How to Spot the RV Pricing Bubble Before It Bursts (And Why It’s About To)
How to Spot the RV Pricing Bubble Before It Bursts (And Why It’s About To)
By Christopher Quigley
I’ve wanted a Class B camper van for most of my adult life. The kind built on a Mercedes Sprinter chassis with a front lounge and a proper wet bath. A little rolling refuge where I could write, travel, and shower without needing to ask for a key from a gas station. But recently, when I started looking in earnest, something felt off. The prices weren’t just high—they were absurd. $120,000 for a 10-year-old van with 160,000 miles and a composting toilet wedged beside a microwave? No, thank you.
That sense of skepticism led me down a path of research, and what I discovered is something worth sharing: the RV market, particularly the used market, is in a bubble. A real one. And it’s already beginning to burst.
During the pandemic, RV sales soared. People fled airports and cruise ships for the safety of the open road. With soaring demand and constrained supply, prices skyrocketed. Manufacturers couldn’t build fast enough, and used models were selling for more than they were worth—often more than they cost new. Add in social media-fueled "vanlife" fantasies, and suddenly, a plywood box with a faucet became a six-figure aspiration.
But 2023 marked a turning point. According to the RV Industry Association, shipments of new RVs dropped nearly 49% year-over-year. That’s not a market correction; that’s a collapse. Companies like Thor and Winnebago posted substantial losses. The reason? People simply stopped buying. Interest rates rose, and the romance wore off. Just as quickly as the trend began, reality set in.
The used market is now bloated with overpriced inventory. Listings for ten- or fifteen-year-old vans with questionable plumbing and aesthetic rust are still commanding six-figure prices—and sitting unsold. Dealers have begun offering incentives. Financing has become more difficult. Meanwhile, a flood of DIY builds with poor insulation and no certification has created an oversupply of what I can only describe as “tiny home optimism on wheels.”
To make matters worse, trade tensions between Canada and the U.S. have led to new tariffs, making it even more expensive to import RVs across the border. Canadian dealers, once dependent on U.S. manufacturing, are pulling back and cancelling orders. Combined with currency fluctuations, this has made an already overpriced sector even more precarious.
This is how bubbles pop. Slowly, then all at once. And the signs are everywhere: declining shipments, softening demand, rising costs, and mounting seller frustration. If you're considering buying a used RV , my advice is simple: wait. Prices are on the way down. The fever is breaking. The bubble is deflating.
I still want my RV.
I still believe in the road trip dream.
But I’m not willing to mortgage my future for what amounts to a rolling bathroom with throw pillows. I’ll wait until the prices make sense. And when they do, I’ll be ready—with a towel, a toothbrush, and a perfectly reasonable offer.
