Great thread with a hilarious "rappers are scum, or not?" component oddly weaving through, LOL.
I'll take a shot at few misconceptions about the whole lifestyle, if anybody is interested.
"I think it is because the only market segment that can afford / wants an RV is quite wealthy."
It would appear so, but in reality it's a solidly middle income activity. The RV manufacturing industry is booming, and has been for the last few years. The feedback I hear from dealer management is that the towables, first the lower cost travel trailers, followed by larger fifth wheel units, are what sells. Then it's the gas engine motorhomes. One buyer at a large dealer outside of Philadelphia told me that they no longer carry any lines of the big, expensive diesel powered units, and really don't want to see them as trade ins. Not to say that there is not a lucrative market in these products, but it's far smaller than the "family of four, needs a trailer with bunks, and a low payment" demographic.
but if I was only moving it twice a year, fuel economy wouldn't be too important to me. Even if you go from where I live to Florida in a 6mpg vehicle, it costs about $8000 in gas, which twice a year, is within reach of some.
Well, mileage is bad, but fortunately not THAT bad. At current prices your $8K buys about 2250 gallons of gas, and would get your rough 13500 miles from home at 6 MPGs. Assuming you are not a Mongolian Shepard, your probably a bit high on the estimate. In reality, an average of 8-9 MPGs is probably more accurate, and a typical snowbird migration, lets just pick mid- Michigan to central Florida, would be 1250 miles, and $525 in fuel. Given that most retired folks would take three or four days to do the trip, with little lodging cost, three meals from their own kitchen every day, and no airline tickets, rental cars, etc..... it starts to look a lot more attractive. Don't forget, the average couple doing this migration also is either using a diesel pick-up that will get 2.5 to 3X that fuel mileage when unhooked, or is towing a very fuel efficient little car, for use during the few months that the RV remains stationary in a warmer locale.
There is a huge misconception among non-RVers. They look at a big beast that gets 7-11 MPGs and think, "how the hell can anybody afford to drive that thing". Unfortunately, they look at it through the lens of their own commuting experience, and do the math based on their own silly 20K per year of driving. Fact is, most RVs really travel very little, and the fuel cost is hardly ever a deal breaker. I have seen statistics that the average RV, purchased for family use, leaves the driveway about 8-11 times a year. One week long vacation, and the remainder are weekends to fairly local destinations. If you shop for used, motorized rigs, it's very typical to find decade old units in spectacular condition, with 25-30K miles on them, and find folks who are having a terrible time selling ones with twice that mileage, since they are viewed as "high mileage".
"I was shocked to see how much cheaper it is to stay in hotels, as compared to renting an RV"
Yes, it can be horrifically expensive to rent an RV. The rental agency is handing you a $75K ( or much more) piece of equipment that they purchase, maintain, repair and insure. Typically, the client is not only new to the whole concept, but a significant majority are foreign tourists who are doing their very first miles in North America in a giant beast, with prior experience limited to driving very small cars, often on the other side of the road. The other issue is that many agencies have very steep charges for mileage, so it can really add up. Now as a tourist, doing a typical summer national park tour, booking hotels in remote areas with very high demand, eating three meals a day at restaurants, and renting a car, are you saving a ton of money over renting an RV? Probably not. When asked, I always tell friends that rental RVs are for folks who want to explore the idea of owning an RV, or those that have severe time limitations and want to do the fly and rent style trip to see the other side of the country.
With those costs averaged out you could fly somewhere first class, have a limo pick you up at the airport and drive you to the trail head with your tent and gear. Hike for two weeks eating caviar, steak and the finest Scotch then limo it back to the front of the plane and still come out ahead.
Totally false premise. Take the same argument and apply it to another frivolous hobby, like owning a sports car. By your way of thinking, the narrative sounds like this, "By the time you do the math on buying a 2015 Corvette, insuring it for the year, and buying tires, you will have blown $75K." The mustachian response might be, "Well, it doesn't have to be expensive to enjoy yourself. I dropped $3500 for my ten year old Miata, it takes about $250 a year for insurance, and a few hundred in upkeep that I do myself, and it puts a smile on my face ever beautiful day that the wife and I head out for a drive.". RVing is no different than any hobby or lifestyle, you can drive yourself into overbearing debt, waste your future by doing a HELOC to pay for something you can't afford, or you can play the game smart enough that it's shockingly cheap.
I just advised a co-worker of my wife who bought a travel trailer. They travel with their son's baseball team, spending dozens of weekends a year at hotels. They have a small v6 pick-up. They bough a new, modest unit for $10.5 K out the door. If they keep the thing for a few years, it will of paid for itself. Two night a week at some $75/day hotel in a backwater cow town, with another $150 spent at less than notable eateries, compared to $25/day at the campground, and no additional cost for food, adds up quick.
Now to be fair, that $40k RV needs a $50k truck to pull it. Or even worse you could be my parents, who own an RV lot, Trailer and a Camper, with a truck to pull it all…… It works out to about 155k just to "camping". I'll stick to my tent.
Plenty of folks are out there as occasional campers, snowbirds, and even full timers who have a tiny fraction of your estimates invested in their rigs. It's nothing to hit a state park and see a 25 year old, but decent motorhome, pulling a 15 year old Saturn. The whole thing might be worth $7-8K, but it does 98% of what a quarter million dollar rig does.
The owned lot situation is interesting. Like a lot of "investments" I'll pass, but they can be an real solid move. Plenty of folks end up with nice appreciation, and a low cost place to spend time. It might really shock some of the tight 'stashes here, but some lots, purchased in high end resorts, are nothing but a very small piece of property, under a condo/HOA agreement, with a shocking monthly fee, sell for $150-200K, and there is more than a little demand for them. The other side of the coin is that it's possible to buy a lot in a really nice location for $15-30K and a few hundred a year in fees, which gives you a place to stay for as long as you like, and extremely low expenses.
PaddedHat - would love to hear more about this place in Mexico.
Me too - though he may not actually be in Mexico. Being on the Gulf could mean Texas, Louisiana, etc.
Well, it's definitely in the states. Unfortunately, I really can't get too specific. the issue here is that I found it by following a hipster nomadic blogger who spent the last two winters singing the praises of the location and posting stunning pics. This resulted in quite a windfall to the few local campgrounds that started seeing a huge influx of winter bookings. I'll be happy to give anybody some info. on a PM. but this place is already suffering from excessive publicity, and I would really like to find a spot there next year, :)
