Consider the Purpose of Your RV Before Purchasing

There are many people drawn to the motor home bug and true enough, we see many RVs in North America. Having RVs and going on road trips is a hobby and pastime to many. To the more serious RV afficionados, it isn’t just a hobby - it’s a way of life. RVs has peaked its sales in 2006 with around 400,000 units sold in North America. RV fanatics don’t even seem to mind the soaring gas prices as long as they get their hands on the latest state of the art RVs of today.

With their serious price tags however, buying an RV is a very important matter. It is a decision that should be given a lot of thinking and consideration. When buying your RV, you need to take into consideration lots of things like the size, the amenities that you would like to have, the brand, insurance, your budget, and most importantly its purpose.

So what exactly should you go for when buying a RV? Like with the other important decisions in life, planning is very vital before you head out and buy your RV. The first thing to consider is the purpose of your RV. Are you planning to buy a motor home that you can use for your annual family trip? In such case, renting one would be more advisable. Whether you will use it often or seldom, the maintenance and storage costs are given and these are extra burdens on your finances.

There are also some people that intend to buy RVs to be used as their permanent residence. In this case, it is more like buying a new home. If you don’t really need to move in right away, experts advice that you try and rent one or two first to get the hang of it. RVs may be very comfortable to live in but can be quite sore if you’re in the wrong one.

A towed RV is misguided if you have children along for the ride. Riding in a trailer or even a fifth wheel is not only unsafe especially for children, it is also illegal. You will be required to obtain an extended pickup truck to tow a fifth wheel if there will be more than 2 adults as passengers.

For hobbyists that intend to use RVs for recreation, a “toy trailer” will work best. This is for those that will go on road trips to sand buggy and bring ATVs along. In toy trailers, the living area is compact to make room for the little garage at the back.

When decision time has arrived, try to spend some time with an expert RV salesman. You can consider a used RV at first to try it out. Brand new RVs will significantly depreciate once bought. Used RVs on the other hand depreciate gradually. After you experience it and get the feel of a particular RV that you prefer to have, then by all means buy yourself a new one and enjoy your motor home to its maximum.