This article is about RV buying and the top 5 mistakes that many RV consumers make.

Of course, there have been lots of new RVers that have bought RVs in the past few years.

And many of them have made some very bad choices when they bought an RV. Either on the new or the used RV market.

And what this resulted in was their getting RVs that were problematic and troublesome.

So therefore, they clearly were not happy with the results of their buying experience.

And so let’s discuss five big mistakes that many people make that need to be avoided. That way you can be sure that the RV you get is a good one!

Table of Contents

• RV Buying – The First Big Mistake
• What You Need To Learn Before Buying An RV
• Big Mistake #2 In RV Buying
• Mistake #3 – Who Do You Trust?
• The Truth About RV Salespersons!
• Here's A Big Mistake! – #4
• RV Buying Mistake #5
• How To Get All Of The RV's Problems Fixed Quickly
• Conclusion

RV Buying – The First Big Mistake

OK, let’s start with the first one on the list. And that is, many people don’t learn much about RVs themselves before actually buying one.

Instead, they often fall in love with the RV lifestyle first. Because this is constantly promoted by RV manufacturers and online content creators.

Many of them are just pushing the travel part of RVing. And the adventure of it all, the freedom, and so on.

So these buyers fall in love with that whole idea that’s being promoted by the RV industry.

But they don’t really pay very much attention to the RV itself. And that’s what is going to allow them to enjoy the lifestyle!

So before you actually buy any RV, you need to learn about the pros and the cons of different kinds of RVs.

Because there is not a single RV made that fits everybody’s needs out there.

What You Need To Learn Before Buying An RV

So you need to learn about the different categories of RVs first. Then you can determine what’s going to fit your needs best.

Now another thing that needs to be learned about is what brands are known for producing better quality RVs than their competition.

And when you know that, you can put the odds on your side that you’re going to get a good RV.

So I have created several guidebooks that can help you know which brands are best to buy. Just click here to view them.

Also try to not only watch videos and content about RV adventures and travel.

But also try to include content about maintaining RVs. This will be very important for you to know when you are an RV owner!

And being able to spot trouble in major costly components in an RV is valuable knowledge to have. Especially when buying an RV.

That way when you’re shopping for RVs, you can spot a problem RV much better. And then you can eliminate it right away.

Big Mistake #2 In RV Buying

OK, now let’s move on to our second big mistake that a lot of RV buyers make.

And that is, they base their whole buying decision on superficial things about the RV.

In other words, some people just buy an RV based entirely on the price alone. They just want to get the least expensive RV that they can get.

And it doesn’t really seem to matter whether the RV is well-built or not.

Other buyers are just looking for the right color. Or they’re looking for the right floor plan, or layout of the RV.

Now let me be clear that these are good things to consider when you buy an RV. You don’t want to ignore those things.

But they should not be the sole reason why you buy an RV. Because that’s more or less superficial reasoning that can get you in trouble later on.

Believe me, the frustration you’re going to feel with a poor quality RV after you’ve bought it is not going to be worth it.

It will override all the appearance, price, and any other reasons why you made the purchase.

And you’ll be very unhappy! Even if it does have the floor plan you want at the price you wanted to pay. So don’t buy solely on superficial reasons!

Mistake #3 – Who Do You Trust?

OK, let’s move on to the third mistake many buyers make in RV buying.

And that is, they put too much trust in what the dealer or the salesperson is telling them about the RV they are thinking about buying.

Now let me emphasize this. RV dealers know how to get sales quickly, because they have a process that they like to put people through.

And the bigger the dealer, the more often you’re likely to see these sales processes.

Unfortunately, many of their tactics are taken directly from car dealers.

And we all know how most people feel about those kinds of sales tactics, right?

So these RV dealers know how to get you to buy quickly, on emotion.

Remember that we talked about this in mistake number one. That many RV buyers do not really know much about the RVs they are shopping.

As a result, a lot of people just rely on the salesperson they’re working with. They ask them questions and accept what they say as good advice.

