Are You on the Fence About Purchasing an RV?

There are lots of factors to consider when making your RV decision. RV maintenance and RV expenses just to name a few. This RV decision guide will help you decide whether RV rental or purchasing an RV is a better choice for you.

First – You are not alone.

There are literally hundreds of websites and blog articles spouting the benefits of buying an RV or renting an RV. Each of these websites and articles does a great job of presenting the information from their perspective.

Here is my disclaimer. Papa Joe and I own an RV. We have owned RVs for over 30 years. If I wrote this article using only my perspective, I would likely try to talk you into purchasing an RV. But purchasing an RV may not be the best decision for your situation.

To prevent that, I researched dozens of magazine and website articles, pulled the common themes from each of them, and am providing you with the tools to make your own decision.

Second disclaimer – use the same process provided below if you are considering a pop-top trailer, travel trailer, or 5th wheel trailer. One additional caveat for these RVs is ensuring you have a vehicle that will tow your rental or purchased unit. Be sure to consider the costs for maintaining a tow vehicle when making the decision to buy or rent an RV.

This post will be updated with a feature article to help you help decide the kind of RV is best for you.

Here we go.

Owning and maintaining an RV can be expensive and a lot of work. Likewise, renting an RV each time you want the RV experience may be too much hassle for you.

Here is a quick summary of the pros and cons of renting an RV versus owning an RV.

• Costs associated with purchasing an RV vs RV rental (refer to “costs” section)
• Cost of RV maintenance (refer to “costs” section)
• The annual cost of ownership (refer to “costs” section)
• Expenses per RV usage (refer to “costs” section)
• Miscellaneous expenses (refer to “costs” section)
• Coordinating delivery and return of RV rentals (refer to “RV rental” section)
• Lemon laws
• Furnishing the unit

Some of our favorite camping has been in the national and state park systems. I mention this for a reason… there is a lot of information in the next few paragraphs, and you may need a reminder of why you are considering RVs in the first place.

If so, check out my National Parks page for stories, photos, and videos featuring our favorite national park experiences.

Costs associated with purchasing an RV vs RV rental.

Yep, I am going to start with the big guns for this RV decision guide. To make an apples-to-apples comparison for purchases and rentals, I will be using a Class C motorhome as an example for each. The reason why is simple – the majority of RV rental sites only rent motorhomes.

To make it simple, our Class C Forest River will be the example case. Here goes.

Let’s buy an RV! RV Trader lists a comparable Class C Forest River at approximately $83,000. Using the handy-dandy daily RV cost calculator found on RVTipster, our daily costs for our RV year-round are $218 per day of usage.

For many of you, that may sound like a huge expense – and don’t get me wrong. It is. We are paying for a second house. On wheels. I strongly encourage you to utilize this calculator or a similar one if you are seriously considering purchasing an RV.

Please be realistic when you complete the worksheet. Papa Joe and I spend a lot of time in our RV. Many other RV’ers don’t spend as much time in their RV as we do, and you likely won’t either.

Be practical when you estimate the amount of time you spend in your RV. The more time you spend, the less expensive the overall cost is. We see too many people with RVs that never leave the storage unit or driveway – and we don’t want you to be the next statistic.

Here are some of the variables applied in our spreadsheet that may not be applicable in yours.

The first field – the total cost of RV:

• The cost calculated in this field is for a Class C Forest River mid-range Forester.
• Calculated cost in this field does not include financing fees, including interest and an extended warranty. I highly recommend purchasing an extended warranty, that will add roughly $1500 – $3000 to the amount you finance.
• The cost in this first field does not include dealership fees such as origination fees, preparation fees, or other miscellaneous fees.
• Considering our trade-in value, financing, extended warranty, taxes, licensing, and dealership fees, we added around $10,000 to the cost of the purchase price of our Class C motorhome.
• Loans for motorhomes commonly range from 10 to 30-year terms. You are purchasing a house.

The number of years you intend to keep RV:

• In the past, Papa Joe and I have kept our travel trailer and 5th wheel RVs for an average of 5 years – mainly to pay down our loan enough to not be upside-down with our trade-in value.
• With a 10 to 30-year motorhome term and immediate depreciation value, we anticipate we will need to keep our current Class C for at least 10 years to avoid being upside-down on your loan. We are starting on our 3rd season with our current Class C.

The average cost of RV site per night:

• Camping at state parks averages $15 to $50 per night
• Fees for camping at the family-owned campgrounds, national chain campgrounds, and national park campgrounds start at $50 per night and increase rapidly from there.
• We are members of a local campground. Considering the cost of our membership fees and nightly rental, our 30 nights of camping at the membership campground average $17 per night. This keeps our overall average for the year much lower than many other campers.

Research the costs that are calculated into the spreadsheet – how much will your insurance be, how much will tires cost you. RV maintenance and RV expenses can be just as unexpected as your home maintenance and expenses are.

Complete the worksheet as accurately as you can. I have provided several resources at the end of this post that will help with that research.

Enough purchasing an RV discussion. Now for RV Rental.

I compared the RV Rental sites RV Share and Outdoorsy for you. They are rated as the top 2 RV Rental sites in the industry. Each lists similar Class C motorhomes ranging from $220-$300 per night. That fee will range based on geographic location, age of the unit, and how many units are available for rent.

This cost sounds great after completing the worksheet, right?

There is more to consider for RV rentals.

We haven’t considered all the factors yet. Most RV rental companies have a 3-day rental minimum. Don’t be surprised to find additional costs associated with your rental. Here are the most common additional costs.

