We are considering purchasing a 2012 Coachman Freelander 21QB from El Monte Rentals. It has 22,000 miles and is listed for $41,900. What are the pros and cons to this purchase? Does the price seem fair? Does this seem to be a good first time purchase? Thanks for all your comments and feedback.
El Monte RV has at least 3 of them at that price...which is a great price compared to what the MSRP is suppose to be!
Forest River Coachmen builds these things by the boat load for rental use. They are "dumbed down" a bit to make them easier for someone who has a less than perfect grasp of what a RV is! Very simple interiors and the basics.
El Monte rents these out to International vacationers from all over the World here in California and else where, and when returned, they clean 'em up and out they go again filled with happy Germans, Italians and Japanese tourists. They rent out for around $1500.00 a week plus mileage charges. Depending on time of year.
Cruise America is the other big RV Vacation Rental guys. They use Thor RV's Four Winds Class C motorhomes.
Usually El Monte "refreshes" the RV with new matresses and clean it up good...and repair any damages.
A lot if them that I've seen at El Monte RV had roof repairs due to the tourists hitting tree branches and drive thru roofs, and lots of scrapes and paint bamage to the sides.
I don't believe El Monte has to disclose damage and repairs that were fixed to a new buyer by the way, and since they do it all in their own repair shops, a CarFax report won't show anything.
So inspect carefully. Maybe even have a mechanic run a diagnotic engine check and roof inspection. El Monte does the oil changes and routine maintenance also "in house".
They rent them at all 5 of their Vacation Rental Centers, Los Angeles RV Rentals, San Francisco, Las Vegas, Orlando RV Rentals, New York (Linden, NJ) RV Rentals.
Also for comparison, I found a 2011 non-rental used one at a dealer in Colorado with 25,600 miles for $44,995.00.
Then there's the most famous Motion Picture Rental Motorhome of all time!
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I looked at a new 21QB for $49,900 last year, It was too small for me and I found a 2004 coachman freelander 27 for $32,500 with only 6800 miles. Other than replacing the tires the unit has been trouble free and I've put around 2000 miles on it. There are deals out there but it takes a lot of web surfing.
primorving wrote: As a guideline, there's a 30% mark up give or take 5% in RV pricing. you should start at approx 66% of sticker as a guideline and be able to buy somewhere around 70% of sticker. That's been my experience.
I agree that is the case with many, but not every brand. It is surely the place to start. Good advice.
cozzy Quoted I looked at a new 21QB for $49,900 last year.......
I also heard they could be purchased brand new for $45-$49k. It seems that would be much smarter than getting a previous rental for a few thousand less. Your warranties on both the chassis and house would be fresh, and sometimes you get better finance rates on a new one as well. With that consideration for some without the cash, new might be cheaper than used.
As a guideline, there's a 30% mark up give or take 5% in RV pricing. you should start at approx 66% of sticker as a guideline and be able to buy somewhere around 70% of sticker. That's been my experience.
Purchasing rentals has been discussed on this forum many times and will continue to be. IMHO The notion that an individual took better care of there RV than a rental customer is ridiculous. And I can almost guarantee you that a rental company did more routine maintenance than some owners. Judge the RV for what it is or not is not on who the previous owner was.
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