Journey with Confidence RV GPS App RV Trip Planner RV LIFE Campground Reviews RV Maintenance Take a Speed Test Free 7 Day Trial ×
RV Trip Planning Discussions

Go Back   iRV2 Forums > THE OWNER'S CORNER FORUMS > Entegra Owner's Forum
Click Here to Login
Join iRV2 Today

Mission Statement: Supporting thoughtful exchange of knowledge, values and experience among RV enthusiasts.
Reply
  This discussion is proudly sponsored by:
Please support our sponsors and let them know you heard about their products on iRV2
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread Display Modes
 
Old 11-13-2013, 07:42 AM   #1
Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2013
Posts: 68
New to RVs need advice

Hi, we are thinking about buying an RV, having never owned 1 before and from the research the Entegra Anthem seems to fit the bill. However, there are many questions and costs that need to be understood before we think about pulling the trigger.
First, what are the approx. insurance costs for this beast? How fast does it depreciate?
We would like to live in the RV about 6 mos a year, but when not using it, we have no room on our property to store it. What are the options for storing it and what are those costs?
It seems the rv costs money when using it, either driving or camping. I've seen the mileage threads and know the gas costs, but what about camping/hookup fees? What are some best practices/places for consideration?

I'm trying to get an overall picture of ownership any advice is appreciated.

Thanks, Tom
taraf is offline   Reply With Quote
Join the #1 RV Forum Today - It's Totally Free!

iRV2.com RV Community - Are you about to start a new improvement on your RV or need some help with some maintenance? Do you need advice on what products to buy? Or maybe you can give others some advice? No matter where you fit in you'll find that iRV2 is a great community to join. Best of all it's totally FREE!

You are currently viewing our boards as a guest so you have limited access to our community. Please take the time to register and you will gain a lot of great new features including; the ability to participate in discussions, network with other RV owners, see fewer ads, upload photographs, create an RV blog, send private messages and so much, much more!

Old 11-13-2013, 08:40 AM   #2
Senior Member
 
Pelledan's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2010
Posts: 442
Hello and welcome to the forum!

Your questions are very to-the-point and yet you will get some different answers from different people for a variety of different reasons, so here's mine.
1) Insurance costs: Shop, shop and shop. Find an insurer that will bundle your home, cars AND your RV. The best deals are had when everything is insured with the same company, but that may be easier said than done. It took me quite some time to locate that insurer and the overall savings were quite significant.
2) Depreciation: This might hurt a little but, ..... New RV's will depreciate their worst within the first 4 years, but the degree of depreciation is in part a function of the quality of the product. Higher end RV's will hold their value more than the others, but you see that in cars as well. In our own case, we bought our 06 Winnebago Journey 36G in 2010. It was 3 years/9 months old with 30K miles and we bought it from the original owners for about 40% less than what they paid for it and they paid about 25% below MSRP. I know this for a fact because the among the maintenance records we received with the coach was the original purchase receipt.
3) Storage is another issue that requires research. You can store it outdoors for the least amount and indoors and sometimes heated for the most. Outdoor storage in the Midwest runs anywhere from $45-$85 a month depending on location. Indoors from $70-$150 a month, again depending on location. I would recommend storing at least under roof (sides are optional) to mitigate the effects of the sun.
4) Camping fees depend on location and that is especially true when the area has attractions. Joining various camping clubs will reduce costs, but then you're limited by how many campgrounds are members of that particular club. At a low and with club affiliations, camping costs can be as low as $15-20 a night. What I deem a "norm" cost for a night's stay is anywhere from $30-50 a night and again it depends on location, the time of year and proximity to desirable attractions.
5) RV's cost money when using them and when they're just sitting in storage. They depreciate, their engines have a voracious appetite when on the road, they cost money to insure and they cost money to repair BUT ..... they define the word "freedom" when traveling in them.

There is a cost to everything in life. You need to determine for yourself if the cost of ownership will give you an expected return in the lifestyle.

Dan
Pelledan is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-13-2013, 09:02 AM   #3
Senior Member
 
Swenster's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2012
Posts: 439
Quote:
Originally Posted by Pelledan View Post
Hello and welcome to the forum!

