10 Reasons NOT to own an RV...

[SeilerBird]

The whole point he misses is that RVs may be expensive but it can be cheaper than driving and motelling it.

 

[KBC58472]

Interesting read... however did anyone else notice the links to "book a room" or "book now"? Obviously he is a writer for the hotel industry.. I could write an article on "10 Reasons NOT to stay at a hotel" if you paid me money to do so. Just saying :

 

[SpencerPJ]

Obviously they never had a small family and enjoyed that experience.  Aside from boating (another expensive hobby of ours), we have had some of our most memorable times in a RV.  Our old class c, we called it the rolling turd.  Never failed us, and oh what stories we have.

 

[House Husband]

Item 2 (interest rates) got my attention. I grew up in an era of, the only thing your financed was your S&B home. I still don't find it responsible to finance RV toys.

Richard

 

[RVMommaTo6]

Item 2 (interest rates) got my attention. I grew up in an era of, the only thing your financed was your S&B home. I still don't find it responsible to finance RV toys.

Richard

I'm in the same mind set. I have too much anxiety to have debt beyond my mortgage. Ibpay cash or I go without.
(I actually charge everything for cash back but never ever carry a balance.)

 

[PJ Stough]

Item 2 (interest rates) got my attention. I grew up in an era of, the only thing your financed was your S&B home. I still don't find it responsible to finance RV toys.

Richard

It would be interesting to see how fewer RVs there would be on the road if none were financed.

 

[Lou Schneider]

I'll still be there.  ;D

That's an interesting article for a RV sales site.

 

[LTG]

If buyers were not willing to finance the purchase of new recreational vehicles, there would be precious few for the no finance group to purchase.
And, if the no finance group are financially able to purchase new recreational vehicles, they are in a very small group of which, I suspect, there are very few on forums such as this.
The owner of one motorhome, and prior owner of two other motorhomes, all financed.

 

[LarsMac]

We've seen a number of people who are just getting into the idea of RV living, and have not stopped to realize the negative aspects.
That is a pretty useful list, and probably deserves a spot here on the RV forum, as well. Those are all factors that Margo and I considered when we began our search for our next home.

 

[SeilerBird]

It should be a sticky.

 

[UTTransplant]

I think the piece works as a "thought piece" for someone looking into RV'ing when mixed in with other material that paints a broader more positive picture.

Yup. Clickbait.

 

[SpencerPJ]

They forgot to mention what a terrible investment they are, and how quickly they depreciate.  8)

 

[malexander]

I'm in the same mind set. I have too much anxiety to have debt beyond my mortgage. Ibpay cash or I go without.
(I actually charge everything for cash back but never ever carry a balance.)

I actually financed some of mine. Tax reasons.

 

[garyb1st]

I actually financed some of mine. Tax reasons.

Would you mind sharing how that works.  d

 

[grashley]

Mine is used not financed.  An RV clearly fits into the  "If you can't pay cash, you can't afford it."

I question the tax advantage of ANY purchase that is financed.  If I pay the bank $10,000 in interest, I can avoid $3,000 or $4,000 in taxes.

Give me $10,000 cash, and I will give you $5,000 back!

 

[Lou Schneider]

Would you mind sharing how that works.

One example - Social Security has a gotcha in that there's a certain income level where the taxable amount of the SS benefit goes from 50% to 85%.  In my case that's about $20k above my SS income, so if I withdraw $20k from my 401(k) or earn more than $20k income in a single year, another 35% of my SS benefit becomes taxable income.  Since I've retired, I've simplified my life enough where I'm comfortable living within my SS income.

In this case, instead of paying cash for an RV by withdrawing the whole purchase price at once and paying income tax on the full amount plus the extra 35% taxable SS, it would make more sense to take out a loan and spread the repayment over a couple of years, withdrawing less than $20k from my IRA each year to keep me below the 50% SS threshold. 

Paying cash would not only shift me into a higher tax bracket for this year, but the additional 35% of my SS would be included in my taxable income.  I'd be ahead to take out a multi-year loan and pay it's interest (which is also deductible) while paying down the loan at the rate of $20k per year.

Or I could just keep the RV I have now and spend the extra $20k a year on other stuff.

 

[KandT]

Heck, I thought that article was downright optimistic!!  LOL! 

I am trying hard to think of something fun that doesn't have downsides.........

I am sorry for the people that buy an RV an don't needs gas/diesel! .  Or the people who realize it will get dirty. 

 

[IBTripping]

There's a difference between news writing and opinion writing. This was an opinion piece.

What it is Gary, is a clear bias against RVing, without objectivity or an opposing perspective - things we see in our media every day. For whatever reasons, the author is simply imposing his personal opinions on owning an RV upon others. Who knows what his true motives are, or if he's even ever been inside an RV. Many of the points he tries to make are nothing more than his opinions on subjective issues.

It's easy write articles like this - to impose upon others your personal biases on matters, which you may, or may not have any personal experience. Fake news... lies...? I never said that. It's just more shoddy, biased journalism that we see all the time. Some just don't recognize it.

Kev

 

[Oldgator73]

I think some folks are bit touchy about the article. If you enjoy the RV lifestyle what do you care what others think of it. How many times have I read on this forum how folks feel about staying in hotels while on vacation. My wife and I will probably will not go back to the Caribbean. Too boring. We enjoy Europe much more. I?m sure there are folks out there that would like hell with us about that.  Ya?ll don?t need to get your panties in a wad just because someone doesn?t like your lifestyle.

 

[SargeW]

The article is nothing but a slur on the RV industry.  And not even a well disguised one at that.  No doubt written by a PR company for "Choice Hotels, Canada".  As no less than 5 hyperlinked messages throughout the article take you directly to the Choice Hotels site and their booking page. 

Most likely Choice Hotel group is losing money due to people not renting their over priced hotel rooms, instead of going by RV. So this was a weak attempt at striking back at the RV industry.  Whatever.