At Coach Specialists, we hear it all and see it all. When someone brings an RV in with issues, we can tell you exactly what’s wrong and how to fix it. We can also help you out when you’re looking to buy or sell an RV. One thing that really upsets us here at Coach is a lack of education for RVers looking to buy. We do our best to inform our customers about their repairs and everything RV related as often as we can. In our research for topics, we found that there simply is not enough information about financing an RV purchase in Dallas, TX and the problems associated with buying.
We see a lot of RV dealerships and RV lifestyle “blogs” that will give its readers information about how many RVs they’re selling and how well they’re doing and why. But, you never hear anything related to the RVs that aren’t doing so well. You never hear anything about why your RV was so crappy to begin with or how to fix it or buy a new one.
Problems with Financing an RV Purchase
When you start searching for information about buying an RV, we bet you see ads everywhere for places like Camping World or regular lender like Lending Tree. You probably find it tough to find information that will help inform you before you actually have to take out a loan or purchase.
Often, you’ll see these places pushing loans of 15 years on RVs, motorhomes, and travel trailers that will only last you about 5 years. Sometimes, our customers come in for repairs saying they were told to take out a 20-year loan and their trailer is already falling apart after only 10 years. The RV lifestyle can be absolutely wonderful. And anyone who owns an RV will tell you they love taking it out for a night, a weekend, a few weeks, or months at a time. But we want to be honest with you here.
If you can’t afford financing an RV purchase for up to around 10 years, save your money and wait until you can.
Impulse buying is an issue for a lot of people. You don’t want to be upside down on your loans when the economy goes crazy again and you’re left having to sell your RV for much less than it’s worth.
How to Handle Applying for an RV Loan
Don’t be afraid to haggle. So many RVs on a dealership’s lot are inflated in price by sometimes up to 35% or 40%. Don’t take these prices at face value. Just like any type of sales deal, the salespeople at an RV dealership are expecting you to haggle and try to bring the price down. A lot of RV buyers have told us all they had to do was ask, and they were able to get the final price down by sometimes $40,000.
Be sure to do your research though. If you’re going for a certain kind of RV, check out sites like RV.com and RVTrader. Or, contact us and we can help set you up with an RV to buy. Looking at local sale prices will you a better idea of the best prices to negotiate for.
Be Aware of Your Credit Score. When applying for any loan, a buyer should always check their credit score. A good credit score for purchasing an RV in Dallas, TX is probably around 640 and over. Some dealerships may also take you even around high 500s or low 600s. If you don’t have the greatest credit score, just expect to see much higher interest rates. You can always wait and build your credit until it’s where you want it to be before making a large purchase such as this.
Absolutely Stick to Your Budget. We can’t stress this enough. So often our customers come in for collision repair, delamination repair, upgrades, what-have-you. And they always say, “yea she’s costing us a pretty penny ever since we got her.” The problem with so many new RV buyers is saying “well, I guess I can spend a little extra to get this or that,” or “eh, I can make it work. If I spend more now it’ll last me longer.”
This simply isn’t the case. Just like buying a brand-new car or house, there will always be problems you can’t plan for. If you have a small budget, get a smaller, more affordable RV. Save your money for future repairs or upgrades or even the trips you go on! And make sure to shop around for your loans during this time. Don’t just take the first one you’re offered. Like we mentioned earlier this RV will become your home. When you’re financing an RV purchase, keep in mind you’ll likely need property insurance as this becomes a second home.
Help When Buying an RV
At Coach Specialists we get it. Financing an RV purchase can be stressful. Doing the research and knowing what you want and what you can afford is going to be your best option. Here at Coach, we can help you buy and sell your RV! We can assess your needs and existing vehicles to help you get the best bang for your buck. If you have more questions about how we can help you buy or sell an RV reach out! We’d love to hear your story.