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tankcj · 12-02-2015, 05:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by maypo050770

Should I be concerned about buying an RV after I retire? I have good credit and a pension and money saved. All that being said if I put down between 25 and 50% on a 250000 motorhome is the bank going to laugh at me when I'm not employed or is this something I should be doing before I retire?

No. They don't care about a job as much as they do 'income'. They want to know that you have the ability (income) to repay the loan. Whether you work 40 hours a week, a year or not at all is not important.

Alan_Hepburn · 12-02-2015, 10:30 PM

Our experience: about a year after we retired we decided to refinance our RV to drop the payment. At the time we were living off the substantial retirement package my company gave me, we were too young to start collecting from our 401(k) plans, we weren't getting social security, etc - in other words our income was $0. But between our 401(k)s, pensions, and liquid cash in savings accounts we could easily pay off the existing loan - but we chose not to for a few personal reasons.

Anyway, we went to the bank that held the loan on the RV and had to talk to a loan officer, rather than try and apply online. We had to show all our assets, and also show that we would be able to show enough "income" to cover the loan payments as soon as we were eligible to start drawing from our various retirement accounts. The local loan officer had to call his head office to get everything approved, but once they were happy with our situation it was no problem getting the refi done.

A few years ago my wife's parents passed away and she and her sister inherited a house. We wanted to buy out her sister's half of the house and by then we were getting regular checks from social security, my IRA (rolled over from my 401(k), and an annuity, and we could show rental income on the house - all that was more than enough to cover the mortgage payment and we had no problem getting banks to issue us a mortgage, and then a refi a little over a year later.

Bottom line: you don't need a job, but you do need "income".

Steady_Rest · 12-03-2015, 01:10 AM

We purchased an rv in June of this year. The wife works while I am retired with a pension. The house loan was paid off over 20 years ago. Our credit score was the highest the rv salesman had ever seen. I preferred to keep our money at this time invested, minus the down payment. So we pursued a $98k loan without restrictions for the remainder, which the dealer offered to arrange at 3.49%.
Out of the several banks the dealer works with none would grant the loan. The reason being we had no history of carrying debt, other than the house which was paid off long ago. The finance dept. of the dealer finally cajoled one of the banks to accept our loan application.
I was actually very surprised that initially a loan was denied by all the banks, sure that our financial history and income would make us a good risk.
Mortgage interest payments are deductible off your income, but that requires that you itemize. When one itemizes you forgo the standard deduction, so actually your interest payments are in reality effectively deductible only after the point where they exceed the standard deduction. A calculation I have heard few mention when bragging about their house mortgage deductions.

maypo050770 · 12-03-2015, 08:59 AM

So, generally speaking it sounds like getting a mortgage shouldn't be a problem if I can prove income. One of my investments is a Roth IRA. I believe (not 100% sure) that I can use that money to put a down payment on a motor home without penalty before I retire. The motor home will be my first home so it qualifies in that regard but it is a motor home, not a stick and brick home so I'm not sure what ramifications that has if any. All that being said I will probably purchase before I retire as my income will be substantially greater than my pension. If that's not a reality I will have to wait till I retire. ALL my money is in retirement accounts so I wouldn't have any money to give as a down payment before retirement. I have quite a few years before retirement so I guess we will see what happens. Can't wait!

Gary RVRoamer · 12-03-2015, 09:11 AM

I've been retired for 22 years now and have had no problem financing several RVs, new cars, etc. Lenders care about your income, not employment, so be prepared to demonstrate that you have income (pension, social security, IRAs, etc.) to support the cash flow you will need. If your retirement income is from sources not readily verifiable on a credit check, you may be asked to supply a copy of recent federal tax return(s) to substantiate your income.

wnytaxman · 12-03-2015, 10:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by maypo050770

So, generally speaking it sounds like getting a mortgage shouldn't be a problem if I can prove income. One of my investments is a Roth IRA. I believe (not 100% sure) that I can use that money to put a down payment on a motor home without penalty before I retire. The motor home will be my first home so it qualifies in that regard but it is a motor home, not a stick and brick home so I'm not sure what ramifications that has if any. All that being said I will probably purchase before I retire as my income will be substantially greater than my pension. If that's not a reality I will have to wait till I retire. ALL my money is in retirement accounts so I wouldn't have any money to give as a down payment before retirement. I have quite a few years before retirement so I guess we will see what happens. Can't wait!

One caution on the Roth. It has to be in the account for at least five years before it can come out tax free. If it comes out before that time you may end up paying tax on the earnings of the Roth. Other than that, the only other thing I would check out is the rate of return you are getting on the Roth. If it exceeds the interest rate of your loan, you may want to take out a larger loan and leave more in your Roth. The interest on the RV loan will be deductible assuming you itemize. Depending on your income the tax deduction should save you anywhere from 15% to 40% of the amount of the interest you are paying.

vapor3000 · 12-03-2015, 10:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by maypo050770

Should I be concerned about buying an RV after I retire? I have good credit and a pension and money saved. All that being said if I put down between 25 and 50% on a 250000 motorhome is the bank going to laugh at me when I'm not employed or is this something I should be doing before I retire?

The best way to keep them from laughing is NOT borrowing their money. For the amount of money you are prepared to put for a down payment for a NEW coach will buy a really nice USED motor home. You will have plenty of other uses for your retirement dollars without paying interest and depreciation on a new MH.

I bought a 10 year old Newmar 4011 DSDP with 30K miles for $80K. It drives and performs just like a new one for around 200 grand less money!!