Tuesday, August 6, 2024

What do you think--Should we sell the motor home?

The motor home has been sitting at the ranch for almost six months without moving. We've been so busy working on the house and traveling in different ways, that we haven't used it. The one time that we could have used it to stay for a month in South Texas, the high price of diesel convinced us that it would be cheaper to rent an apartment for a month. While we've been lucky that all our mice-prevention tricks have kept the critters at bay in the motor home, it's not good for it to sit without being used. What do you think--"Should we sell the motor home?"


Mark is the practical one, pointing out that we're going to have to make the investment to buy six new big tires with their big price tag in the next year. He also pointed out that we needed something so big when it was carrying everything we owned. But now we have a house to store most of that stuff. We could certainly travel much stealthier in something smaller. He also noted that diesel has doubled in price since the last administration, and filling up that 100 gallon tank is painful. What do you think--"Should we sell the motor home?"

Denisa is the sentimental one, and she loves this motor home. We've changed out the uncomfortable RV furniture for cozy residential furniture that is comfortable. We bought customized carpet, recovered the dining chairs, had custom storage added . . . It's our home, and we have loved living in this motor home. It has allowed us to visit beautiful and interesting places all over the United States and Canada. More than just visiting for a short time, having this motor home allowed us to linger in places and really immerse ourselves in new areas that most people have to whiz right through. We have loved the form of travel that this motor home made possible. What do you think--"Should we sell our home?"

Then there's the other conundrum. How do you sell something so big? RV lots are full of new RVs and the market seems to be saturated. If we had sold it in 2021, we could have named our price. But in 2024 we're on the wrong side of the market. We knew that we could be the best salespersons for our motor home, because we know all the good things about her. We have been genuinely pleased with this coach and it has been a perfect full-time rig for us. After nine years of living in it, we can recommend this motor home highly! But putting it "for sale by owner" is complicated. Where would we market it? How would we feel about people test driving this big rig? Most people are going to have to get a loan for a purchase this size. Interest rates are high and we found that lenders aren't crazy about making sizable loans for recreational vehicles right now. What do you think--"Should we sell the motor home?"


We found that RV dealerships will make an insulting offer to buy the motor home. Then we found an RV consignment place that has a pretty good reputation. PPL has been in business in Texas for over 50 years, working as the middleman between RV owners and buyers. They just opened an office in El Reno, Oklahoma, which is a four-hour trip from where the motor home has been in storage for these six months. What do you think--"Should we sell the motor home?"

We decided to give it a try. We started the sad process of taking everything out of the motor home. We have to say that one of the things we love about this Tiffin is the solid wood cabinetry and the massive amount of storage. We had every nook and cranny filled, and we were astounded at how many pick-up loads it took to relocate everything to Kansas City. That empty house we bought just got a lot fuller when we started unloading the motor home. We cleaned her inside and out and we delivered her to the PPL lot at the end of February. We took this final picture of her sparkling clean inside and out. She looks so good, maybe we should keep her! What do you think--"Should we sell the motor home?"

We had to sign a contract that we would leave it on the lot for 90 days. If it didn't sell, we would pick it up in three months and start traveling in it. That means we wouldn't be able to travel during the spring-time--our favorite RV travel season--because the motor home would be locked up on the sales lot. We left it in God's hands. It would sell if it was supposed to sell. If not, we would welcome her back and reload those big cabinets. After 90 days we could drive her off the consignment lot to make more happy motor home memories.

4 comments:

  1. If hasn’t sold, keep it and use it!! I’m a firm believer God will provide.

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  2. You did a great job summarizing the pros and cons of selling your motorhome. We’ve had similar conversations about what we’ll do when the time comes, which we’re currently thinking might be 2027. Like you, though, we don’t want to give up traveling and we enjoy having an RV. Whatever the outcome of your experiment, I know you’ll still have adventures. - Rochelle

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  3. Your right, they have to be used and not sit for months. Good luck !

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  4. I understand selling it but I have sure missed the blogs!

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