4 ms·

A number of years ago we decided to get a boat. I've been sailing my entire adult life (through clubs) and love it. And yet, I am also good at math and have s

A number of years ago we decided to get a boat. I've been sailing my entire adult life (through clubs) and love it. And yet, I am also good at math and have seen friends and acquaintances go through the realities of boat ownership. I had exactly zero interest in that. We bought a boat. It was in good condition. The plan was to enjoy it that summer and sell it a the end of the season. In other words, I bought a boat with the stipulation that we would not keep it after three months. That was not negotiable. We would potentially lose a little money in the transaction. I thought of this as a rental fee. This worked out great. We had a good time boating that summer. I did not spend a dime doing anything to the boat (I made sure of this by being careful during the purchase selection phase). We sold the boat for $1,000 less than we paid for it. With slip fees that was about $800 per month "rental". Perfect.

hesdeadjim 7y ago
I am of a similar mindset. My family has owned a small lake house in (very) rural Maine for close to thirty years. My parents have spent a small fortune to maintain and upgrade the property over the years. While I am incredibly grateful for the summers spent there as a child, the burden of ownership from a financial and time point of view had major consequences over the years. Because this property put such a strain on finances, it put my father through incredible strain at work. His health paid the price. My mother also had to weather the strain of raising three boys and working full-time to help ends meet. And because of ownership and these hardships, going to the lake became a requirement for every vacation we took. Even when we moved twelve hours away. I've carried this lesson with me for many years now. When the temptation has struck to make a big purchase like this, I remind myself that often our possessions end up owning us. You can rent practically anything you want nowadays, and in doing so do not need to face all of the hidden financial and personal costs associated with ownership.
- robomartin 7y ago
  I put RV ownership in that same category. A bunch of my neighbors own RV's. If I had to guess I would say they are parked about 350 days out of the year, in some cases 365. So, at the best utilization rate we are talking about being parked 96% of the time. In some cases they have to park them off-site and pay monthly storage fees. I now people who have had their RV's for over twenty years. I can't understand the math. We've rented RV's three times in the last twenty years. The cost ranges from about $100 per day to a few hundred per day. That math I can understand. We even have a favorite RV camping spot we've been to where you can order an RV to be delivered and setup for you. You just show up and start your vacation, no need to drive an RV around at all!
  - Gibbon1 7y ago
    That's why I draw the line at a conversion van with a seat that folds into a bed. Unlike an RV it's useful for hauling stuff. Can go more places. Cheaper per mile. Think mine costs me about $75/month to own.
  - AnimalMuppet 7y ago
    For some reason, buying an RV feels different from renting one. Buying an RV feels like buying an asset; renting one feels like throwing money away. (Maybe this is because I've never bought one!) I understand the numbers. I understand exactly your argument here. I would say that you are correct. But for me, personally, it doesn't feel like it. And so, from time to time, I still consider buying an RV. So far, I've always managed to talk myself out of it...
    - alasdair_ 7y ago
      >Buying an RV feels like buying an asset; renting one feels like throwing money away. To me, assets are things that make me money. Things that continually require me to pay money are liabilities.
      - AnimalMuppet 7y ago
        I do not disagree. But my less-analytical side sees that, after purchase, I've got something to touch, so it must be an asset, right? (As opposed to a rental, when after the rental is over, it's gone.)
    - hesdeadjim 7y ago
      RV’s tend to have enormous depreciation, or at best they may break even if you are lucky. Unless you are urban camping or squatting where you can, it can be very expensive to park them at a popular destination ($1k+/month). Source: I’ve watched my parents also spend a small fortune on RV’s in their retirement. They’ve traded up twice and eaten 50%+ depreciation each time. YMMV.
      - 7y ago

hesdeadjim 7y ago

I am of a similar mindset. My family has owned a small lake house in (very) rural Maine for close to thirty years. My parents have spent a small fortune to maintain and upgrade the property over the years. While I am incredibly grateful for the summers spent there as a child, the burden of ownership from a financial and time point of view had major consequences over the years. Because this property put such a strain on finances, it put my father through incredible strain at work. His health paid the price. My mother also had to weather the strain of raising three boys and working full-time to help ends meet. And because of ownership and these hardships, going to the lake became a requirement for every vacation we took. Even when we moved twelve hours away. I've carried this lesson with me for many years now. When the temptation has struck to make a big purchase like this, I remind myself that often our possessions end up owning us. You can rent practically anything you want nowadays, and in doing so do not need to face all of the hidden financial and personal costs associated with ownership.

robomartin 7y ago
I put RV ownership in that same category. A bunch of my neighbors own RV's. If I had to guess I would say they are parked about 350 days out of the year, in some cases 365. So, at the best utilization rate we are talking about being parked 96% of the time. In some cases they have to park them off-site and pay monthly storage fees. I now people who have had their RV's for over twenty years. I can't understand the math. We've rented RV's three times in the last twenty years. The cost ranges from about $100 per day to a few hundred per day. That math I can understand. We even have a favorite RV camping spot we've been to where you can order an RV to be delivered and setup for you. You just show up and start your vacation, no need to drive an RV around at all!
- Gibbon1 7y ago
  That's why I draw the line at a conversion van with a seat that folds into a bed. Unlike an RV it's useful for hauling stuff. Can go more places. Cheaper per mile. Think mine costs me about $75/month to own.
- AnimalMuppet 7y ago
  For some reason, buying an RV feels different from renting one. Buying an RV feels like buying an asset; renting one feels like throwing money away. (Maybe this is because I've never bought one!) I understand the numbers. I understand exactly your argument here. I would say that you are correct. But for me, personally, it doesn't feel like it. And so, from time to time, I still consider buying an RV. So far, I've always managed to talk myself out of it...
  - alasdair_ 7y ago
    >Buying an RV feels like buying an asset; renting one feels like throwing money away. To me, assets are things that make me money. Things that continually require me to pay money are liabilities.
    - AnimalMuppet 7y ago
      I do not disagree. But my less-analytical side sees that, after purchase, I've got something to touch, so it must be an asset, right? (As opposed to a rental, when after the rental is over, it's gone.)
  - hesdeadjim 7y ago
    RV’s tend to have enormous depreciation, or at best they may break even if you are lucky. Unless you are urban camping or squatting where you can, it can be very expensive to park them at a popular destination ($1k+/month). Source: I’ve watched my parents also spend a small fortune on RV’s in their retirement. They’ve traded up twice and eaten 50%+ depreciation each time. YMMV.
    - 7y ago