Hi Everyone. Well, after 15 years the RV-Dreams Community Forum is coming to an end. Since it began in August 2005, we've had 58 Million page views, 124,000 posts, and we've spent about $15,000 to keep this valuable resource for RVers free and open. But since we are now off the road and have settled down for the next chapter of our lives, we are taking the Forum down effective June 30, 2021. It has been a tough decision, but it is now time.
We want to thank all of our members for their participation and input over the years, and we want to especially thank those that have acted as Moderators for us during our amazing journey living and traveling in our RV and growing the RV-Dreams Family. We will be forever proud to have been founders of this Forum and to have been supported by such a wonderful community. Thank you all!!
Hi This is my first time posting here. My wife and I are planning on going fulltime when we return to the states next year. We have been researching RVing for a while and are wondering if the class "A's you see on PPL" in the $20,000 to $30,000 range are suited for full time use? That's about our budget for now?
My personal answer to your question is YES. There are many of us out fulltiming in RV's that are over 10 years old. PPL is a great site for comparison shopping in your own area. I used them as an information source 4 years ago when we bought our class A gasser.
In your price range you will find most RV's have mileage of 40,000 to 50,000 miles which means there are many years to go on the drive train. We purchased ours with 48,000 miles and are still happy with it at 71,000 miles.
Howard and Linda who own this website are in a fifth wheel that is now over 10 years old. They seem pretty happy.
The biggest concern in any RV is maintenance and repairs. All RV's will eventually have some kind of breakdown. Brand new or used they all seem to be the same. That's where having an emergency repair fund comes in. Perhaps the older the RV, the more the need will be. This is an often debated and discussed topic on this forum.
Here is my and many other peoples consenses on an emergency fund. Have about $10,000.00 in a fund and you will be ready to cover expenses when "stuff happens". I can say that I have spent close to that amount in the last three years.
Pick an RV you like from a good manufacture, keep up on maintenance and you will have as much fun as a person in a new million dollar RV. We are enjoying our lives as RV travelers.
Life is good.
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Russ & Terri Ranger
Travel since July 2013
Home base: Buckeye,AZ
Wandering the USA & Canada in our Holiday Rambler Endeavor 40' PDT Motorhome
Travel so far: 49 States - International Travel -19 countries
I'd add the usual disclaimer about checking the condition for yourself AND getting an expert to do a proper evaluation. We were in the Houston area earlier this year, so we took a day to visit PPL. LOTS of RV's there in all conditions and prices. Some of the rigs we saw weren't even properly cleaned out. One was "missing" a bathroom sink. The sink was in the bathroom, just not installed in the vanity. I know of a couple of people who buy rigs from PPL, do the necessary cleaning/fixing then resell them at a nice profit.
Keep in mind that tires and batteries are more likely to age out than wear out. A new set of tires can add $4000 to the price of the coach very quickly. Many people suggest that you will spend about $10,000 in the first year just fixing things and doing upgrades that you consider necessary. After that, yes, you will need to have money for maintenance.
Pay attention to the quality of the coach. We know some people who bought a brand-new popular brand MH when they retired and went full-time. Within a year they traded it even-up for a 10-year-old Foretravel because they could see that their new coach didn't have the quality of the older one. Look at how the drawers are made, for example. Are they six pieces of cheap wood stapled together or are they properly constructed? If you don't know what you are looking for there, go down to your local cabinet shop and ask to see their most expensive cabinets. Have the sales person tell you why they are so expensive, then look for that quality in the coach.
Almost forgot. If the coach you want has old tires, make sure that the price reflects that. Unless the tires are really, really bad, buy it with the old tires. As soon as you own it, join FMCA, then take advantage of their Michelin program to get new tires at a considerable discount.
Thanks' for the help/advise. Looks like this may be doable for us. Next step is going to find a suitable toad once we get started, but that's another topic.
Cargo Carrying Capacity (CCC) can effect which motorhome/toad combination will work. Be sure to understand those numbers before committing to either one. The motorhomes capacity and what you plan to carry within the motorhome will determine which toad will work. My brother-in-law found out after purchasing a new diesel pusher that it could not tow his hotrod/trailer combination. It is a very expensive mistake to make. The lesson he learned was: Never trust a salesman. The dealership would not stand behind their employee. Their attitude was, "let the buyer by wary."
You have to learn how those numbers work and do your own math. All the numbers you need will be attached to a wall or cabinet door inside every RV. This subject has been covered in detail here in the forum. You can find it by doing a search.
Good luck with your hunt. It is worth the effort to be out fulltiming.
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Russ & Terri Ranger
Travel since July 2013
Home base: Buckeye,AZ
Wandering the USA & Canada in our Holiday Rambler Endeavor 40' PDT Motorhome
Travel so far: 49 States - International Travel -19 countries
As a followup to what Rus said - many of us that full timed found that we needed at least 3000 pounds of CCC and many (us) would liked to had 3500 pounds.
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Clay (WA5NMR), Lee (wife), Katie, Kelli (cats) Full timed for eleven years in a 2004 Sightseer 35N. Snowbirds for one winter and now settled down in CO.
You also need to establish a repair and maintenance fund and set aside money each month to cover those expenses. It is a question of 'will it need repairs' but rather a 'when it needs repairs'.
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Barb & Dave O'Keeffe
2002 Alpine 36 MDDS (Figment II), 2018 Ford C-Max HYBRID
Remember that the stuff expands to fill the available space. If you can only take 2000 pounds of stuff, that's all that can go in the coach. If you can take 3000 pounds then you will take more stuff.
Many people have said that you should have about $10,000 left after buying the coach to make the needed repairs and upgrades you want/need. Sometimes, though, it is worth it to spend a bit more on the initial purchase and get a coach that doesn't need the repairs and upgrades. Either way, though, there WILL be maintenance that is needed, so budget for it.
