. My truck is something like 1.25%, house is 3%, college loans are around 1.5%.

Here's the thing for paying cash. I've gone through a job loss and thankfully I did have cash in accounts to pay the PAYMENTS that are owed. This has opened my eyes completely when it comes to payments. When things are paid for and shi* hits the fan the pain is not so deep when you own most everything. I nearly purchased a used RV about a month before I lost this job. That would've been detrimental.

Before this, I shared your sentiments. Now my opinion has changed a bit.

 

Hello
We got a 30 foot springdale 2 years ago a leftover 2013 26RLSSR. My 250 pulls it great and it was a hair over 14k.

We invested in an expensive hitch after I had towing issues, so SPEND THE MONEY on a good WD hitch-

I wish I had a 5er sometimes, but for the deal we got on it I cant complain-

 

Just for the heck of it I googled some pictures of that RV. Wouldn't ya know it I found it at a dealer brand new for $35k vs the $45k at the show. My mind is really churning now.......

 

that's the truth buddy.. good hitch like a hensley or propride.. they are 2500 buck new and used ones for sale are junk.

One thing to remember when buying a NEW car, travel trailer etc is when you drive it off the lot or actually when you sign the paperwork it depreciates at least 25% in the case of a TT.

MDSuperDuty:: pretend you did go back in time and take the advice you gave yourself to NOT buy new.. I am looking at an airstream to buy and they are not cheap.. the 2005 one we are looking at is $32,000. new they run 80K but they will be on the road for multi decades,, not just a decade. there are more older airstreams on the road percentage wise than all the SOB (some other brand) combined.

take the time to look around and the right one will come to you know that you(ll) know what you want.. did we get the exact one we wanted NO but it is the best we could find with the stuff we wanted at a price we could afford.. it will be paid off in 3 yrs not 15..

just sayin my brother..

 

wouldn't surprise me, but you also may want to make sure the interior is the same level.

 

From the pictures they look awfully similar besides a different interior theme pattern. But yes, there could be differences as the MSRP's we're a little different. I can honestly live without the high end finishes.....well some of them. Ha!