Your questions are very to-the-point and yet you will get some different answers from different people for a variety of different reasons, so here's mine.
1) Insurance costs: Shop, shop and shop. Find an insurer that will bundle your home, cars AND your RV. The best deals are had when everything is insured with the same company, but that may be easier said than done. It took me quite some time to locate that insurer and the overall savings were quite significant.
2) Depreciation: This might hurt a little but, ..... New RV's will depreciate their worst within the first 4 years, but the degree of depreciation is in part a function of the quality of the product. Higher end RV's will hold their value more than the others, but you see that in cars as well. In our own case, we bought our 06 Winnebago Journey 36G in 2010. It was 3 years/9 months old with 30K miles and we bought it from the original owners for about 40% less than what they paid for it and they paid about 25% below MSRP. I know this for a fact because the among the maintenance records we received with the coach was the original purchase receipt.
3) Storage is another issue that requires research. You can store it outdoors for the least amount and indoors and sometimes heated for the most. Outdoor storage in the Midwest runs anywhere from $45-$85 a month depending on location. Indoors from $70-$150 a month, again depending on location. I would recommend storing at least under roof (sides are optional) to mitigate the effects of the sun.
4) Camping fees depend on location and that is especially true when the area has attractions. Joining various camping clubs will reduce costs, but then you're limited by how many campgrounds are members of that particular club. At a low and with club affiliations, camping costs can be as low as $15-20 a night. What I deem a "norm" cost for a night's stay is anywhere from $30-50 a night and again it depends on location and the time of year and proximity to desirable attractions.
5) RV's cost money when using them and when they're just sitting in storage. They depreciate, their engines have a voracious appetite when on the road, they cost money to insure and they cost money to repair BUT ..... they define the word "freedom" when you travel in them.

There is a cost to everything in life. You need to determine for yourself if the cost of ownership will give you an expected return in the lifestyle.

Dan
Well said
Swenster is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-13-2013, 09:12 AM   #4
Senior Member
 
DSL417's Avatar
 
Entegra Owners Club
Join Date: Sep 2012
Posts: 6,730
Blog Entries: 2
Good info from Dan....to supplement (in his order):

1) You may want to use an independent insurance agent who will take your credit (yes insurance can depend on credit rating), driving history, etc and shop you for insurance. He will then give you varying prices dependent on what deductible you're willing to carry.Bundling as stated can provide value. T give you a rate on an Anthem, for me and my situation, and I don't bundle, my insurance is a little less than $2000 a year. I insure with Blue Sky. This will undoubtably bring our the ... "mine only costs", but many times there coach is a lower price or older. This cost has a lot of variability.
2) Thus far, Entegra has held its value pretty well. The coach is in high demand, and the company can't make them fast enough. Still, even with less depreciation than some other coach lines, it is a depreciating asset and you will not recover anything from a $ perspective. Good brands like Entegra, and its predecessor Travel Supreme, sell quickly.
3) No info as I full time.
4) Camping fees are on the mark. the only thing I'd add is you can save significantly if you ID and area you want to visit and plan on staying a minimum of a week (usually 7 days for the price of six), or better, a month (usually a little over the cost of two weeks for a month's stay. You can boondocks, see separate thread. If you are military retired, you can really leverage military FamCamps for around $20/night.
5) Best advice, stay, explore, and enjoy areas for a month at a time. Lots of places to go where you can do that. If you get out of vacation mode and into living mode, you'll save money on campgrounds and diesel. Next, recognize it is a life style that you are entering and it does cost...the rewards in seeing and doing are great, but you are using a depreciating asset. As to where...everywhere..there is so much too see and do across the country, you just have to sit down and think about war you want to see, plan a little based upon weather and "scenery", and do it. One last consideration, you'll have an expense adding the hardware to brake and tow your "local" transportation. Lots of options.

We love our Anthem... we're closing in on the completion of our first year and loving the lifestyle.
__________________
Dave and Beth
2015 Cornerstone 45J
2020 Ford F-150 Lariat
DSL417 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-13-2013, 12:56 PM   #5
Senior Member
 
MRUSA14's Avatar
 
Entegra Owners Club
Join Date: Nov 2012
Posts: 8,306
All good information so far. I would add that storage costs vary greatly by region. The $150 indoor storage qouted above could easily be $600 a month where I live in Southeast Florida, or in California.

