When do you stop spending money?

[Mr. T]

I bought my RV because I wanted one.  I bought a classic because I have experience working on heavy equipment and felt comfortable knowing I could keep it running.  Choosing a 3000.00 RV over a 80000.00 RV was easy.

[size=78%]I enjoy reading articles and how to guides to make RVing more enjoyable.  Almost always the articles will recommend changing this and that, constantly reminding the reader to not go cheap.  Spend, they say, to the hilt, or at least until you are bankrupt.  For example, don't buy the 300.00 inverter.  The 1200.00 inverter will save you money till the day you die.  Another example is batteries.  Don't waste your money on marine batteries, they say.  The 1200.00 battery will make your life so much better, so they say.[/size]

When do you stop spending money.  When does it make sense to spend thousand of dollars in upgrades to 3000.00 RV?  How in the world am I going to sell my RV for 8500.00 when there will a multitude of 3000.00 RV's competing against me.

I know lots of people are pure enthusiasts for classic motor homes.  I can somewhat understand their spending thousands to restore a RV.  I am not that type of person.  I haul dogs around for pete sakes.

By being frugal and doing all the work myself, I have spent almost 2000.00 to get the RV up and running.  Right this moment, I would not be afraid to take it anywhere as long as my toad was behind me. 

I have maybe another 500.00 to spend, mostly cosmetic stuff.  I think that will be the limit.  Other than routine maintenance, not another dime will be spent.

I wonder if I am the only person who has set limits?  Am I being a pooh bear?  Should I open my honey jar even more?

Don T.


 

[joev]

hey i am with you i bought mine for $300 and spent around $3500 fixing it up to pass safety and make things work  going to paint it in the spring and thats about it . want to enjoy using it not making it a 30,000 dollar rv if i wanted it i would have went out and bought a $30,000 unit and even then would still have spent a few thousand on making it road worthy . you need to set limits on what is good for you and your budget 

[OldEdBrady]

Finniest question I've ever seen on here!  Why do you stop?  When you no longer have it.  No matter what, something you just fixed breaks, quits, goes to Valhalla.  whatever.  It ain't gonna end.  Live with it! 

[Froggy1936]

Ha Ha ! When either you or your veh die Is a good answer . Thats why they say you will never get it all done !! I bought mine in 1997 for $2800.00 and  Have not stopped spending ever since  Frank

[cosmic]

You cant take the money with you when you die. Money is only good here on earth.
Life is precious and memories that are made are priceless.
I have cut every finger up. fixing mine. Cursed it hated it at times. But the summers with my kids have been priceless. No money could compare. And they will remember the times we had forever.
My wife says could we not make memories in a new one? lol but then what would I work on.

[ibdilbert01]

I enjoy reading articles and how to guides to make RVing more enjoyable

Well, that there is your issue, stop reading about it and start using it!     

[Lefty]

I've spent a whole lot more than I've ever made back.. I've had two deals where I bought them, never touched them, and then sold them at horrible losses (lost $1,300 on one, and $4,200 on another).

But, I have also came out on the winning end a few times as well. I saw an old '69 Serro Scotty Sportsman for just $800, which had an almost perfect original interior.. but the outside paint was faded and the tires rotted. I spent about $200 polishing the outside, sanding & spray painting the rims, tounge and frame, added a new propane tank.. and wiped all the interior wood with Murphys oil soap and Old English wood polish. It sold a week later to the first guy who showed up to look at it for $2,500
I paid just $1,800 for our Georgie Boy. I spent a little under $600 on it and turned down several offers of $5,000 cash for it. I traded it even for the '94 F-350 crew cab turbo diesel dually I have now. It's about a $6,000 truck.

It also depends on your particular financial situation. I know a guy who spent over $30,000 having his '79 Ford LTD Country Squire restored to showroom condition... When asked why, he said he had looked at new wagons and SUV's, but the LTD had a tailgate that swung open from the side or down... and the floor was lower, which made it easier to put his golf bags into (he was in his late-70's). And, he figured if he bought a new one, he'd spent at least $30k-$40k for one. So, it was a matter of he had the money, he liked the car, and it suited his particular needs.

[Elandan2]

The other thing to remember is that whether they are $1000, or $100,000, they all do the same thing.  The difference is that the thousand dollar rig won't depreciate the same as that hundred thousand dollar one will, and as you improve yours, it is exactly that, yours, not a designers idea of what you might like.  Don't get discouraged, the next time you use it you will be happy with the latest improvements or repairs.  Rick

[ClydesdaleKevin]

As fulltimers that boondock a lot, we have special requirements that required a lot more outlay of money than the weekend RVer would have to deal with:  A composting toilet, an outstanding 705+ watt solar power system, additional freshwater tank, washer/dryer, etc.  Plus all the regular stuff, like remodeling (new carpets, dash reupholstery, future full reupholstery and wallpaper, etc.), mechanical upgrades and maintenance, tires, shocks, etc.

We bought our rig for 3000.00, and our insurance company values it at 14K...and we have probably about that much invested in it.

Could we sell it for that?  Maybe.  Would we want to?  Heck no!  Having done all this work to the RV has made The Nautilus a part of the family, and our home. 

You just can't set a value on things like memories and adventures. 

Kev

[Mr. T]

That is what my wife said to me the other night.  I just cut off the reading lamp and pretended to go to sleep.  I like irritating her that way.


Never the less, good advice.

[TheSportsmanDodger]

the catch in mine is i did not spend crap on it lol 500 for it, 200 for a oil change and the whole bathroom was fabricated by junk from UW college campus.

plumbing and all so far my budget is dang near free.

[LJ-TJ]

Well I started with a $1,500.00 dollar rig and over 3 years invested another $28,000.00 just to watch it burn to the ground. Then to find out the insurance company wouldn't cover the fire and theft on it. i??
Ended up driving to Kansas and picking up another one for $1000.00 and have been slooooooowly bringing here back to life. I don't have a HOT ROD and it's something the wife and I enjoy working on as we can afford it. You'll find here on this site most folks a frugal and thrifty. We search around until we find what we're looking for at a price we can afford and then buy it and move on to the next project. There's a lot of satisfaction in being able to keep one of these old girls running on your own and it's a blast sitting around a campfire swapping stories about the trials and tribulation with other old Winne owners. You never stop spending until the jobs done right. Right Frank?

[Froggy1936]

 Hm? Even if you have to pay to do it Twice or three times  :)rotflmao :)rotflmao :)rotflmao :)rotflmao Frank

[joanfenn]

I consider our MH one of our kids.  The older it gets, the more it is going to cost us.  But we are enjoying every moment when we are out in her.

[TheSportsmanDodger]

amen

[legomybago]

You have to remember, "Motorhomes are nothing but piles of junk". My Grandpa always said that to me over the years, but he loved all his RV's, and working on them, because the travel was fun, memories are great.  You always have to work on them, old or new. Lots of maintenance involved for piece of mind. If your capable of keeping a "rolling house" going down the road, and working, thats pretty cool accomplishment in my book, alot of people out there wish they could!!....These rigs aren't just Chevy Novas.

[M & J]

When we considered buying a bass boat many, many years ago friends told us the definition of a boat was a big hole in the water you pour money in to and the 2 happiest days of a boat owners life is the day he buys it and the day he sells it. But owning one for several years and the hours spent with the family fishing and enjoying the water was priceless.
I feel the same way about our motorhome. Although the kids are grown and not using it with us, we have completely enjoyed the days and nights we've spent just in the past year of ownership.
You simply cannot put a price on memories and if you could, they would be well worth any investment in maintaining an older coach.