We stopped our search for an RV; for now.

[Swimmer]

My wife and I had been actively looking, and were ready to purchase a new RV (Super C) by early Q1. Lots of internet research, and then brief trips to dealers Over the past 3 months .

As C19 ramps up, I was uncomfortable visiting the dealerships anymore, even while wearing a mask and SD.

The dealerships have very low inventories and are charging top dollar, so another reason to pull back and wait. IE, I don’t blame them, but it’s definitely not a buyers market.

Recent vaccine news is looking good, and hopefully things will return to normal next Summer at which point we may enter the buyer pool again.

I don’t want to turn this into a political discussion, just the realities of buying an RV at this point in time.

Any other potential buyers out there reaching the same conclusions?

[RobbieH]

Look at used. Lots of pros compared to buying new. The two big ones are: 1. You don't take the depreciation hit, and 2. They already worked out the "new RV" bugs hopefully.

There were lots of things I loved about our Super C, but I'd never get one with a full-wall slide again, especially if it has Schwintek slides.

[BehindBars]

In these times of selling them as fast as they can build them, quality could suffer (more). That’s another good reason to wait.

[Swimmer]

Originally Posted by BehindBars

In these times of selling them as fast as they can build them, quality could suffer (more). That’s another good reason to wait.

Agree, that was also part of our decision.

[bikendan]

Originally Posted by Swimmer

My wife and I had been actively looking, and were ready to purchase a new RV (Super C) by early Q1.

The dealerships have very low inventories and are charging top dollar, so another reason to pull back and wait. IE, I don’t blame them, but it’s definitely not a buyers market.

Recent vaccine news is looking good, and hopefully things will return to normal next Summer at which point we may enter the buyer pool again.

Any other potential buyers out there reaching the same conclusions?

We were also hoping to buy a new 5th wheel this coming spring.
We too have stopped shopping until the RV buying craze slows down. I'm not going to buy a rushed thru the factory RV, at near MSRP prices.
We'll just have to keep our TT for a longer time.
If it does slow down, there'll be a glut of barely used RVs for sale and dealers will more willing to negotiate on new rigs.

[5picker]

Add us to the list of those that have mostly stopped looking/shopping.

We budgeted for a new 5th wheel this coming spring and had a few choices whittled down and was ready to start visiting and comparing in person. Not happening due to all that's been mentioned.

We've had our current model about as long as any we've owned and it appears we'll hang on to it even longer.

Its been a great unit and we've done a ton of mods so it really serves the purpose just fine.

[Reverse_snowbird]

Not looking at the moment, but if we were we probably wouldn't buy at this time. Low inventory, high prices and long timelines for repairs at the moment.
If you have somewhere to go, you could always consider renting if you don't currently have an rv.

[tigger68]

We have been looking at TT as we are tired of the long set up time of a pop up. We also stopped looking right now. I was hoping to at least figure out what we want then wait for the RV craze to die down a bit. Guess we will be in a pup for at least one more summer.

[tps28ss]

I share your concerns about the virus. In my search, the bigger problem was the lack of inventory to check out in the first place. A unit in which I had interest came up for sale but was purchased by someone else before I could get to the dealership. The sales manager did let me look in the RV (I promised not to touch anything; he laughed). The manager unlocked the unit and the left me alone. Minimal fear of exposure and I checked it out (Isata 5 30 FW). After exhaustive online research and my in the flesh visit, I put in an order. The price will be MSRP less 25%. (I know that the MSRP business is a bit bogus but 25% off the final build sheet price is ok at this moment in time). I anticipate a January dealer delivery. In my circumstance and 'stage of life' now is the time for me to get out there so come January, off we go. Reference the virus, any decent dealer will do everything they can and should to keep customers safe and at ease. In my case, I was left alone to check out the unit on the lot. The manager left his card. Upon completion I waved from afar and that was it. Further discussion was via phone and email. Going to COSTCO gets me tense; the RV visit was easy. I had no physical contact with anyone nor was I indoors at any time. Good luck and best wishes to you. Next year will be better.