The Truth About RV Salespersons!

But here’s the truth about RV salespeople! It’s true that many of them are very good and very knowledgeable about what they are selling.

But there’s a lot of RV salespeople that are just salespersons. And they actually probably don’t know much more about the RV than you do.

So don’t rely too heavily on their advice! Instead, you need to know what you’re looking for in an RV before you start shopping.

Once again, that gets back to point number one. That you need to learn as much as you can before starting the RV shopping experience.

So you should know what category of RV will fit you best. And know the brands you’re looking for and the price that you want to pay for it.

By doing that, you are in charge of the sales process, not the RV dealer or seller!

Here’s A Big Mistake! – #4

Now let’s go to point number four on the mistakes list, and this is a big one!

And that is that many RV buyers don’t make use of a certified RV inspector in the buying process.

So let’s think about that for a while. What if you’re going to buy a home to live in?

Well, almost all of them are built according to certain building codes. Or according to regulations that are set by the municipality in that area.

Now the municipality doesn’t take the builder’s word that he built it right. Or according to the proper code. That would be foolish, right?

Instead, they send out inspectors to make sure that it’s built properly. And they often do this in each stage of the building process.

Also, many prospective home buyers get a home inspection before buying a house. Why?

Because they want to know that the home they are looking at is in good shape.

That they’re not buying something with expensive problems that’s going to take a lot of money to fix.

With that in mind, please understand that an RV is a rolling home too.

And as it goes down the highway, shaking as it goes, many things come loose. And they will need constant attention because of this.

Also an RV is in many cases more complicated and involved than a stationary house. Because of all the special systems in modern RVs.

So why in the world would you not get an RV inspection before buying an RV?

Because if you do, you’ll certainly know a lot more about that RV when the inspection is done.

RV Buying Mistake #5

OK, let’s move on to mistake number five on my list. And it’s closely related to this last one we just talked about.

That is that a lot of buyers don’t get RV problems fixed before they take delivery of the RV. So what happens then?

Well, suppose you take that RV home and the dealer already has his money for the sale.

Unfortunately, at that point it’s all up to you to get any problems taken care of. You are pretty much on your own when paying for RV repairs.

And the priority for getting these issues fixed has decreased in the seller’s mind. Because they already have their money from the sale of the RV.

So you go to the back of the RV repair line at the dealership or repair facility.

And it could take many months before you get all the RV’s problems worked out.

In the meantime, it’s going to be very frustrating and irritating. And you may have very limited use of your RV for camping and travel.

So how can you avoid this all-too-common scenario? Once again, you can be in the driver’s seat if you have the RV inspected before buying it.

Because if you chose an NRVIA certified RV inspector, they gave you something very valuable.

You will have a list of all the things that need attention on that RV. All the problems that must be fixed to get it into fully workable shape.

How To Get All Of The RV’s Problems Fixed Quickly

So now, all you have to do is give that list to the RV dealer or seller. And tell them you want these things fixed before you take delivery of the RV.

So what happens then? Instead of going to the very back of the repair line, the dealer is now most likely going to put you right up front.

Why? Because they want the money from the RV sale. And they want that RV off their lot.

Because most dealers finance their inventory. And they don’t want to have to keep paying interest on the RV while it’s unsold.

So because they want the sale money, they’re going to start fixing things very quickly. And this happens very often in the RV buying process.

Then when all the problems have been fixed to your satisfaction, you can complete the deal. And as a result, you’ll have a good RV right away!

OK, these are the top five mistakes of RV buying that I see people making all the time.

Conclusion

Clearly then, there doesn’t have to be a lot of complaints online about RVs like there are now.

Of course, RV manufacturers need to improve their quality standards. And RV dealers also bear a responsibility for the shape of the RV industry now.

But you can still buy a good RV in spite of those challenges. If you know the mistakes you need to avoid, and how you should buy an RV.

So if you follow the advice I’ve provided for RV buying in this article, you can have an RV you’ll be happy with for many years to come.

Have safe and happy RV travels!