Due to the COVID-19 pandemic that reached its peaks during 2020 and 2021, the demand for alternative forms of travel surged and paved the way for a niche industry to boom: the RV industry. Although the restrictions imposed by the pandemic have since waned, the uptick in demand for RVs has stuck — and so have the tens of sites (off the top of my head) that have been created to serve customers interested in trying out this hobby. Comparable to AirBNB or other peer-to-peer rental services, these sites allow interested customers to reach out to owners who for one reason or another aren’t currently using their RV.
Let’s face it — it’s not possible to travel 365 days a year. Eventually, there’ll be a period of time where you’ll be having an “off-season” and need to park your RV in the garage. Rather than let it collect dust as the loans you took out for the RV nag you, rental services let you rake in fairly lucrative sums of money relative to the amount of work you’re doing: to the tune of up to $275 a day. To find out how to make money with your rv, read on, and we’ll teach you how you can get started with your own mini-business.
Why Rent Your RV Out?
Before we even tackle the “hows” of doing something, you must first be convinced of the “why”. Renting out an RV is no exception.
There are three factors to consider here: the benefits, risks, and ease of execution. As for the benefits, here’s a handy table you can refer to in order to figure out the amount of money you could potentially make from renting out your RV:
| Type of RV | Rental Price (per night) | Rental Price (per week) | Potential Earnings (Annual) |
| Class A | $175 – $275 | $1,225 – $1,925 | $15,000 – $30,000 |
| Class B | $100 – $200 | $700 – $1,400 | $12,000 – $25,000 |
| Class C | $150 – 200 | $1,050 – $1,400 | $13,000 – $27,000 |
| Travel Trailer | $50 – $125 | $350 – $875 | $9,000 – $19,000 |
| Fifth Wheel | $60 – $150 | $420 – $1,050 | $11,000 – $22,000 |
| Pop-up Camper | $50 – $100 | $350 – $700 | $6000 – $13,000 |
While some of these values may seem idealistic (such as the annual earnings column), they are by no means unachievable as long as you take the rental game seriously. Despite how pricey rentals might seem, these prices still represent the best deals that renters can find anywhere — the advent of the sharing economy has only driven the price of rentals down, not up, as RV dealers have fallen to the wayside in terms of popularity and are no longer responsible for propping rental prices up. Even at these reduced prices, renting still remains lucrative for owners (thousands of dollars per month), while customers are encouraged with fairer market conditions.
As for the risks, peer-to-peer RV rental sites help to mitigate a lot of these factors. For instance, most RV rental sites have built-in insurance claims, 24/7 roadside assistance, and conduct KYC (know your customer) checks to verify the authenticity of renters before they’re even allowed to post offers for your vehicle. Many of these systems have been tested and refined over the course of the COVID-19 upsurge in demand, and the many glowing reviews on social media for RV rental sites attest to their reliability.
In addition, since you’re the owner of the vehicle, you’ll be able to look up a customer’s purchase history on the site and say no to them for whatever reason. You are totally in control.
How To Go About Renting Out Your RV
Renting out your RV on these sites is ridiculously easy. There’s no need for you to place advertisements, screen customers, or deal with buying insurance. These are all covered by any site worth their salt — simply put your listing up, set your price, and wait for the website to bring a customer to you. This takes out a lot of the hassle and stress from the gig, which justifies the service fee many of these sites charge.
Still, you’ll need to have a battle plan when it comes to the actual nitty-gritty of renting. Chances are unless you’re totally committed to giving up the RV lifestyle, you’ll still want to take your own vehicle out for a spin — this doesn’t mean you’ll have to totally give up camping in the summer months, but recognize the times when you want to travel are likely going to be the same for locals who want to rent the vehicle. Even then, you’re not going to have customers lined up for the entirety of summer, and neither are you going to want to camp for all of it: this is the brilliant thing about the peer-to-peer rental market because you can set a schedule for yourself that works which all renters can see in advance.
Also, do not underestimate the number of people who want to have their vacations during less crowded periods. Some actually prefer their vacations during the more wintry seasons — thanks to the ability to set your own price, you’ll be able to tap into these customers if you want to generate more revenue.
(Pro-tip: Set a daily mile limit, and allow customers to purchase more miles for travel as “bonus packages”. These add-ons are a great way to generate more cash while giving customers the ability to choose what kinds of services they want.)
Conclusion
All in all, camping is one of America’s beloved pastimes, and the experience of hanging out in an RV gives people the opportunity to see the world in a new light. Many people long for this experience (even if they don’t know it yet), and given how RV rental services have streamlined this process for owners, there’s really no reason for you to not explore this opportunity.
Remember that at any price, having your RV make money for you beats it collecting dust in your garage. Whether it’s to repay the cost of your RV, pad your savings account, or simply subsidize your own vacation costs, leveraging your assets into cash is always a wise thing to do.
Also read: Essential Tips For Campervan Beginners
