[LJSteinmetz]

Steve,

Thanks for your very informative post.

We have actually given ourselves an unlimited time to shop for a coach. Twelve to fourteen months is when the appropriate finances and timing issues line up allowing us to pull the trigger anytime from that point forward when that perfect, to us, coach comes along. Our current plan is to put our house on the market most likely in the Spring of 2016. We would rather already have our coach just prior to the house selling but it wouldn't be absolutely necessary. I will continue to work for the Coast Guard until January 2019. We admit that it might be pretty frustrating living in a coach while I still have to work but it would be much cheaper than continuing to carry the mortgage on our 4000 sq. ft. house that only has my wife and me kicking around in. The added benefit is that we could "cast off all lines" and head out in our coach for long weekends, vacations, etc.

After 35 years of marriage my wife and I fortunately have grown to like many of the same things so it will be relatively easy for us to agree on a coach if the right one comes along. The big compromise that my wife has already made is that she truly would rather have a custom 5th wheel like a Continental or a New Horizons primarily due to their kitchens being available with an island and just more elbow room overall. This would require it to be towed by an HDT and I just don't know if I want to put up with the added hassles of parking an articulated set-up. We used to own a fifth wheel and I know that practice makes perfect but occasionally you will read about career truck drivers who say they bought motorhomes because they had had enough backing up hassles in their lives and didn't need it once retired...maybe not a common sentiment with truck drivers but the few that said it certainly opened my eyes.

One of my main concerns will be to try to figure out what a used Newell (or a Foretravel) is truly worth when it comes time to negotiate on one that is for sale. Newell doesn't show up on NADA and many people have said that the NADA figures for a Foretravel are not that accurate to use. Other places I have read said to use the RV depreciation calculators available online but you have to know the MSRP of the rig when it was new and what the normal discount is that first year. As an example, most people say that they got anywhere from a 25%-30% discount on a Newmar or an Entegra but I only see vague references to 5%-10% on Foretravels and I haven't come across anything discussing discounts on a new Newell. Further, some people also put no faith in the calculators so it seems to put a potential buyer at a disadvantage. I have always liked to know what the "likely" range of value is when shopping for a car so that I am not wasting someone's time (or insulting them with what appears to be a low ball offer), shows that I have done my research and that I know when to take an offer or when to move on. At the price range we are talking about for these coaches it would be akin to getting comps when purchasing a home. Any guidance in this area by the Gurus would be very much appreciated.

It is great to hear that Newell stands so squarely behind their product and that their service appears to have few rivals...this is always worth at least the price of admission!