Depreciation is a huge cost that many do not acknowledge, so you are wise to ask about it. Like a car, it is highest when new and decreases quite a bit after the first 5 years. Buying a 4 or 5 year old (or older) coach is a good way to minimize depreciation, but then you have increased maintenance to consider. Tires and batteries are expensive and often need replacement after 5-7 years. (Tires should be replaced due to age by 7 years or so, and rarely need replacing due to tread wear.)
__________________
Marc and Jill, Wellington FL
2013 Entegra Anthem 44SL
2018 Lincoln MKX
MRUSA14 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-13-2013, 01:05 PM   #6
Senior Member
 
Monaco Owners Club
Holiday Rambler Owners Club
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: michigan-tip of the mitt
Posts: 1,444
Have you figured the cost of a toad?
__________________
2003 Class C, 29' Gulfstream
Next stop?
Previous rigs..2 Pickup campers,2 TT's, 3 DP MH's
t55watson is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-13-2013, 01:38 PM   #7
Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2013
Posts: 68
This is all great advice, thanks. One thing I over looked in my initial question, when living in the rv, I will need to work...I'm not retired. I work from my laptop, but I need a decent, stable internet connection. What are your experiences with this? Do most campsites offer stable wifi? I have my Verizon card, but I can only use that while mobile in the rv...

Thanks again, Tom
taraf is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-13-2013, 01:43 PM   #8
Senior Member
 
Saltydog44's Avatar
 
Entegra Owners Club
Join Date: Oct 2009
Posts: 2,193
Not to pile on - just another set of figures - the point is we all have different situations so we have different answers that fit each of us. Sometimes they are quite different.

1. We were paying about $1,500 a year. Rate went up when we bought a new coach by ~1,000.

2. Depreciation is hard to figure but it is clearly significant. If the coach is in demand and you aren't pressed to sell, it might not be AS bad but it will still be significant. MSRP is a somewhat fictitious figure so assume you're starting at 25-30% less than that and then it's probably not unreasonable to assume you are down 25% when you drive off the lot.

3. As Marc says storage is very location dependent. Covered storage, fully enclosed with 50 AMP in Tampa is about $250 a month. In Hickory NC with only a roof and a back wall it's $100.

4. The CG numbers mirror my own experience, but I'll just add that if you are in a resort in an area such as Key West in the Winter, you can count on much higher numbers - easily $100 or more.

5. We tow our pickup truck that we have out here in the country anyway so we just had the cost of the tow equipment.

6. There are myriad other expenses that make the coach livable or protect it. Add-ons like power management, water filtering devices - that list goes on.

7. For us and our fur kid, it's wort every penny.
__________________
Cheryl and Emerson missing Rascal but loving our new buddy, Winston
Sadly Coachless
Saltydog44 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-13-2013, 01:56 PM   #9
Senior Member
 
MRUSA14's Avatar
 
Entegra Owners Club
Join Date: Nov 2012
Posts: 8,306
You can use your Verizon Card anywhere there is a good signal. Many RV parks have Wifi service, usually included in your campground fee. But the usability and speeds vary greatly from adequate, to unusable. As a full-timer you will want your own internet card, such as your Verizon. If I were a full-timer I would use the Milennicom service, which uses Verizon towers, but offers more data per dollar than Verizon does.
__________________
Marc and Jill, Wellington FL
2013 Entegra Anthem 44SL
2018 Lincoln MKX
MRUSA14 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-13-2013, 02:00 PM   #10
Senior Member
 
