The open road, family memories, freedom to bring your pets along…there are many reasons to buy an RV. But before you spend your hard earned money on an RV, here are some tips to make the RV buying to ownership experience a bit more seamless.

Before Buying- Rent or Borrow an RV First

RV life is not for everyone, and that’s fine! Before you spend thousands of dollars on an RV, try borrowing one or renting one first. Yes, renting an RV may also cost hundreds to low thousands of dollars depending on the type of RV, location, and duration or the rental, but that’s money well spent if you try it and decide it isn’t for you. On the flip side, if you buy an RV and decide you don’t like it, that will may end up costing you more than renting one would have. If you rent one and find that everyone in the family enjoys it, that’s your cue to consider these other pieces of advice.

Before Buying- Go to an RV Show

It gives you an opportunity to look at -in person- a variety of different types of RV’s in a low pressure environment. There are also usually vendors/exhibitors there that sell RV-related accessories that you can check out, and some shows even offer seminars or presentations. Here are a few I recommend checking out (if marked *, they have seminars):

Northeast

• America’s Largest RV Show*, Hershey PA, September
• Ocean City MD RV Show*, October-November

Southeast

• Overland Expo East*, Virginia, October
• FL RV Super Show*, Tampa FL, January

Midwest

• Indianapolis Boat, Sport, Travel Show*, Indianapolis IN, February
• Midwest RV Super Sale, Elkhart IN, August

Northwest

• Great Alaska Sportsman Show*, Anchorage AK,
• Overland Expo PNW*, Redmond OR, June

Southwest

• Quartzite Sports*, Quartzsite AZ, January
• Southwest RV Supershow*, Dallas TX, September

Before Buying- Pick the Best RV For YOU

The two main choices are going to be buying new or used, and motorhome or towable. Part of that decision may be influenced by the number of people in your family, especially if you have kids still in car seats. You also need to consider your style of camping, whether you prefer a more resort style campground with amenities and activities, or prefer a more boondocking, off grid experience. If you’re going to be full-timing, your criteria may be very different than weekend warriors. Storage is also something to consider and look into locations and cost especially if you plan to have it stored away from your house. What works for one family may not be best for another.

As far as specific manufacturers and models, I don’t have “buy/stay away from” lists. It really comes down to the individual model that works best for you and your family, and 1- being educated about those systems and preventative maintenance, and 2- getting an independent inspection on the specific RV you are looking to buy before you buy it.

Before Buying- Educate Yourself

When I say educate yourself, I mean everything that I’ve already mentioned from attending RV shows, and considering your specific needs and wants in an RV, but also learning online. There’s a wealth of information out there in owner groups on Facebook, RV owner forums, YouTube, and more. Just take everything online with a grain of salt. Not every RV is the same, and what applies to one RV may not apply to others. There are plenty of accurate generalizations out there, such as leaving your black and gray tanks closed until it’s time to move or they get full, but the best sources of info will be the manufacturer’s owner resources, the owners manual when you do buy, and certified RV techs or certified RV inspectors. I do recommend the following: RV Owner’s Maintenance and Repair Training from NRVTA, as well as RV Academy courses from RV Safety Education Foundation. I also recommend the book “No Shock Zone- RV Electrical Safety” by Sokol.

Buying Process- Hire an Independent, Certified Inspector

An RV is likely the second biggest purchase you will ever make in your life. Just like you would hire a home inspector before you buy a house, hiring an independent RV inspector prior to signing the dotted line gives you a better understanding of the current state of the RV. Specifically, an NRVIA certified inspector will spend 4–8 hours on site, testing every system on the RV, and provide a comprehensive report that breaks down any issues found into life safety, major, minor, and inspector comments/observations. This gives you negotiation power to have any issues fixed before taking possession of the RV, especially at a dealership. If you are buying from a dealership, they may try to dissuade you from getting an independent inspection, saying that they do their own. However, sometimes that inspection may still cost you money, and it’s not as thorough as an NRVIA level inspection, aside from the fact that it’s a bit like trusting a homeowner to do their own inspection before selling. I provide pre-purchase RV inspections in VA and MD, but if you’re outside of my area, you can look for an inspector near the RV using this locator map tool. For a more detailed article on pre-purchase inspections, read more here.

Buying Process- Ask These Important Questions

The question you should always ask, whether you are buying new or used- “What specifically is included in this price?” You don’t want to learn the hard way that the battery costs extra, or that the private sale didn’t include all the necessary accessories like a sewer hose or wheel chocks. If you are buying used, you should also ask for the maintenance history, how the RV has been stored and used (full time vs weekend use). That will clue you in to things to pay extra attention to when you are looking over the RV. Another tip- be sure to ask a few questions you already know the answer to, so that you can gauge the knowledge of the seller and therefore their other answers. An example might be the heating sources for the water heater, or the cargo carrying capacity.

Buying Process- Check These Things

On all RV’s, I highly recommend you “test” both the shower and the toilet on the model RV you are interested in. Especially if you are taller, you’ll want to make sure you can actually move in the shower. If you’ve found the perfect RV a few states away and can’t visit it in person before coming to buy it, try your best to find the same model RV near you to do these in person tests.

On a used RV, the top two red flags will be: 1- a lack of maintenance records or lack of demonstrated understanding of what maintenance the RV needs (this is where educating yourself can make problems more obvious), and 2- faded/cracked/torn slide out wipes and seals. While slide out wipes/seals are easy enough to replace, if they are cracked or faded that demonstrates a larger lack of maintenance.

Buying Process- The Finish Line

Here’s something unique to the RV industry- if you’re buying new, financing can actually give you an “out the door” price that is lower than paying for it outright with cash. This is because many dealers don’t make much money on the sales of RV’s, but rather their moneymaker is in the financing of the RV. That’s not an encouragement to finance, but rather to understand that approach. I still will always recommend that you take the time to find the right RV for you AND make sure that you can actually afford the buying and maintenance costs of an RV before you buy.

To summarize, I recommend:

• Renting before you buy
• Going to an RV Show or two
• Take your time- educate yourself and explore a variety in order to pick the best RV for you and your family
• Get an independent, NRVIA level inspection before buying
• Ask plenty of questions before you buy
• Check out the model in person before you buy