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As much as we love RVing and exploring our beautiful country, unfortunately we have to work normal jobs. so when our motorhome is not in use the question is, “What do we do with this 20,000lb gigantic thing in our driveway?”
As it sits in the driveway it still costs money, loan payment, insurance, property taxes, ect. so the question came up, “what do we do with it when we are not using it?” There were a few months where the commissions from my day job weren’t coming in like they once did and money was starting to get tight, for a little bit we even considered selling the RV (so glad we didn’t)
We pondered the idea of renting it out to help make ends meet, or at least make payments on time, then we did what everyone does and googled pros and cons of “renting out your RV”, and like most people we found conflicting information.
But we finally make the plunge and listed our home on wheels on RVshare, and what a great idea that was!
This is my personal testimonial of how we used RVshare to rent out our motorhome and found a great way to earn income on the side, something anyone can do and it doesn’t require any special training, or licenses.
RVshare from an RV owners point of view
When we first listed our RV on RVshare, we really didn’t know what to expect, we were worried, excited, and nervous all at the same time, I mean here we are listing out our second mortgage to a complete stranger.
BUT once we started getting the bookings in, and started to rent out our Class C motorhome, we haven’t looked back and wondered why we didn’t do it earlier!
Benefits of using RVshare
- They insure your RV while its rented for up to $1,000,000
- They perform driving background checks of your potential renters
- You choose how much to charge
- You accept or deny potential renters without any recourse from RVshare
- Easy to start making money
When listing your RV you choose how much you want to list it per night, how much mileage comes or does not come with the rental, and how much if any hours of the generator is covered by the renter.
You are in complete control of the renting process allowing you to decide what you want to make from your RV, and who you will allow to use it.
When we receive a request from a potential client, I always ask the same questions.
- Do you have any experience driving a large vehicle like an RV?
- How do you plan on using our RV?
- Are you familiar with using an RV?
The reason I ask these questions is to find out the type of person that I will hand the keys to. Simple questions like this can really help you understand the type of person that will be renting your equipment. Also I like to meet with the potential renter so we can both meet in person and they can look over the RV. There has been a few times where a potential client came to the house and saw how big our Class C is and I could tell they didn’t feel confident, or was even scared. I politely suggested they look on the website for something smaller so they can feel more comfortable.
Having the ability to deny anyone I don’t feel comfortable with is, well, AWESOME! I don’t feel like I HAVE to rent it out and I get the peace of mind while the RV is on the road.
Most of the horror stories you read are from people that rented their RV out to anyone, and in return can result in user error and damage. This is the reason I like to meet with the renter prior to see if they are trustworthy, mature enough to handle all the intricacies, and honestly, are in the right state of mind to take our second home on the road with them.
How much can you make?
Like any source of extra income, how much you can make depends on you.
RVshare sends you emails letting you know that a potential renter is interested in booking, you also get to see what the customer is looking for, and how much they want to spend. It’s your choice to start chatting with the client to see if they are a good fit for your equipment, or you can simply delete the notification. It’s just to easy.
We rented out our Class C for 12 days and made enough money to make the loan payments, insurance, taxes and maintenance for 3 months!
Our first time renting we made just over $3,000 in under 2 weeks with RVshare.
Here is an actual example of what you see when a renter wants to book you.
You see the dates in which they want, in this case we are looking at a four day rental at $239 per day (for this RV, your amount may be different depending on what you want to list)
The customer pays for the insurance, and service fees. This 4 day rental would cost the renter $1,199.29.
On the bottom it states total miles allowed during the rental period, normally you allow 100 miles per day (for a motorhome) and charge an excess mileage fee of $.35 per mile over the allowed 400 miles.
Also this renter has allowed 4 hours of generator usage per day and has a charge of $3.00 per hour after those hours are met.
Note: You as the owner of the RV can choose the amounts, if any, that you want to charge for mileage and generator fees. You can even offer unlimited miles and generator usage to help attract more customers.
I have spoken to several people that have both rented from, and rented out from RVshare and they all say the same thing, “easy” and honestly it is, setting up an account takes less than 10 minutes. You create an account, upload pictures and tell people about your RV then click publish. Literally you can make money in less than 20 minutes of work.
So I don't have to pay anything?
RVshare of course has to make money as well and they do this by charging a commission on the rental fee, the great thing is you don’t actually pay out of pocket.
When the renter pays, RVshare handles all the leg work and processes the money, then sends it directly to your bank they just keep a small commission in the middle so you never actually see or have to pay RVshare directly, they get it when they process the rental.
Example (NOT REAL NUMBERS FROM A RENTAL):
Rental fee (amount the customer pays) = $1,200
RVshare commission =$180
Payout to you = $1,020
As you can see you don’t actually pay them, the customer does with their payment.
Renting an RV
Renting is even easier, simply find what you want to use, select your dates and click “book”
Honestly its that easy.
If you know you want to, or are in the market to purchase an RV, but don’t know what you want, then renting is the way to go. Buying an RV is expensive, in some cases its considered a second mortgage, needless to say that’s a large purchase. But jumping straight into an RV may not be the greatest idea, you may think you want a Pop up trailer, but really need a Travel Trailer, heck you may even find that you want the room of a fifth wheel or a Toy Hauler. If you’re undecided between a traditional RV (bumper pull) or a Motorhome, then I would recommend renting a few first. This give you the ability to make an informed decision and make sure your hard earned money is going in the right direction, and you are purchasing the RV that is best for you and your needs. With Rvshare you can actually test drive and camp in what you want before purchasing, something you really can’t do at a dealership.
Summary
Renting our Class C Motorhome was the best thing we could do at the time, we were just a few weeks away from selling our beloved “Harvey the RV” and had to make tough financial decisions. Once we started renting out we were able to not only make the payments, but get ahead and even start to catch up on bills.
After just a few rentals we have even started to consider purchasing other motorhomes and listing on RVshare to create even more income from this great service.
In all I would recommend looking into RVshare as an RV owner to make things affordable for you, and as a renter looking to try new things and explore our great and beautiful country.
This post may contain affiliate links, meaning I get a commission if you decide to make a purchase through my links, at no cost to you.
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