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In this video interview with Gigi Stetler, the CEO, and founder of The RV Advisor, we discuss RV buying. Watch expert advice on how to choose an RV, find a reliable RV dealer, choose a warranty, what red flags to look for, and ensure that your RV experience is worthwhile.
00:00 - Introduction
01:09 - RV buying tips
02:20 - Costs of RV ownership
03:39 - Life expectancy of motorhome
04:20 - RV financing
05:35 - RV interest rates
07:00 - New RV vs. Used RV
08:14 - Red flags to look for when buying an RV
14:35 - RV warranty issues
18:19 - The best RV to buy
18:59 - RV consumer rights
19:25 - About The RV Advisor
20:29 - RV tips from RV expert
21:35 - Conclusion
#ExpertTalksWithPissedConsumer #RV #RVTips
More information on The RV Advisor: https://thervadvisor.com/
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0:00
I showed up at the dealer meeting and there was a bunch of fat cat, good old boys, cigar smoking, scotch drinking guys sitting around talking about everything but RVs
0:08
And I came with my brilliant ideas, young, fresh ideas. And and I mentioned something about we should be open on weekends and we should be open after five because of families
0:20
And they all looked at me like I was crazy. And the one guy, the president of the association at the time, he said, little girl, what are you doing here
0:28
You need to go home and bake cookies. This is no place for any girls. So the next three months, because every month it was an association, we had a meeting. So the next three months, they went and had their meetings without me. And I showed up. Oh, we had the meeting yesterday. Oh, you didn't get the memo. Oh, sorry. You know, that kind of thing for three months
0:47
So on the fourth month, I just decided to go on my own
0:51
I never went to another meeting and I decided to be open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m
0:56
seven days a week. And I did that for 11 years. And I knew that what was missing in this business when I started was customer service
1:09
What are your tips for consumers? What shall consumers consider when they're thinking about buying an RV
1:17
Well, in today's world, everybody's on this rage about wanting an RV, but they don't really know why or what they want to do with it
1:25
So what I tell people, if you hire me for my services or even if you just listen to some of my shows and tips and stuff
1:32
I'm going to tell you to get out a piece of paper and pencil and write down what do you expect out of this RV
1:38
What do you want this RV to do for you? What are your expectations
1:42
What is your budget? How often are you going to use it? Are you full-time and are you part-time
1:47
Is it weekends? How many of you need to sleep? These are questions you have to sit down and, you know, and ask yourself an answer before
1:56
you start your search because a salesperson, an RV salesperson is only there to sell you
2:04
what you come in and ask them for. So you have to write those things down and you have to really study your own life and
2:11
your own plan of what you plan on doing with it before you walk into the sharks
2:15
at the dealership because they're only going to sell you what you think you want more home implies it has an engine it has wheels there's maintenance or insurances
2:27
what are the costs and hidden costs that someone would incur when owning a motorhome
2:35
the the cost that you need to consider is number one parking and storage um if you cannot leave it
2:42
at home, how much is it going to cost to put it in storage and how far away is the storage
2:47
and that cost. Insurance is a factor, but it's not terribly expensive
2:56
Motorized is obviously going to be more than one you tow behind your vehicle because you're
2:59
already paying one liability policy. But you can calculate that between maybe $400 a year up to $1,500, $1,800, $1,900
3:09
somewhere in that based on your driving record. of maintenance. Engine-wise, you have more maintenance, oil changes, batteries, things like
3:17
that on a motorized vehicle than you would on a pole trailer. But the most important maintenance
3:23
is a couple of tubes of silicone and dipore, or have your local dealer or an expert to seal it for
3:32
you once a year, eight months to a year. And if you do that, it'll last you forever
4:08
a minimal cost and it's like new again. Engine wise, you know, I see a lot of 1999s, 93s, 92s still
4:15
on the road and still going. So it's all in how you take care of it. What are the options that
4:20
are available for consumers as far as paying for the RV? There are auto loans when someone buys a
4:26
car, car loans. There are mortgages when people buy hot homes. Motorhome is something in between
4:34
right what kind of financing options are available for consumers does it make sense to finance an rv
4:41
or does it make sense to purchase it for cash if you're buying an rv um from a dealer and you're
4:50
traveling and you you need to depend on service sometimes i recommend a customer even though they
4:57
can pay cash i recommend them to finance even a portion of it to finance it so that you have some
5:03
leverage over the dealer's head. There's a couple of tricks up my sleeve, you know, to hold them
