Rants From Idaho RV Owners Has Me Thinking Twice About Buying

I am currently in the process of shopping around for a recreational vehicle. It's a huge investment and decision, and I can't say my pre-buying nerves were soothed much after reading various comments from Idaho RV owners who recently vented over a number of issues on a state social media site.

For the past month, my wife and I have been combing the Internet and looking for good deals on slightly used models. The price we are looking to spend is somewhere between $10,000 and 13,000. After decades of tent camping, my wife and I have reached the point where staying overnights at state parks and campsites in such a vehicle is starting to become very appealing. A micro camper or smaller travel vehicle is what we are looking for.

Some of these newer RV models are insanely cool. Full kitchens, expanding platforms for socializing, marble counters, and other upper echelon recreational vehicle amenities are just not in our price range. When you start looking at these investments that have had years of usage by other families, it really becomes nerve-racking because the condition of the appliances and roof could be compromised.

My attention was recently captured by a local Facebook page where some owners were venting about warranties, customer service, repairs, and other headaches that come with owning RVs. For every dealership or private seller, there are going to be good experiences and bad ones, and a great deal of the time the blame should fall on the purchaser for not fully understanding the situation they got into upon making the buy. This isn't to say that sometimes the seller doesn't conduct themselves in a manner that rubs customers and buyers the wrong way.

I'm very interested to learn more about the process of purchasing an RV, and any feedback from current owners on what to watch out for would be greatly appreciated.