Fractional Ownership?

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redcannon

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Aug 24, 2015
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Hi everyone!

I'm new to the forum, so I hope this post is allowed.

My husband and I recently started a company manufacturing off-road, off-grid RVs (expedition vehicles) and we are considering offering fractional ownership. I'm wondering if anyone has experience with fractional ownership? If so, how was the experience? If not, would you consider it? Do you think it's a good idea?

I was thinking of offering 1/10 share starting at 2 weeks per year of vehicle usage, with the option of purchasing extended use. The owners would be in an LLC together for legal and insurance purposes.
I won't go into too much detail, because I'm sure advertising is frowned upon, but I would like some honest feedback before I get too fond of this idea. :)

Thank you in advance!

 
You will find that most owners here do not find this an appealling idea. most like that all of their stuff is in the rig all the time.
A lot of the members that do respond really like the thought that the rig is loaded and ready to "bug out" at anytime. A lot don't like the thoughts of someone else sleeping in the same bed..ever.

It is funny too because some of those same people will tell newbies to "go rent first" to see if they like the life style.

This idea or something like it has come up several times in the last little bit. there must be a news report or something that people are seeing for a quick way to make a buck.

I think your idea will have several problems as the concept of "time share" just doesn't transfer well to an RV to many systems with to many little quirks. unless there is a custom well written manual for the rig being shared/rented. people will not instinctively know that placing an electric kettle on the propane burner and lighting the burner is a bad thing.

BTW feel free to send me a picture of the rigs you are making, I am not buying but like to look at pictures of new things :)
 
I have to agree with the above responses, but fractional ownership is likely more viable than just renting. One major objection is usully the ignorance of renters and the liklihood of damage due to that. This would obviate that concern provided that ownership required a training course of perhaps a week.

Also, an "expedition' type oh MH might have some attraction as a second MH for some. Having a vested interest and accountability may also further reduce the concrrns about damage.

After all, we rent or timeshare aircraft without many of the concerns I hear from MH owners.

Ernie
 
And for aircraft that are shared, the people are already pilots and know how to use the controls.  A lot of people think a motorhome is like a house.  It is not.  It's a combination house and vehicle with many specialized components.  A person can live in a house and drive a car but they can't necessarily live in a house that moves down the highway.  I would not be interested in such a concept.  It's one thing to rent a motorhome from a motorhome rental agency which is in business for that purpose, but it's quite another thing to partially own a motorhome about which you have no or little knowledge.

ArdraF
 
I don't think a lot of the concerns about renting and whatnot would even apply to a (very) high-dollar expedition RV. If you are talking EarthRoamer category then these would be close to million dollar RVs--and not very big. So a clueless newbie is not about to get into it for $100,000 just for 2 weeks per year to head to Disney World.

What I do see as a possible issue is geography. People who would buy into one of these would likely have their own favorite places to explore, perhaps not even in the USA. So it might be a challenge to get the vehicle to the places each of those 10 people want to use it.




Mike
 
Thank you so much for the honest responses. It is just what I needed.

I know of 3 RV companies that do fractional ownership, but none are of expedition quality, which does complicate things. We would have an extensive training course, but I don't want to spend my time rescuing people that got into a tough spot.

Yes, these are EarthRoamer type vehicles and the sticker price on our Dodge truck platform is 310k, so not many "ordinary" people (like myself) can afford that. I wasn't considering fractional ownership for a quick buck, but as a way for normal people to vacation in a nice vehicle. Renting the vehicles out doesn't appeal to me so much because people beat the heck out of vehicles they rent. Many of the EarthRoamers have very low mileage because the vehicles don't get used very often, so I was thinking this may be a viable solution.

Perhaps it will be something we give a try for our Indegogo campaign, but I'm still ironing out the details.

I really appreciate the responses. Thank you!
 
Would you offer your husband for fractional use?  Just not something I would considet.  Too many times we have decided Wednesday that we wanted to go out for the weekend.
 
Don't get the math.  Sounds like 10 owners share the RV for a total of 20 weeks.  If I understand your post, each owner gets two weeks.  What happens to the RV for the other 32 weeks of the year?  Also, with 10 owners, you have 10 individual ideas on maintenance, storage, insurance and other ownership matters.  For example, I like to service the vehicle every 3,000 miles.  Another owner thinks every 5,000 miles is adequate.  Then the serious money manager has heard that once a year is more than adequate.  Same with insurance.  I tend to think in terms of $1,000 minimum deductible.  Others think $100.00 is prudent.  Then there are legal considerations.  Do I want to be on the hook for a co-owners negligence?  Can get hairy real fast.  Management by committee is difficult at best. 
 
Expedition vehicle = off road = vehicle breakage and even worse if the person driving is not very experienced in off road driving a huge vehicle. Not very many people fall into that category. I see more repairing than driving.
 
Rickf1985 said:
Expedition vehicle = off road = vehicle breakage and even worse if the person driving is not very experienced in off road driving a huge vehicle. Not very many people fall into that category. I see more repairing than driving.
Click to expand...

Maybe that's where the other 32 weeks a year comes in? I've been on the Rubicon with others but I could just imagine someone trying to take a motor home through there - yeash, they'd have the trail blocked for days cleaning the carnage out of there :p
 
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