One Step Closer to our Dream

In mid-January, Todd and I went to take a look at an RV in our price range over an hour away from our home.  After attending the Cleveland RV show the day before, we knew exactly what we were looking for in an RV and we were ready to start actively searching for our (new to us) home on wheels.  We looked at a couple of RV’s before the RV show and were not impressed to say the least.  When we arrived to the dealership and saw the RV we had come to see and I was disappointed.  There were a few things that needed fixed, the interior was outdated, the tires were dry-rotted, the carpets were filthy, and there didn’t seem to be much room in the RV.  Defeated, I saw a large Class A across the way that was more than what we had in the bank to purchase an RV.  We stepped into the rig and were immediately blown away.  I am pretty sure my first word was “Wow!”  It.Was.Gorgeous!

After walking through the entire RV, we were still in awe of the beautiful rig.  With only 72,500 miles on it, it met all of our requirements and then some!  The rig was just purchased from another dealership and driven up from Florida {no rust!}, it had only one owner, it was meticulously taken care of, its records and repair receipts (there were only 2 of them) kept organized in an accordion file, used unleaded gasoline, had two bump-outs to create plenty of room for our family, large freshwater holding tanks (important for boondocking) and it had wonderful storage space.  This was the rig of our dreams that we could live in {very} comfortably.

After going to a local McDonald’s to use their WiFi, we did research on the rig to see if the quality was there, to check reviews and to see how much negotiating needed to be done to bring it down to a reasonable price below the NADA value.  We were pleasantly surprised by what we found: the reviews on this Make/Model rig were great and the price was well below the NADA wholesale value.  After talking about it for a little while longer, we decided to put a deposit down on the rig contingent on an inspection.

A week later, we were informed that the inspection was done on the entire RV and it was cleared, so we had ourselves an RV.  Todd and I did something we said we were never going to do again: we took out a loan for a portion of the RV.  It is funny how lenders (and even the dealership) wanted us to take out a 10 year loan on the 13 year old RV.  No thanks.  Instead, we opted for an 18 month loan that we are looking to have paid off as soon as possible.  According to Dave Ramsey’s teachings, we should pay off the RV before paying off the house, but we only have 9 more months until the house is paid off.  It will take less than 4 months to pay off the rig after the house is paid off.

We named the rig Tinkerbell.  Everyone I tell thinks it’s the worst name to call the beast, but the 33’ 2000 Rexhall Rexair is a small RV comparatively.  Also, the rig needs a few little repairs and Todd will be “Tinkering” with it until the weather warms up and we can get out on the road!

For your viewing pleasure, here are some pictures of our new home on wheels:

View from the cockpit

Second view from the cockpit

Photo of the kitchen area
(taken by the dealership: not sure why there is dust particles all over this picture.)

Our plan this year is to take Tink out for as many 3-day weekends as possible starting the beginning of May until the weather turns cool in the fall with an extended excursion depending on if hubby’s new job offers any time off.  We cannot wait to get out in the wilderness and start boondocking!