[aceinspp]

Call me lucky as I ordered mine right after my rally in Sept. Showed up 1st week of Dec so was a nice Christmas present and good thing all all H broke out after that and I got it a good price. The old saying goes he who hesitates looses so I'm glade I bit the bullet Later RJD.

[Swimmer]

TPS, good to hear you got your vehicle. The I5, 30FW is at the top of our list. I am a terrible negotiator and needed to do more research on what We would expect to pay off List, but 25 percent that you got sounds very good to me, especially in this environment.

[tps28ss]

Swimmer: Thanks for the note. To be clear, the 25% off MSRP was not some slickly negotiated price by yours truly. That is what the dealer offered when I inquired. It is not uncommon. What you have to watch for are add-ons, fees, etc like PDI charges. I knew what I wanted and as a real RV maniac-nerd, I have been following Dynamax for years. When driving across country I would stop by Dynamax dealers-there are not that many really-and check them out. I liked the Dynaquest XL line but not in my price range. The other piece was my annual pilgrimage to the California RV show. Dynamax has a factory rep there and if you show up first thing on day one it is empty. You could sit in the units and the rep answered my questions. (I am not right in the head-people want to visit Graceland; I must visit the California RV show. See the Airstreams as works of art, say hello to Dean from Leisure Travel RVs of Canada and then to the Dynamax site). I knew my product so I then vetted my dealers. Six or so years ago, I was checking out several Dynamax units in Las Vegas NV. I did not waste the salesman's time but he was informative and honest. Move forward to this year, I was ready to buy, still had the guy's business card (he is now the Sales manager). I live in the dealership's catchment area for Dynamax. Called him up and we firmed up the deal. Also, no interest shown from other dealers I contacted. That settled it. Looking forward to that delivery. Good luck in your search.

[Lundy]

I guess I'm going to buck the trend of this post. We are picking up our new 2021 Rockwood 2608BS on Monday. We had originally planned to wait as others have posted, but life got in the way. Our recently divorced Daughter is currently living in our trailer as she puts her life back together, the divorce was a blessing as it was an abusive marriage. So that leaves us without a trailer for the first time in 30 years. Secondly, FR is raising prices significantly on their models over the next year, and I don't see the industry slowing down before we retire in June. So these combined forced our hand to purchase. We did manage to get 27% off of MSRP which I thought was decent in todays market with no added fees other than the required things. My one concern is the quality of the build, but I believe Rockwood has a better standard of quality than some of the other models. Plus after owning 4 previous trailers I can pretty much fix anything that might go wrong barring a structural issue. Time will tell if we are making the right move, but as for now that is the right move for us.

[tpstauffer]

Originally Posted by Swimmer

My wife and I had been actively looking, and were ready to purchase a new RV (Super C) by early Q1. Lots of internet research, and then brief trips to dealers Over the past 3 months .

As C19 ramps up, I was uncomfortable visiting the dealerships anymore, even while wearing a mask and SD.

The dealerships have very low inventories and are charging top dollar, so another reason to pull back and wait. IE, I don’t blame them, but it’s definitely not a buyers market.

Recent vaccine news is looking good, and hopefully things will return to normal next Summer at which point we may enter the buyer pool again.

I don’t want to turn this into a political discussion, just the realities of buying an RV at this point in time.

Any other potential buyers out there reaching the same conclusions?

You make a lot of sense in holding off for now. What many of us have found is that the simple task of finding campsites is no longer simple. Campgrounds have been CROWDED, and that makes it harder to safely distance. Masks were not common, although some did wear masks. What you will find, is in about a year, there will be MANY used RVs on the market. 1st timers will find out that for the easy vacations they were used to on a hotel or resort was what they want to go back to. Be patient. We are going to get another RV- a truck camper (probably a Palomino) to throw on our truck for a quick trip, and plans to go to Alaska. You will find many good deals for a 1-2 year old RV in 2021-22.

[Swimmer]

Interesting to hear the different perspectives. We are not getting any younger, so if the time is right to buy, I get it.

My wife and I are boaters and spend at least 35% of the year cruising full time as live a boards. Same deal for boats. The dealers can’t keep boats in stock (large and small), and they are selling like hot cakes. Used boat prices are also at top value. Marinas and slips are full as more people entered the boating world over the past 6 to 9 months.