brobox's Avatar
 
Entegra Owners Club
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: SW FL
Posts: 32,830
Quote:
Originally Posted by taraf View Post
Hi, we are thinking about buying an RV, having never owned 1 before and from the research the Entegra Anthem seems to fit the bill. However, there are many questions and costs that need to be understood before we think about pulling the trigger.
First, what are the approx. insurance costs for this beast? How fast does it depreciate? I am currently shopping rates for my Anthem to be delivered and the best rate so far is from Good Sam's @$1,699. but I am still shopping. We just sold our 11 year old Travel Supreme and it depreciated $10,700. per year from the original purchase price. I bought it one year old and my depreciation was $8,800 per year
We would like to live in the RV about 6 mos a year, but when not using it, we have no room on our property to store it. What are the options for storing it and what are those costs? In my area of SW Florida with a high population of RV's, inside secured storage cost me $250. per month. I personally would not store an expensive MH in inexpensive outside storage. I sold my current MH for top dollar as it looked brand new for the care it received from inside storage.
It seems the rv costs money when using it, either driving or camping. I've seen the mileage threads and know the gas costs, but what about camping/hookup fees? What are some best practices/places for consideration? I would guess my "average" to be about $35. per night. that is the average Good Sam's park, but we do pay higher for RV Resorts, then off set that with half price Passport America stays.

I'm trying to get an overall picture of ownership any advice is appreciated.

Thanks, Tom
The above figures are related to my area of FL with higher insurance because of hurricanes, and high inside storage rates due to supply and demand. Hopefully your area might be lower in costs.
__________________
Chuck in SW FL
Digital 2021 Cornerstone "B"
A "Digital" 2019 Cornerstone "B" Traded
A "Classic" 2014 Anthem 42 RBQ---Sold
brobox is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-13-2013, 02:51 PM   #11
Senior Member
 
DoggieDaddy's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2013
Location: Where ever we park it
Posts: 1,305
My advice would be to consider buying a used MH first. You are going to go through a big learning curve. You are going to make some mistakes. Best to make them with a cheaper coach. Get the feel of the life style before spending the big bucks on a new one. You'll make a better choice and appreciate that new coach even more. Good luck.
__________________
Robert & Holly - "Fulltimers" 8+ years
Schnauzers Augie Doggie (deceased) and Monty Puppy
2014 Anthem 44B Rad Copper ----- SOLD
DoggieDaddy is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-13-2013, 03:19 PM   #12
Senior Member
 
dennis45's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: AB
Posts: 7,587
Quote:
Originally Posted by DoggieDaddy View Post
My advice would be to consider buying a used MH first. You are going to go through a big learning curve. You are going to make some mistakes. Best to make them with a cheaper coach. Get the feel of the life style before spending the big bucks on a new one. You'll make a better choice and appreciate that new coach even more. Good luck.
I agree wholeheartedly with this statement. Once you have lived in your rig for a while, you will have a Much Better feel for what you want and need out of your RV. Then, if you choose to upgrade to a newer or new rig, you won't be hit with as much depreciation.
There is a site I used in my search that you might find very helpful in answering some of you questions. They charge $150 for the database but I found it well worth the money.

https://www.rv.org/

Happy Trails,
__________________
2019 Unity LTV CB, pushed by a 2013 Honda CRV, BlueOx Baseplate, Aventa Bar & Patriot Brake
dennis45 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-13-2013, 03:57 PM   #13
Senior Member
 
DSL417's Avatar
 
Entegra Owners Club
Join Date: Sep 2012
Posts: 6,730
Blog Entries: 2
Sorry, to the above two respondents, have a different view, from our experience...do your homework, understand what you want, and you can be a successful first time buyer of a new RV...We did. And a good part of it was finding the Entegra brand with its strong customer service, great build quality, nice fit and finish, and best in industry two year warrantee.

The key is knowing what you want...if it is this lifestyle after you've studied up, then go for it. Buying used has worked for many, but you're going to lose some money in the process...OK to pay to learn, but if you know what you want, why wash the money buying used down the drain. JMHO
__________________
Dave and Beth
2015 Cornerstone 45J
2020 Ford F-150 Lariat
DSL417 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-13-2013, 04:15 PM   #14
Senior Member
 
Ann n Gene's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2004
Location: Stillwater, Ok
Posts: 4,812
X2 on what DSL said. If you know what you wantand what you want to do with it, go for it and save money in the long run.
__________________
2020 New Aire 3543
2018 Lincoln MKX
Ann n Gene is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Tags
advice, rvs



Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


» Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by


All times are GMT -6. The time now is 09:44 PM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 1
Copyright ©2000 - 2025, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.