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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 main

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.
    - m463 7y ago
      "I’ve watched my parents also spend a small fortune on RV’s in their retirement." Another interesting statistic is that people who retire and don't remain active have greatly increased mortality.
      - 7y ago
- rebuilder 7y ago
  Fully agree. My wife and I have an RV, or a trailer, rather. We bought it because we needed to have a place to stay while doing surprise renovations to make the house we bought a couple of years back liveable. It's served that purpose, and is now sitting in the yard. We're currently in what I see as the process of working up the nerve to just sell the damn thing. The idea of traveling with it is attractive, our daughter likes it, and all things considered, we had good times in it. But... Having to haul the damn thing around, maintain it, pay for camping etc - it does not add up IMO compared to just staying at a motel or sleeping in a tent if we want to rough it. The RV inhabits this weird niche where you want more comfort than a tent affords but more freedom than you get with having to choose from motels or hotels. To me, that seems like a limitation, not an opportunity.
- m463 7y ago
  I think there are a few ways of owning an RV (probably applies to boats) -- weekend getaways, longer term travels and live-ins. Weekend getaways are harder to make pay off. I know one couple who took their RV around the United States. "we took two laps". I think they made some memories to last their whole life. Folks who live in their RV just have to come close to a mortgage/rent to have it pay off.

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.
  - m463 7y ago
    "I’ve watched my parents also spend a small fortune on RV’s in their retirement." Another interesting statistic is that people who retire and don't remain active have greatly increased mortality.
    - 7y ago
rebuilder 7y ago
Fully agree. My wife and I have an RV, or a trailer, rather. We bought it because we needed to have a place to stay while doing surprise renovations to make the house we bought a couple of years back liveable. It's served that purpose, and is now sitting in the yard. We're currently in what I see as the process of working up the nerve to just sell the damn thing. The idea of traveling with it is attractive, our daughter likes it, and all things considered, we had good times in it. But... Having to haul the damn thing around, maintain it, pay for camping etc - it does not add up IMO compared to just staying at a motel or sleeping in a tent if we want to rough it. The RV inhabits this weird niche where you want more comfort than a tent affords but more freedom than you get with having to choose from motels or hotels. To me, that seems like a limitation, not an opportunity.
m463 7y ago
I think there are a few ways of owning an RV (probably applies to boats) -- weekend getaways, longer term travels and live-ins. Weekend getaways are harder to make pay off. I know one couple who took their RV around the United States. "we took two laps". I think they made some memories to last their whole life. Folks who live in their RV just have to come close to a mortgage/rent to have it pay off.