How many years is (or was) the loan on your present RV? Did you pay it off relatively fast, say 5 or 6 years? Or did you stretch it out for 15 or 20 years, which is increasingly popular these days (but not always a good idea)?
Based on similar polls in the past, we know that some RVers simply pay cash and that’s it — no payments at all — a lot of money saved on interest, and no payments to remember to pay every month.
So how did you do it? A loan that’s five years or less? 10 years or less? 20 years? It may take a moment for the poll to load, so please stand by. Your comments are welcome, of course.
We took out a short loan to make the paperwork more ‘accountable’ because the dealer had to satisfy the vendors documentation requirements. We paid it off within 6 months, as we already had the cash reserve ready.
We did the same thing on our last RV. The current RV has a 15 year loan that will be paid in Five.
20 year loan paid off in 5years
7 year loan but paid off in 4.
Yeah, we don’t take cash, you HAVE to have a loan? Equals more commission for someone! If his lips are moving, he is lying!
Honestly I don’t remember. It’s been paid off for years. Debt free is the smart way to go.
Just the credit card for gas. Trying to live a cash existence.
Paying by cash you are often overpaying for things, retailers have the credit card charges figured in and many credit cards offer a 1-5% rebate. I use my cards for everything and pay them off every month getting a rebate along the way.
Cash is an accounting term, paying when due. I pay in cash using a charge card, then pay that when due. Some pay by cash using checks. The term to use when paying with Washingtons, Lincolns, Jacksons and Benjamins is to pay with currency.
We took out a 15 year loan for about 50% of the purchase price then liquidated an unnecessary life insurance policy and paid it off a few months later.
It’s an Airstream Trailer, so the credit union offered it as a home improvement loan.
None. I refuse to finance lifestyle.
15 year loan paid in 3 years, but we made a very expensive mistake by signing up for Social Security without seeking financial advice. We used SS to make the payments. We should have used the 401k money and delayed SS because SS increases by 8% each year you delay. You can’t get that level of no-risk guaranteed return anywhere else.
No loan. Paid in full. Started small and cheap. Fixed up made a profit and flipped again. It’s enough the truck is financed
I took a 15-year loan based on how much I could afford each month. I know I am paying much more in the long run, but it has allowed me to have the rig I want, and the enjoyment of unlimited travel. To me it is just the cost of doing what I really want.
By paying off all car loans and consumer loans, that is how we budgeted to pay for our Class A Motorhome. We planned, and did not purchase until those were paid, and our RV Loan payment is only half of those previous ones. It works with our income budget well.
We had to get a loan on a 5er years ago…The thieves at Bretz RV in Montana wouldn’t give us the discounts without going thru their bank. So we agreed and paid the whole thing off a month later! LOL
That’s close to what we did. To get the good deal we agreed to a 20 year loan with an unwritten agreement to make 12 payments for our motorhome. We paid 19 years worth of it the first month and then planned on 11 more payments but when the dealership screwed around with us on warranty work we paid it off and they lost their kickback from the bank. We then drove 2 days to the manufacturer, stayed for free at their RV park and had repairs done in 1-1/2 days and stayed for free for another 3-4 days to tour around. The dealership did not take me serious when I told them I would pay it off so they lost and I gained.
Good for you!
Ten year loan through our credit union, but paid it off in six.
We had a 12 year loan but paid it off in a little over 2 years.
Two motorhomes (2016 and 2022) and two cash purchases. However, the second included the trade-in of the first RV as part of the deal. The first was simply a purchase.
We paid about 80% cash and financed the remainder for 5 years. The reason was to rebuild our credit after a financial setback. Paid the loan off early and added significantly to our credit score (yea us). This will help us in the future.
My original loan was for ten years. I took that because I got a lower interest rate than I could have gotten on a shorter term. Then I paid it off in less than five years.
100% down. no payments. life is good!
debt is dumb. cash is king.
– Dave Ramsey
Debt isn’t always dumb. One probably didn’t want to liquidate high earning assets when loan rates were dirt cheap. If withdrawing from traditional IRA’s or 401ks and on medicare or bumping up to high marginal tax brackets, be careful about taxable income levels in any given year.
I could go on and on but the net is that one has to do the math and understand the implications of how to best pay for large purchases. It’s not as black and white as it may seem. There is such a thing as “good debt.”
Got a 20 year, paid it off in 3 years
I voted “no loan”; however, we did take out a loan. I paid one month installment, then I got my severance package from taking a voluntary lay-off and paid it off. I love retirement!
Our loan was for 20 years, but we are paying it off in 4 or 5 years.
I planned to pay cash but the discount for taking a loan was substantial. I had to keep the loan for one year and then paid it off. I saved nearly $2k.
Our loan was for 6 years but we paid it off in less than 2!
My answer was missing – I don’t know how long the loan is, I do know the balance is currently less than the value of the RV. Since we plan to keep RVing as long as possible, we’ll keep paying until it’s paid for or we sell it or trade, and we may have to pay off the balance at that time.
Interesting discussion. We pay cash for necessities – housing, autos, etc. We finance toys for two reasons. The first is because we can usually find financing at lower rates than we are earning on the money. Not financing would negatively impact our income. The second is that, if the worst case scenario happens and we need every dime of those investments, the money is liquid – not tied up in an depreciating asset that would need to be sold to realize the cash. There are additional considerations, taxable income vs. tax deductions, length of ownership planned, etc. but we do make sure that we are never upside down in our toys. If our RV was our only home, it would have been paid in full at purchase. As long as it’s a toy, it probably will not ever be paid off…cause there will always be another one in our daydreams.
Husband & I weren’t married when we bought our motorhome and we each had our own homes. As a motorhome was considered a 2nd home and interest was tax deductible husband decided to finance. Soon after I asked him what his mortgage rate on his home was, it was 2 1/2 pts above the then current rates. I told him I would manage getting him a refinance on the house and roll the motorhome into it. He hated, still does, doing things like this. The new monthly combined MH & home payment ended up be lower than his original house payment. The rate is 3.62%. We could pay off the mortgage, but with tax deduction, inflation, pretty much paying zero and can keep the money working in investments.
took out 20 yr loan for the low payment just in case of a lean month, on 3yr with 3 payments left !