5:08
accountable, you know, based on, you know, if they have a finance contract, it makes the dealer a
5:13
little more accountable. And then after all the issues are resolved, pay it off. But there's
5:19
there good terms right now cash is king I would keep it and I would use it and I would invest it and I would finance an RV if you can because the interest rates are in the fours right now And in 30 almost six years in business we never had interest rates this low
5:34
So I would take advantage of that. What is the interest rate right now in general
5:40
Of course, it depends on the credit score and everything. What is the good interest rate that someone shall expect to pay on the RV
5:48
If you're 720 speaking score and up, you could be around four and a half, four and three quarters, which is very low scores in the 650 to 700 range
6:04
you're probably looking maybe in the five to seven range. If you're 620 and below, and maybe
6:14
not may not be financeable, but I've had some deals in the 550s and 570s, which are 18%
6:20
18% is about the maximum that they could charge. But so that's, that's kind of a range. So it's
6:27
based on credit, but it's not, it's, it's, it's technically the whole package, um, stability
6:33
income. You know, there's a lot of what's, what's hurting a lot of people right now is, uh, a lot of
6:40
people took advantage of the COVID stimulus packages, forbearance on their mortgages
6:45
forbearance on their car payments. Well, it's ruining people's credit now because all of those
6:50
people that are back on track and trying to get an RV are automatic turndown. So think about that
6:55
it's offered to you any kind of those forbearance deals it will hurt you in the future for someone
7:01
buying considering to buy an rv for the first time is it better to start with a used vehicle or
7:09
a new one well my highest recommendation for newbies is unless you absolutely you know already
7:19
know exactly what you want, which is very unusual for a newbie, I suggest you rent, even if it's a
7:25
three-day trip, a four-day trip, rent a couple of different models. There are peer-to-peer rental
7:30
companies out there or find a local rental company and rent, try out a motorhome, try out a travel
7:36
trailer, try out a class A, try out a class C, you know, rent a few different, you know, things so
7:41
that you can get your feet wet. And then it doesn't matter whether you buy new or used as far as a
7:47
newbie what happens is when you buy the wrong vehicle is because you didn't know what you really
7:51
wanted and then you want to you know get out of it so you know if you rent something well the first
7:56
thing is to rent just to see if you like the lifestyle which 99 of the people do but that
8:02
will really tell you a lot of where you want your bathroom what size bed you want or don't want and
8:06
you know shower curtain or glass shower or this or that or all those different things you'll learn
8:11
in a rental in three days. When coming to the dealer and having a conversation with the dealer, what are the red flags that
8:20
consumers should be asking themselves and asking the dealer? What are the red flags to watch out for during the deal
8:28
For starters, a lot of people are shopping on the internet right now because there's
8:34
a very, very low inventory and it's a big problem in our industry
8:38
so what's happening is is consumers are are shopping um online and dealers are not being
8:46
forthcoming in what they have on their website as it being sold so customers are driving an hour
8:54
away seeing something online talking to the salesman okay i'm coming down to look at a drive
8:58
an hour two hours three hours oh sorry it was just sold um but let me switch you to this unit
9:04
so the old bait and switch thing is happening incredible if that happens and you drive somewhere
9:10
and someone told you it was available and it's gone and they try to switch you number one red
9:15
flag number two red flag they ask you to put a deposit um on a vehicle um that you haven't seen
9:24
and it's non-refundable second big red flag okay um let's say they give you a contract and it
9:33
and it is refundable subject to your inspection, you need to see the whole contract because
9:42
there's language on the front that says they write refundable. And then on the back
9:47
of some contracts, it's non-refundable. So it's very ambiguous. And if you put it on your credit
9:53
card, the credit card company is not a legal department. So most of the time, because it's
9:59
stamped on the front that says non-refundable, you lose. So that's a red flag. So if they don't
10:06
show you the front and the back and all the pages that go with that contract, that's a huge red flag
10:12
The two things that are in most of these dealers' contracts, even if you're sitting in front of the
10:19
dealer and a lot of people are not reading the entire contract, which is, I want to say shame on
10:24
you, but I'm going to say it again. Look for the language in the contract. Number one, if you're
10:30
ordering a unit, there's language in a contract that says that, and it's usually in page two or
10:36
three in the very tiny print. And it'll say that if, if there's a factory price increase, you are