• Reservation deposits
• Fees for miles driven
• Additional costs for using the generator or purchase of a generator kit
• Fees for any changes to the original booking agreement
• Traveler’s insurance
• RV preparation fee
• Personal kits, some charge for both personal and kitchen kits. These include the household supplies required to live in the unit – linens, dishes, pots, and pans, etc.
• Pet fees
• Cleaning fee
• Fuel fee if the unit is not returned with a full tank of fuel
• Sewage tank emptying fee
• No refunds for late pickup or early return of the unit

In addition to these supplemental fees, some rental units will not come equipped with televisions or use of the overhead awning.

Refer back to rows R8 – R19 in the spreadsheet above. In addition to the RV rental fee, you will still need to pay for fuel and your campground cost. Hopefully, this RV decision guide is helping you identify RV expenses you may not have thought about. At least with an RV rental, you won’t have RV maintenance costs to consider.  

Peachy, right?

So, you decided RV rental is worth a try – at least once.

The logistics to pick up the rental unit and return it just boggle my mind. Do you drive to the dealership or private owner you are renting from? Where do you leave your vehicle while you are using the RV? Motorhome rentals do not allow towing of any trailers or cars.

I don’t have the answer to the logistics question, but I think it is worth asking.

Are you ready for the glass-half-full perspective? With RV rental, you won’t be responsible for any direct RV maintenance or other RV expenses. Those are likely rolled into the pretty “additional cost” categories bulleted out above.

Purchasing an RV and lemon laws.

Or actually, lack thereof. Purchasing a motorhome should be the purest definition of the phrase “buyer beware”. Papa Joe and I were incredibly excited when we brought our new Class C home. One would think it was a new baby – and maybe it was.

That first blush of excitement wore off very quickly. Literally. Within the first few hours, we found items wired incorrectly, the LP regulator was defective, we were unable to find networking access codes, and on and on, and on.

In the first year, our new wonderful Class C baby was at the dealership for repairs about 30% of the year. I was so unhappy and frustrated that we (I) considered legal action. We considered returning the unit and taking the financial loss. Anything we could think of that would get rid of this expensive lump of metal sitting at the dealership.

We learned motorhome owners are poorly represented in the automotive industry and have no recourse under standard auto “lemon laws”.

Luckily Papa Joe has the patience of a saint and found a manufacturer’s representative who helped expedite the few remaining issues that needed to be resolved. We are almost a year and 7500 miles later, and our Class C baby is now beloved again. Knock on wood.

If you are leaning toward purchasing an RV, you need to take the lack of buyer protection into consideration.

Time to furnish your RV.

So. You completed your worksheet and decided that purchasing an RV is a better choice for you than an RV rental. Now it’s time to furnish your RV.

Are you ready to furnish a second home? There is no easier way to say it. Outdoor equipment. Grilling equipment. Linens, bathroom, and kitchen supplies. The second set of all cooking apparatus – and stocking a second refrigerator, freezer, and pantry.

These are pretty basic RV expenses for furnishing your second home. In the back of your mind, consider RV maintenance or replacement costs for every one of these items.

You can make the decision to load up your RV each time and not furnish a second home – and that may be the right decision for you.

If you do, be prepared to move everything needed to live in the unit for your travel/vacation time into the RV every time you travel. On that note… can you get into each nook and cranny of your RV while you are moving everything back in prior to leaving?

No lie, most RVs are not configured to allow full access to cupboards, stoves, refrigerators, and other storage units when the slides are rolled in. When your RV is in storage, is it easy to access all the cabinets and refrigerators before and after a trip?

Seriously, limited accessibility is one of our pet peeves and is a totally separate blog post by itself. We are fortunate to be able to store our RV in the driveway year-round. During the camping season, we keep the RV stocked and ready to go while it’s parked. With the exception of the water heater and AC, everything is on and ready throughout the season.

Here is a sample list of items we have furnished our Class C with.

Let’s summarize my rambling.

Purchasing an RV is like buying a second home, with all the responsibilities of homeownership. Believe me, RV maintenance and expenses can be costly and require valuable time you would rather spend enjoying your RV.

There is no easier way to describe it. I think RV rental is complicated, with hidden costs and red tape. Now, at this point, you may be ready to ditch the idea completely.

Don’t!!!

We have spent some of our best family time in our RVs. Playing games, bonding, sharing stories. Creating memories. Seeing the countryside. Exalting in the joy of conquering the open road. Here is a little more incentive for enjoying family vacations.

Do you want to try RVing for the first time or think RVing may be a lifestyle for you? RV rental may help you make that decision without a huge financial commitment.

This RV decision guide is not intended to scare you away from the RV lifestyle. My intent is to help you make the right decision for your situation.

If any of these catchphrases rang true for you, this RV decision guide was helpful and the RV lifestyle may be for you.

Additional resources.

I told you at the beginning of this RV decision guide I used several resources to compile information and provide thought-provoking questions. Many of these include thought-provoking questions about RV expenses and maintenance.

Those resources are all listed below.

• RVAcrossAmerica.net Thinkin about RV’ing? But…should you RENT or BUY an RV?
• RVTravel.com RVs: Rent or own?
• GoRVing.com Buying & Renting an RV
• CruiseAmerica.com 5 Things to Consider Before Buying an RV
• RV Trader new Forester Motorhomes new
• RV Trader pre-owned Forester Motorhomes used
• Gold Eagle Averaging RV Storage Rates Across All Fifty States
• RVTipster RV Cost Calculator

As with any decision guide, I am certain there are categories I have not considered. Please comment with any additions or suggestions and I am happy to update this RV decision guide based on your feedback.

Thanks, and welcome to Love RVing!