Newbie needs some advice

[bobbyn]

My wife an me are selling our house and traveling for a year or more ? Never owned an RV before so it's a new adventure. We are considering a 2013 Georgetown xl 378. we have been looking for 3 yrs and finally decided to pull the plug. Not really familiar with this particular vehicle. I have learned one thing as I have done my research. Every vehicle will have some problems so it's expected. The price is right so we can purchase cash, hate payments. I would appreciate to hear from anyone who has any experience with this vehicle or the Georgetown at all.

Thanks for your help in advance.

[ependydad]

No advice, but my wife, I, and 2 kids are doing the same thing; we are about 2 months in now. We rented our house out using a property management company.

Welcome!

[tmhyer]

Try posting your question in the Georgetown subforum instead of the welcome mat

[mikel68]

Welcome, We're almost in the same boat as in never owning a motorhome, however we've had travel trailers and 5th wheels for about 10 years. I don't know if you're getting this from a dealer or "for sale by owner" type transaction, one thing to consider is warranty. We paid cash for ours as well, 2015 351DS, and have already had some major warranty work done. Keep in mind, sometimes your dealer can't fix certain appliances. Our Frigidaire fridge had some issues. We had to call a Frigidaire repair center to get it done.

Check everything, turn on everything, open every drawer, window, container, slide, tray, etc. As soon as you hand over the cash, it's yours. Check the roof for sure. Look for any interior signs of leaking on the floor and ceiling. Turn on the generator, fridge, ACs.

Once everything is done, it will be great. We're not retired, but full time teachers with kids in college, so we pick up and go whenever to where ever. Lastly, one other major issue to consider is what vehicle you will be towing, if you are. There's another good chunk of cash that goes into that. Some cars don't tow as well as others. We have jeep, Easy to tow. We had a Honda, not easy to tow. Lots of things to do to make sure you didn't burn up your transmission.

[360true]

We celebrate one year in our 378 this week. The most important thing to have is a sense of humor and adventure. Yes things will need to be fixed, and it will take time to figure things out, but it is all good. I guess the best advise is to NOT leave your coach at a dealer to be fixed. Let them know up front you live in the coach and you will be living in it during the repair period. If you leave it, repairs will be delayed. Have great fun!

[Iggy]

Originally Posted by bobbyn

My wife an me are selling our house and traveling for a year or more ? Never owned an RV before so it's a new adventure. We are considering a 2013 Georgetown xl 378. we have been looking for 3 yrs and finally decided to pull the plug. Not really familiar with this particular vehicle. I have learned one thing as I have done my research. Every vehicle will have some problems so it's expected. The price is right so we can purchase cash, hate payments. I would appreciate to hear from anyone who has any experience with this vehicle or the Georgetown at all.

Thanks for your help in advance.

Take a look at this tread. Someone is also considering the same thing as you.
http://www.forestriverforums.com/for...ack-91906.html

[tilap]

We have been full timers for just over a year now. I would agree with 360true. 100% it is a good life. Even our 4 dogs love it. Enjoy and have fun


Denis, Forest river Georgetown XL 377 2015, towing a 2014 Ford Explorer XL

[D_B Travelers]

Originally Posted by 360true

We celebrate one year in our 378 this week. The most important thing to have is a sense of humor and adventure. Yes things will need to be fixed, and it will take time to figure things out, but it is all good. I guess the best advise is to NOT leave your coach at a dealer to be fixed. Let them know up front you live in the coach and you will be living in it during the repair period. If you leave it, repairs will be delayed. Have great fun!

X2 on the most important things! Remember you are doing this for FUN, so keep smiling and just work through any issues. The DW and I had wondered about having work done when you live in the unit (we don't...yet). We had some warranty work that needed to be done on our TT and took it to the dealer first so they could order the parts needed. When the parts came in, I took it down for a one-day repair while I waited and brought it back home.

[rkulbok]

Congratulations on your decision. My wife and I just purchased a new 328TS in February and will be leaving, for hopefully 3 years, at the end of October.

Best advice I can give is do as much 'camping' before you sell the house to learn as much as possible about the motorhome. Even purchasing 'new' we have been back to the dealer for warranty work several times and there are many things that we did not know to ask during the walkthrough with the dealer. This is our first motorhome as well.

Best of luck with you purchase and safe travels.

[jeffv003]

We have been on the road for 1 and half years. We have been coast to coast twice and done 28000 miles. As you stated, lots of little problems that I have fixed with the help of this forum. Some big self inflicted problems. Haha. Just as many problems as my old house and pool when you think about it.

