Buying a used travel trailer

Fiss · May 8, 2019

I live in NYC and interested in buying a used travel trailer on a budget. Anyone have any advise or opinions? Would be interested in hearing your opinion.

TravellingCircus · May 8, 2019

Have you done research and decided upon what brand, model, floorplan, price range you are looking for? If not, I would suggest going to RV dealerships to get an idea what your preferences are and RV trader is a good source to see what is out there on the market. It is much more important to take your time and do a lot of research if you are planning on full-timing in it.

That method worked for me and I lucked out and found exactly what I was looking for at a good price on RV trader, but not after several years of research.

Kirk W · May 8, 2019

Welcome to the Escapee forums!

I am wondering if you have any prior experience with RV travels? From what little I know of NYC, you should probably find a place to store the RV and check that cost before you buy. When buying used it is also a good idea to pay a mobile RV service tech or a professional RV inspector to go over the RV before you pay your money. I'm not familiar with RV dealers in that area, but a good place to find used RVs for sale is the electronic RV Trader free magazine. If you have no prior knowledge of RVs you would probably be well served by joining the RV Consumer Group to take advantage of the educational information that they supply to members.

kb0zke · May 8, 2019

Welcome, Fiss. The more information you can provide about yourself, your family, your pets, and your plans, the better we can assist you.

NYC doesn't strike me as an RV-friendly place. Are you planning on full-timing, or have you thought about where you can park your RV when you're not traveling?

Why are you looking at a travel trailer? Is it because you already own a vehicle that might be able to tow one? If so, what weight limits are there? Are you afraid of the size of a fifth wheel or a motor home? If so, don't be. If worst comes to worst, you can find someone to drive your RV to a place where you can practice (an empty parking lot is the usual choice) until you are somewhat comfortable. Then take it out on the road.

Many people buy an RV with little thought to how they plan to use it, and as a result, they end up buying the wrong RV. Then they compound that error by buying something new. You aren't falling into that trap. My suggestion is that you spend some time visiting every RV dealership within a hundred miles or so and look at everything on the lot, regardless of condition or price. You are looking for two things: quality and livability for you. If you are 7' 2" tall (like a friend of ours) headroom will be an issue. If you like watching television outside look for something that has an outside television. If you prefer watching inside, and watch a lot, make sure that you aren't sitting sideways to the set. If you like cooking, is there enough counter space for you?

Remember that every RV is a compromise. Slides add space but also add weight and repair issues. A wet bath takes less space than a regular one, but isn't for everyone. Some small trailers tuck a regular double bed into a corner and put the bathroom next to it so the only way in and out of the bed is from one corner. That can make making the bed a challenge, not to mention the fact that the person on the outside wall has to crawl over the other one should nature call during the night. Those small trailers can tuck into campsites that larger ones have to bypass.

FL-JOE · May 8, 2019

13 hours ago, Fiss said:

I live in NYC and interested in buying a used travel trailer on a budget. Anyone have any advise or opinions? Would be interested in hearing your opinion.

I would suspect the further you get outside NYC the better prices you would find on any type of RV, new or used. Do you currently have a vehicle you plan on using to tow the travel trailer around with?