Buying A Motorhome

There's nothing easy about buying a motor home. First of all, you'll want to figure out what you're going to use it for. Or maybe like me, the future stretches out uncertainly and all you know is you need a place to put your stuff, and a bed you can always count on.

A very nice class C is shown above. Its located in Maine. I drove across the country, though, in my Geo.

Now, here in Idaho, I've visited and stepped inside another 33 motor homes. Some were Class C. Some were Class A (the kind that look like a school bus). None were trailers or Class B (a van conversion thing.)

Some had slides, providing a lot of additional floor space, yet adding weight and possible complications like fuses and electrical outages. I know you can crank the slides in manually.

I looked at rigs old as 1988 and as new as 2008.  Bottom line, I went with a 34 foot Class A, Coranado Fleetwood. Its immaculate and fully paid for. Done deal.

It has complete insurance and AAA for the first year. Who knows what I'll decide after I get used to this rig.

The stats:

I visited and heard the speils of seven dealerships for a total of 22 rigs.

I tried Craigslist and found two complete scammers, a piece of junk by a private seller (water logged so bad I feared to even drive it) and one missing random things and overpriced.

One rig, parked along the highway was inspected and defended by the seller. It reeked of cats and dogs. The linoleum rippled. No go.

I visited two Consignment dealers, whose income depending on selling at a percentage, and inspected another eight units. A lot of trust goes into the purchasing process. Its important to feel the person doing the selling is not lying. When and if you catch them in a lie, trust goes out the door. Move on.

Some rigs are winterized. All but one dealership was as is, no warrantee. Bottom line, bring a friend, bring family, bring your top inspection genes. Ask questions. Tons of questions. Check everything, every corner, every tire, every appliance. Then check again. Ask to see each 'basement' storage unit under the main floor. Touch the insulation. One dealership opened the spare tire box. I felt the insulation. Sopping wet. "We got a lot of rain last week," was his excuse. My tent doesn't even leak this bad. Forget it. 

Now that I own a motorhome, I can travel to seasonal jobs or stay in the area.
I'm not sure how much survivalism goes into owning a camper, but I'll keep you posted. Seems like a lot of folks are looking at this lifestyle either for retirement, traveling, or seasonal jobs. It does open up possibilities.