10:43
agreeing to pay the increase, or if they've modified or altered the options or the interior
10:48
you've accepted it in its new price and new condition whatever and nobody reads that so they basically telling you that you going to have a price increase because that what that means Um and the other uh section that in their contract that is a huge red flag on an ordered unit is it says that by
11:10
signing this contract, you have inspected the vehicle and have accepted it in its current
11:14
condition. Well, it's not built yet. So how could you accept it in its current condition
11:18
And I've had this happen with a member, RV Advisor member, who purchased it, didn't see that in the contract, financed it, did everything, but it wasn't delivered from the factory yet
11:30
Well, the driver that brought it from the factory wrecked it. He wrecked it, and he put a big hole in the side of the vehicle
11:38
So the dealer's like, it's yours, you own it. So he said, well, you've got to call your insurance company and claim it on your car
11:45
And the customer's like, but I didn't take delivery. not according to this paper so anyway a year and a half later you know a year and a half later this
11:54
this this member has been fighting between the insurance company and and the dealer he got stuck
11:59
with it he was stuck with it and it's going to be on the insurance forever even when it goes to
12:04
resell it that it had like a 35 000 claim so look at the language in the contract is there a such
12:12
thing as an extended warranty on the RV? Yes and highly recommended. The
12:19
different, first off, if you're buying from a dealer they're going to offer you
12:23
an extended warranty at the time of purchase. If you don't purchase the
12:28
extended warranty and but if you don't purchase the warranty at the time that
12:33
you purchase the RV and there is an issue, it's a pre-existing problem. So it's
12:41
So you definitely need to buy it because these policies are what's called sign and drive
12:46
If you buy a used vehicle, because every dealer is as is on used units, no dealer has any warranty at all
12:55
The curb is your warranty. So it's as is. You must purchase an extended warranty on a used vehicle 100%
13:04
And it actually is better than any factory warranty. If you're buying a new vehicle from a dealer and you're just passing through and you're never going to be back at that dealer again or in that area, in that territory, I can assure you what happens in the industry, no other dealer in the country is obligated to fix that RV under manufacturer factory warranty but the selling dealer
13:31
So you will not get warranty work done under warranty. It's next to impossible
13:35
so um if that's going to happen i almost recommend you to have the dealer title it as a used vehicle
13:43
with no factory warranty and and uh and then you you buy an extended warranty so the extended
13:51
warranty kicks in right away but you have to be careful because that will also avoid your structure
13:56
warranty um so with the manufacturer so you got to make sure that structurally the rv is good the
14:01
roof is good the rubber is good because but all of the components in the RV have have like the
14:07
roof has a 20-year warranty for defects not for poor insulation but for defective material so
14:14
these are things that you have to inspect have an inspector and really look at that close if you
14:19
decide to to title something as used so that you can get this extended warranty but it is 100% a
14:26
us to have a extended warranty on anything that you buy. As you know, we get to speak to a lot of consumers that are upset about RVs
14:39
And we've had a number of interviews with consumers. And I get the feeling, maybe you can correct me or maybe you can say that I'm right, about
14:49
factory warranties for certain RV manufacturers. I get a feeling that factories on purpose and or dealerships
15:01
keep vehicles at warranty for so long that they are shops like for eight months, nine months
15:10
just to wait and your warranty runs out. Is this my feeling and I just got lucky by talking to people like that
15:18
But I've seen a number of people that have been complaining that for minimal problems, RVs are stuck in the shop, the dealer's shop, for months
15:32
I'll explain how warranty works and then you'll understand why dealers don't want to, you know, it almost becomes
15:39
Well, first off, these big dealers, big box retailers, Camping World, General RV, some of these big stores, they're selling 200, 250, 300 units a month
15:50
It is impossible to service 200 to 300 units a month. Impossible
15:55
They're getting these things off. The factory is building these things as fast as they can
16:00
And they're coming to the dealerships. First off, the factories don't even do a water test
16:06
They don't hook up water to the RV. so they have no idea if their plumbing lines are connected or working or anything that's the
16:12
dealer's responsibility 99 of the problems that are going on right now are the dealers not prepping
16:18
these units properly uh they just sending them out just as fast as the factory is and letting the customer just go deal with it And that the problem So the dealership is responsible but the manufacturers aren going
