What is RV Consignment and How Does it Work?
If you’ve never heard of it before, you may be wondering what RV consignment means. RV consignment is like clothing consignment…except on a much larger scale. You’ll turn over your RV to another party to rent it for you while you still retain ownership. They’ll handle the phones, appointments, and rentals. Once it rents, they’ll take out a percentage of the rental income. Here are a few things you should know about consigning an RV:
Maintaining your coach: In most cases our maintenance program is stricter than the manufacturer. When an RV enters our fleet, we input the vehicle data in our state-of-the-art fleet management system. This comprehensive system keeps track of all RV activity including mileage, generator hours, and routine scheduled maintenance. We can provide the scheduled maintenance and will let you know when it is required and can schedule it for you. Schedule maintenance costs are your responsibity but can subtracted from your profits. This system also can includes a GPS tracker for a small fee so when your RV is out on a rental we know exactly where it is at all the time. It will even tell us immediately if a renter is excessively speeding, driving too many hours, or going someplace they were not authorized.
Renter Screening: In order to protect you, ourselves, and your RV, we are able to screen all potential rental customers with a driving history and background check.
Tax Advantages of renting your RV: In addition to earning an income and offsetting the costs of RV ownership, units enrolled in our rental program may qualify for tax benefits including a deduction of expenses, depreciation, and allowances. We recommend you consult with your tax advisor to explain how to obtain the maximum benefit.
Owner Use and Limitations: We have consignment plans that allow you unlimited use of your coach whenever you like. All we ask is that you either schedule your use in advance, or for a last minute trip make sure your unit is not already booked by a customer. When you do use your unit, you get full VIP concierge service. When you pick up your RV is washed & detailed, waste tanks drained, water and fuel tanks full, and the refrigerator on and cold and the a/c running so it is cool when you arrive. When you return you just park it, take you stuff and walk away – it doesn’t get any easier to own and use your RV than that! Payments are made monthly and by direct deposit.
Damage / Smoking: We only take non-smoking units, and have a ZERO tolerance policy for smoking. Upon return each RV is inspected for damage or evidence of smoking. Because our fine for smoking in a unit is $1000 plus cleaning and deodorizing costs we have not had a customer smoke in a unit, so we feel our penalties are high enough to deter even the most stubborn renter. All renters are charged a $1500 security deposit, and any damage to your RV is quickly and professionally repaired and taken from the security deposit. Any damages in excess of the deposit are still fixed immediately and claimed under our insurance. We do have a detailed checkout and renter educational walk around training on each rental, which greatly reduces the incidents of damage to a unit. If at any time we don’t feel comfortable with a renter we will cancel the rental.
Can’t I just do this myself? Why put it in a professional fleet: Renting out your RV yourself is a lot more work than you may realize. You would be responsible for commercial insurance (your regular insurance will not cover rentals), detailing & deep cleaning of your unit before each rental, screening potential renters, taking money and deposits, completing a rental contract and doing a checkout with the renter to show them how everything works, advertising, etc. Unfortunately the work doesn’t stop when they leave with your unit, as you must be available to answer your phone 24/7 in case of problems, breakdowns, tire service, and questions about how to operate the coach (they rarely remember everything from orientation). If the RV comes back damaged or something breaks, you have to deal with the customer, insurance, and handle getting the RV fixed (all before your next rental). It can be profitable, but most people find it too time consuming and stressful, especially with only one unit available.
What kind of RVs are eligible for your fleet? We accept most late model (less than 10 years old) C class motorhomes only.
Revenues are split 50/50 with the owner on the base rental amount of the coach. Additional amenities sometimes ordered by renters such as grills, chairs, delivery, and cleaning charges are not split with the owner.
Each 15th of the month we prepare a revenue reconciliation for the fleet’s owners for the previous month activity. Owners receive their check payment along with a copy of each rental contract for the previous month showing everything about the renter, time on rent, rent charged, etc. Your insurance cost is billed to you directly from the insurance company. They will require a month in advance deposit plus current month
How do I get started? Enrollment in our fleet program is surprisingly easy! Just call us today at 727-656-7555