Im not sure there is another Class A gasser that I could live in besides the 378. Great living room space! Good bathroom arrangement. A nice cave of a bedroom that we keep very cold. Tons of storage underneath. Its been to 11000 ft camping and pulling a jeep with no power problems. Its been in 12 deg weather and we stayed warm. It been to 112 deg heat and we stayed cool.

Best thing is my front yard changes at a whim. Have fun!


2014 GT 378 XL

[jkoenig24]

If at ALL possible, attend an RV Boot Camp BEFORE you spend thousands on any RV. The Escapees RV Club run an excellent Boot Camp (other groups offer Boot Camps too). In Boot Camp, you and a couple of hundred other "newbies" will receive instruction on the systems found in a modern RV. You'll get to talk with many RV owners and see many different RVs. Mistakes made with RVs are often expensive and, sometimes dangerous. After graduating from RV Boot Camp, you will be a safer and more confident RVer. It's time and money WELL spent.

[tomrob1161]

If you are buying from a private owner vs a dealer, since you aren't familiar with RV'ing I would recommend having a dealer do a walk through. Plus, don't be shy, all RV'ers love to socialize. As you travel talk to your fellow campers and learn from their experiences, good & bad.

[Vince and Charlette]

I look at my Georgetown 364 as my "hobby". I just enjoy tinkering with it and improving/fixing little (sometimes big) things.

[reddiver]

Welcome to the wonderful world motorcoaching. I call mine a road boat - just a hole in the road that I keep putting money into. But it's all good and I don't complain. . . much.
Since you are selling your home to buy the coach, you probably know that you will not get any way close to what you bought it for, usually. . . especially if you go to one of these RV rebuy places. That is a bummer of the first order. Have fun and keep smiling. Keep the greasy side down.

[camboneg]

Bought our 2012 373DS straight from the factory took 33 days driving cross country and fell in love with it. My advice to anyone buying an RV, new or used, is get yourself an extended warranty. There's many out there so shop around. Be sure it covers you bumper to bumper too. If and when something breaks I'm out only $50 for that visit no matter what's or how many items are broke or need fixing. No matter how well you maintain your MH, it's a house on wheels, things will break. Most big items are from a few hundred dollars and climb up rather quickly. Our warranty has paid for itself and will continue for the next 4 years undoubtedly.

Have Fun.

[Cornelius]

Welcome! We have been traveling full time in our Georgetown 373 since January 2012. There have been a few issues, but nothing too serious. I don't miss all the problems with having a house, and I certainly don't miss property taxes, utility bills, yard work, etc. The two things I do miss are my swimming pool and an always reliable internet connection.

Enjoy your time traveling.

[camboneg]

Internet can be a pain. We have Verizon cell and have the jet pack for back up on Internet. Verizon to date hasn't had any connection problems anyplace we've been. Even when in the mountains we're still able to get internet, not fast but still connected. I haven't run into anyone using satellite internet that I can ask questions, yet, plus there's none that I've checked out that are worth their cost. I'm sure sooner or later I'll find someone. We started full time last May after selling our home. Come next May, if we're still enjoying this lifestyle, we'll be getting an Entegra 44DLQ for our next one.

See you on the road.

[Bluepill]

I didn't see anyone mention it so far. Get a well rated mobile rv mechanic in the area to check it out for you first.

Good source:

RV Service Reviews


If you don't have experience driving a large vehicle, spend a few hours with a commercial driving instructor.

[Vince and Charlette]

For an extra $20 a month with Verizon, I turn my iPhone into a mobile hotspot which gives me a personal "Wi-Fi" wherever I go, and bypasses the crowded, slow and insecure campground nets. (By the way, you can have Verizon turn this feature on and off as needed in order to save money.)

[BillMFl]

Welcome to life in a box! I spent many years as a tent camper. Then moved up to 5vers, now on my second MH. I also own a live aboard Trawler. The good news is you are free to travel anywhere. The bad news is it isn't cheap. Fuel, RV park rental, repairs, routine maintenance, depreciation, insurance, etc all mount up. We have travelled coast to coast and have seen most of the natural wonders this country has to offer. But I personally find full time living much too confining in any rv. So I prefer trips of a few weeks or several months, then back to home. I enjoy my home on two woodsy acres and all the creature comforts of a spacious home and my garage/workshop too much to live in a box full time. And the box on wheels has had too many issues, some relatively routine, but many very aggravating. Do I still like it? Sure. Do I want to live in it full time? No way. But to each his own and there are lots of folks who prefer to. Just don't go into it with fantasy blinders on. There are reality issues related to why so many used MHs have so low mileage.