16:32
to throw the dealers under the bus because the manufacturers need the dealers. So it's just a
16:38
big circle. Everybody's chasing their tail. So the way warranty process works, and I was a very
16:44
big dealer many, many, many years ago. It was a very big deal. I was one of the top dealers in the
16:48
country. And I too was selling 200, 200 and something units a month. And it's hard to keep up
16:53
And, but what I did was, you know, I started to just do the work myself. It takes five people
16:58
just to process a warranty claim for, for, to give you 0.80, you know, $13 for a claim that
17:05
you know, so it, it, it became for me more cost effective for me to just absorb the cost and
17:11
and, you know, and just fix the part, change it, do whatever I got to do and eat the
17:15
eat the warranty than to process the claim. The factory hopes that you don't have the time to do
17:20
the paperwork to process the claim, which is what happens. So it's that part of it is, it's always
17:25
been broken. The system's been broken. But the bottom line is that customers must stop looking
17:33
for the best price, the cheapest price. I am now, like, I'm no longer that big, big dealer
17:39
I'm probably the most expensive dealer in South Florida in Florida and because you get what you pay for it
17:46
But, you know, if my customer has an issue, well, first off, I prep these units before
17:51
they go out and I fix problems before they get to the customer. But if my customer has an emergency, a problem, emergency, he's in within 24 hours
18:00
A non-emergency, he's in the next day or I send somebody to your house to fix the problem
18:04
or I send somebody to you if you're in the campground and your air conditioner is broken. I don't wait for the factory to send me an air conditioner, which is three months from now
18:11
I buy it myself. I put a new air conditioner on it and I go fight with them later
18:15
So that's what needs to happen. Would you be able to recommend RV brands for consumers
18:26
I recommend that you buy local and don't buy the brand, buy the dealer
18:32
Every manufacturer is making almost the same floor plans. They're all copying each other. So fall in love with the dealer, get a relationship with the dealer and have that dealer
18:44
If he doesn't have it, she doesn't have it, then, you know, see if they can get it for you if you want a particular floor plan
18:50
But do not get married to a manufacturer, marry a dealer, because that's the only one that's going to help you
18:58
What are the RV consumer rates and protections that someone who purchases an RV has
19:06
Technically, zero. And that's what I'm fighting for. Lemon Law is very great. It only relates to motorized
19:18
And even that's very hard to win on. You formed your own organization called RV Advisor Association
19:29
Tell us a little bit about this RV Advisor Association. I would over and over and over get friends, exhibitors, equestrians asking me, I need to buy a fifth wheel
19:41
I'm in California. Who do you recommend? And every time I would recommend somebody, they would let my friend slash customer down
19:51
They would either screw them over. So it got to a point where I couldn't recommend anybody
19:57
I couldn't. And, you know, so they would call me when there was a problem with their RV because the dealer didn't take care of them
20:02
Because nobody cares. So people were always asking me how to, you know, like, you need to nationalize yourself
20:10
And, you know, so that's kind of where the RV advisor was born as a non-biased company so that you can, number one, I can educate you on the things to look for
20:21
And people don't even know the questions to ask a dealer, you know, so the dealer is not going to volunteer everything
20:27
So that's how it kind of started. look for a pattern because you know sometimes there there are competitors that write bad reviews
20:34
about other you know competitors and stuff like that um but if you if you look at the pattern of
20:42
the service and how long their you know their rv sat there and and and the extended warranties and
20:47
how they they failed them and they didn't you know pay their claims all those kind of things
20:51
you look at a pattern and if the pattern if the pattern fits and everybody's in the same pattern
20:56
then it's real. It's a real review. Stay clear. You know, as RV advisor member, we will, you know
21:04
we will vet out anybody you need us to vet out. And the thing is that if you're a member of the RV
21:09
RV advisor or RV ACA, you go to that dealer and say, Hey, I'm a member of RV advisor
21:17
Our purpose is to make those dealers so afraid of me, you know, because I will, I will catch them
21:24
but all of their BS. So I want them to be so afraid of me that they take such good care of you and
21:30
you're at the top of their list. And that's what we're trying to gain. Gigi, thank you very much
21:35
It was a pleasure having you on the show. For all of our viewers, guys, don't forget to subscribe to our channels to
21:42
see other experts just like Gigi talking about various industries. Gigi, thank you very much
21:50
It's been a pleasure
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