How much $ down on purchase

[cfyanes]

We've been seriously searching for a pre-owned 2008+ Newmar diesel pusher I was told we would need 15-20% down!! We've got excellent credit but don't have $20K laying around. Is 15-20% correct?

[RickO]

I don't have current, first hand data on this but would be surprised if it were less than 20% given the current state of the economy and how quickly these beasts can depreciate. In 2007 we put down about 11% but that was on a new rig and in a different time.

Good luck....

rick

[TXiceman]

With the current state of the banking industry, I'd say 15 to 20% will be the normal.

You can check with your local credit union for financing.

Ken

[Heater]

If you have excellent credit and the motorhome that you are entertaining will book for more than the low book value then it is possible that you will not have to put anything down. Now I understand this is stretch but they are out there. Even in today's economy the banks still have to lend. They are just more selective. I do agree that your local credit union is the ticket. Also M&T bank is another great lender. I have used both.

[Downsizer]

We used Excel. They were extremely good with competitive rates! Best of all, they would respond quickly to every question & everything happened just as they said!
As with all lenders, do not sell house first!!!! Fulltimers are a no-no! Sell house the day after RV settlement!

[go6car]

According to Essex Credit (a major RV lender), typical amount down is 10%-20%. That, plus some additional basic questions answered here, which might be of interest:

https://www.essexcredit.com/home/learn/rv-faqs/

If you're going through a dealer and have a trade, I would think the amount down would be adjusted accordingly. Also, each lender is different with down payment requirements, so it will definitely pay to do some legwork on this!

Best of luck to you!

[frankdamp]

If you have enough equity in the S&B house, a home equity loan is a good way to go. They don't even ask what you're buying with it! We got ours through Boeing Credit Union, who also carries our mortgage and the rate was 5.8% for 15 years. We took out enough for the private sale itself, for the sales tax and licensing fees and a new set of tires.

Our credit score wes very good, and we do all our finance transactions through BECU, which may have helped.

[donandmax]

I needed 14,000 for 7 years. My credit union charged 7.8% interest. Did I get taken ?? I put 3000 down.

[Mr_D]

We put $5,000 down when we ordered the DSDP we now have, then put an add'l $28,000 on it when we took delivery. That was about 16% of the price. But that was in 2002 too. Our interest rate is less than 6% too

[Mr_D]

Quote:

Originally Posted by frankdamp If you have enough equity in the S&B house, a home equity loan is a good way to go. They don't even ask what you're buying with it! We got ours through Boeing Credit Union, who also carries our mortgage and the rate was 5.8% for 15 years. We took out enough for the private sale itself, for the sales tax and licensing fees and a new set of tires. Our credit score wes very good, and we do all our finance transactions through BECU, which may have helped.

That's great if you have the equity in your house, ours has gone down so much lately that we'd only be able to get about $100,000 that way. Luckily we have almost that much on our checking accounts.

[tncruiser]

i have always preferred the 100% down w/no monthly payments
the few times i havent been able to do that we accelerate the payment as fast as we can
currrent MH 1/2 down have had for a year
will be paid off inn 2012
everything else we have is paid off (2homes and 2 newer cars)
never carry a cc bal
brianj

[Norm4015]

I have always paid cash for motorhomes and cars, but in a conversation with a large dealer this is what he told me. With good credit the banks will loan 80% of wholesale price on a motorhome. Say a motorhome has a retail value of $100,000 and a low retail of $80,000 and a wholesale of $64,000. The max loan would be 80% of $64,000 or $51,200.

That motorhome could be bought for $75,000 - $80,000 with a loan of $51,200 and the rest paid in cash as a down payment.

This information was from a year ago and was with the banks that one dealer used. It may be different now.

[frankdamp]

Brian:

We did that with our fist rig. It was such a turkey that we got rid of it before the end of our second season ( and lost a bundle). We started saving for a replacement, but figured (after 6 years) that we'd both be out of this world before we could save enough.

We concluded that borrowing while we still had time to enjoy the lifestyle was the only way we could get to do it. When we bought our current rig in a private sale, it was very competitively priced. After we'd agreed on the deal, the seller said he'd priced it so he'd be able to pay off the balance on a home equity loan. They'd thoroughly enjoyed their 8 years using it and figured they'd price it for a fairly quick sale. It was about $6K below NADA and in really nice condition.

We'll probably end up doing something similar, as I'll be 83 by the time the loan's paid off and who knows whether we'll still be able to travel by then.

[B Bob]

When I bought a used motor home about two years ago the bank would finance 80% of the wholesale book. We did not want that much but that is about the max at that time.

Unlike houses motor home loans usually cost more than you can get by investing your money in safe venues. So unless you see inflation heading up soon, likely best to pay as much down as possible. The good alternative is to get a second on real estate as the rates are much lower than an RV loan.