Readers Corner – any tips for this reader about RV financing?
This month Ron B. would like some advice about an upcoming RV purchase.
I’m considering purchasing my first RV and need some advice on financing. Do you have any tips for me about what to expect when financing this purchase, i.e. who has the best deals out there etc.
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Dear Ron….my wife and I just purchased a 2008 Holiday Rambler Scepter…it was a very special deal, so we couldnt wait for our financing to come in from investments we had, so we put down about 10% and financed with Bank of America…with the understanding that we would pay off all but about 60K and wanted to refinance that amount in 4 weeks. When our money came in, we paid the B of A loan down to the 60K and ask to have our payments reduced to a loan of the 60K and were told that we would have to wait for 6 months to a year before we could refinance. We told them that we didnt want to go on making the large payments for that period of time, when we had just paid down the $280K loan to $60k and wanted the payments to be reduced accordingly. NO Way they said you cant do that. I told them that, in that case, we would have to go elsewhere and refinance the $60k and they said “fine” we cant do anything about that. So I looked around and found US Bank willing to refinance the $60k, no fees..and at the same rate I had with B of A…which was the best rate available at that time. I would suggest that you be very leery about B of A, as they are all screwed up. About 3 weeks later, after I had gone with US Bank, I had a call from B of A asking me how I liked their service….of course I told this person the same story and she said…”Oh now, we could have refinanced, and you wouldn’t have to wait at all”. I said that they should let their employees (I even talked to two different managers) know what is the policy, because no one seems to know.
Did find that some of your credit unions have specials around June or July of each year….some come down as much as a full % point for that short period.
Anyway, my main point is…..be very careful of anything that anyone tells you…ask to see it in writing on your contract.
Don
if i were buying an rv i would refinance my house with the rates in the 5% range , the interest would be deductable i don’t know that the banks would have rates that good on a rv loan. check into it ranger rick
Ron,
try Commerce Bank in Kansas City Mo..Commercebank.com or call them at 1-800-449-9829- my experience with them was excellent..tell them I sent you. rates at the time of my purchase were below current mortgage rates on 15 yr notes somewhere around 5.25%( becon score rated of course) and the service and ease of purchase was great.
good luck with your purchase
Dave
If you can, DO NOT fiance with the dealer. Use a home equity loan or other source and negotiate with cash. Dealers are very hungry for cash deals and will discount 30% or more from MLP.
Before we even looked at any RV, we decided what we could afford should something was to happen to us, then we took our time looking at all of them, checked out what floor plan we liked the most. then we got on the internet and looked at the valve of each coach. We also checked out interest rates and decided what we would pay and for how long. Once we settled on the coach we liked, we took our down payment into the office, told them how much interest we would be willing to pay and made the offer for the coach we liked. Of course they gave us the usual, not sure we can do that, might have to go higher on interest, but we stuck with our decision and told them this is what we were willing to pay for the coach and what we were willing to put down and how much interest we were willing to pay, by the time we got back home, they had called and told us to come pick up our coach, the financing had been approved.
Remember there are several good deals out there, don’t be afraid to stick to what you feel you can afford to pay each month, because buying a coach is a 15 to 20 years investment. You don’t want to be talked into one that you know you can’t afford and then resent it in a year or two.
We go more because we have our RV and don’t have to worry with who will watch our dogs as we can take them with us.
Remember to read all the paperwork before signing and ask questions. There were several little things they tried to sneak into the contract and we just refused to sign until they took them off. We refused to pay for them to do the paperwork as everyone know that all they have to do is put in the numbers and the computer does the rest. Just take your time and really look the RV over. Once you find one you like it will just feel right for you. Pray about it too, if God wants you to have it, he’ll work it out for you and direct you to the right RV.
When we purchased our last RV we went with bank financing. We were told by the dealer it was the best rate.We checked other companies online and took the bank loan. Our insurance agent at State Farm told our they could get us a better rate. They lowered our payment by $90.00. That’s a good savings.
Don’t buy an motorized RV. Buy a extended cab Pickup
Then buy a travel trailer which qualifies you to get a 30 year loan at low interest rates. Don’t know what the rates would be now but I did this on a 31 footer and got payments of $127 per month. Since inflation is rampant now you probably will wind up owning the thing for nothing.
Have fun!
PS one other course of action is to buy a used Airstream
on ebay. The older ones are best and I just saw a cherry condition 31 footer for $10,000.
had me a59 airstreme and lets me tell yoa was the beat rv me aahnksn the wife ever had in our 60 year tagather. now we be a lookin fer somethin little newur maybi round 65-70 strean. any help ne apreceated ifin yous can point me in teh right derection. thanks in avanse of yer response welike ta get back ta west virgina every year and the old streme wont have the snort in her ta make its. tahs RV t
As with any loan you MUST have certin information before you sign on the dotted line .
1) any prepayment peneties
2)refinanceing available with out penalties
3) will a larger / smaller downpayment lower the interest rate .
Personaly when i bought my first 40 foot mobile home i made a special savings account > made payments into it , like it was bieng made to a dealers auto loan > when i had enough i purchased the RV and had custom wotk done on it all paid in full , hassle free and no wories about making payments while on the road and no paying up to 3 x the purchase price due to intrest fees from banks…
2- sources – Good rates, quick service, Private capital I believe:
RVGuyz.com 800-892-9102 – Boca Raton, Fl.
fastfinance.com – Fast Finance Inc., Ft. Lauderdale, Fl. Chris Eldredge
954-852-5888 ext. 106 Chris@fastfinance.com – http://www.Fastfinance.com
The took very good care of us on our first RV purchase
TJ wright
HARDIN CONSTRUCTION COMPANY, LLC
You can also buy the r.v. in a state that has no sales tax as I did. I went to N.J. to buy my r.v. because I found an incredible online deal. When I got there they said I would have to pay new jersey sales tax. I explained that if they transfered the unit to the dealership they had in New Hampshire they would be able to sell it to me without my having to pay sales tax. They said that wasn’t possible and that I would HAVE to pay the sales tax on the rig. It was at that point that I explained if they can’t do it the way I wanted, they could come to the door and watch me drive away never to return. They changed their tune as I was driving out. Don’t let these people tell you what is going to happen, don’t be afraid to let them know who the customer is!!!! They tend to forget easily. I used to be a car salesman so there is no way anybody is going to pull one over on me. I know pretty much every trick in the book.
My best advice to ANYONE who may be in the market is this… now is your time! These salespeople will not let a warm body out of their sight. They are DYING right now and will take even the most redicuous deals. GOOD LUCK!!!