All good, we just need to get on the other side of this and hopefully things will improve this Summer.

[tootall1]

My wife and I live in Ga and love RVING, coast to coast, and border to border.
Yes COVID-19 is serious stuff for those of us that are considered the protected
ones. We are 78.
There are thousands of us out hear now in our campgrounds and we are enjoying each other and being smart about the contact we have with each other.
Don’t let the hysteria keep you from enjoying the RV life. You guys are in a
great place in these beautiful states we have to enjoy. Go, look, experience, what is available to you and for you. This time of year there are fantastic buys
out there and dealers that would like to make a deal on Saturday.
Take that baby home put some canned goods in it, go to a nearby campground,
set up camp, build a fire, cook some burgers or dogs, set around the fire and
drink hot chocolate, say hello to your neighbors, and then take your wife in and snuggle and tell each other how lucky you are.

[burntcore]

We bucked the trend too, and traded in our 2015 hybrid for a 2021 Surveyor Legend. We had talked about trading in for awhile but wanted to wait until the season was over. So come early fall we started looking around and found something worth looking at in person at a nearby dealership.

The salespeople were very unpushy and let us look around without pressure, nor was it crowded. They appeared to be taking all the necessary Covid precautions. The price was good and they gave us a decent amount for our trade-in. The quality looked good, but I guess we will find out in the Spring when we get to finally have our shake-out when our campground opens.

[rvflyer57]

We started our search mid-summer and it wasn’t long before we were getting discouraged. Pretty slim choices at dealers in our area of California and little room to negotiate, if at all. Continued to narrow down our choices by online research, but stopped going to dealers. Many would show available units online and confirmed by phone, only to find they weren’t available when we visited.

After first deciding to wait until next year, we decided to order a MiniLite 2513s from an out-of-state dealer (Wana RV in Indiana). We requested a Spring completion and will make it a long vacation home. Haven’t had one this year, so a good make-up.

We ordered pretty much all upgrades available. We debated going basic since it’s our first TT, but we just went for it. Price was very fair and well below what we can get in CA. Good experience with the dealership so far. Most of the work has been via email though we’ve talked by phone several times to clarify a few things

I’m pretty sure there will be a flood of TTs coming on the used market in the next year as people realize they aren’t using as much as they thought. Others will hate making payments on a trailer just sitting in storage. Already seeing ads in the local Craigslist for “take over payments “. We were too impatient to wait.

Can’t wait to pick up our 2513s and enjoy some time away. I spend every evening researching this forum and watching how-to videos. Stocking up on supplies already (I can now see how easy it is to load more than you think.).

[bikendan]

Originally Posted by rvflyer57

We started our search mid-summer and it wasn’t long before we were getting discouraged. Pretty slim choices at dealers in our area of California and little room to negotiate, if at all. Continued to narrow down our choices by online research, but stopped going to dealers. Many would show available units online and confirmed by phone, only to find they weren’t available when we visited.

After first deciding to wait until next year, we decided to order a MiniLite 2513s from an out-of-state dealer (Wana RV in Indiana). We requested a Spring completion and will make it a long vacation home. Haven’t had one this year, so a good make-up.

We ordered pretty much all upgrades available. We debated going basic since it’s our first TT, but we just went for it. Price was very fair and well below what we can get in CA. Good experience with the dealership so far. Most of the work has been via email though we’ve talked by phone several times to clarify a few things

I’m pretty sure there will be a flood of TTs coming on the used market in the next year as people realize they aren’t using as much as they thought. Others will hate making payments on a trailer just sitting in storage. Already seeing ads in the local Craigslist for “take over payments “. We were too impatient to wait.

Can’t wait to pick up our 2513s and enjoy some time away. I spend every evening researching this forum and watching how-to videos. Stocking up on supplies already (I can now see how easy it is to load more than you think.).

We did the same thing, from Napa, back in 2006. Never regretted it and will probably do it again. People don't realize how inflated RV prices are on the West Coast.

[Swimmer]

I didn’t realize prices were higher in CA, compared to other areas of the Country.