Motorhome values drop 3.2%

Motorhome and towable values dipped year over year in December while auction volume declined as dealers held off on acquiring used inventory. The average selling price on a motorhome hit $60,607 in December, down 3.2% YoY and 2.9% month over month, according to a Jan. 28 report from Black Book , which cites December valuation data. “Whenever [we enter] winter, which is when you have the least amount of retail and therefore wholesale activity on the RVs, you expect the values to be down , because demand is down,” Eric Lawrence , principal automotive analyst for specialty vehicles at Black Book, told Auto Finance News . “No one's really going to auction to stock up, unless they're in southern Florida or southern California, somewhere where they still have warm weather,” he said. [caption id="attachment_58348621" align="aligncenter" width="881"] (Courtesy/Black Book)[/caption] Lawrence added that though the December reading reflects historical trends for the segment, motorhome values often fluctuate more noticeably than the towable segment due to smaller sample sizes at auction. Fewer motorhome transactions then curate “a weird mix of vehicles that happen to run through the auction on a given month,” which results in values that land either too high or too low, he said. Towable values fall 4.4% For towables, the average selling price fell 4.4% YoY and 6.6% MoM to $17,083 in December, according to Black Book. [caption id="attachment_58348622" align="aligncenter" width="883"] (Courtesy/Black Book)[/caption] “The [towable] market is much healthier than the motorhome market,” Lawrence said. “We see a lot of volume, and it gives a good snapshot of what's going on, both on the new and used side.” Motorhome, towable auction volume down Auction volume declined for both segments in the final month of the year. Motorhome auction volume dipped 7.7% compared with November, while towable auction volume declined 6.3% MoM, according to Black Book. Volume is projected to remain muted through January before potentially climbing in February as dealers start to acquire more used inventory ahead of the spring selling season, Lawrence said. Dealers “don't want to buy used in the winter to pay floorplan interest on it for the three or four months while it sits there,” he said. The average model year at auction in December landed at 2016 for motorhomes and 2020 for towables, according to Black Book. “A lot of motorhome buyers are significantly underwater for a long time, so you don't see them freed as often as with the travel trailers that are a lot cheaper,” Lawrence said. “Although [towables] depreciate, the [prices] aren't as big as on the motorhome side, so after five years, [consumers] may have enough of an equity position to break even.” Recovering demand post-pandemic Industrywide, Lawrence said RV demand could trend similarly to pre-pandemic levels in 2025 after demand surged in 2021 and 2022 before declining in 2023 and 2024. For reference, RV wholesale shipments hit their peak in 2021 at 600,240 full-year units, the largest year on record with the RV Industry Association . In 2024, full-year RV shipments increased 6.6% YoY to 333,733 units, highlighting the potential for a slightly improved market in 2025, according to the RVIA. RV shipments 1980-2023 [caption id="attachment_58348620" align="aligncenter" width="890"] (Courtesy/RVIA)[/caption] Lawrence noted that these consumers, called the “pull-ahead” buyers, would have returned to market in 2023 and 2024. Instead, they were on the sidelines because they purchased an RV in 2021 and 2022 during the pandemic, he said. “The demand was still there, but they had already bought it,” he said. This year, however, shipments should reflect “true 2025 demand” as the market stabilizes, barring other retail headwinds with interest rates or consumer confidence, he said. Shipments outlook The increase in full-year 2024 shipments was driven in part by a strong December reading, when shipments came in at 23,153 units, up 7.6% YoY. Of the December total, towable shipments rose 11.4% YoY to 20,814 units, while motorhome shipments declined 17.7% YoY to 2,339 units. RVIA estimates full-year shipments will land between 329,900 units and 362,300 units in 2025. Auto Finance Summit East 2025 is set for May 12-14 at the JW Marriott Nashville featuring fireside chats with Santander Consumer USA and Chase Auto. Visit autofinance.live for more information. Early-bird registration is available here .

Motorhome values drop 3.2%

Full-year RV shipments rose 6.6%, RVIA says

Auto dealer turned senator becomes key figure in Trump’s anti-EV crusade

Managing inventory key to 2025 success for dealers

Related Posts

Thor Industries incentives drop 2.7% YoY

Yamaha raises $400M through inaugural powersports, marine floorplan ABS deal

BRP cuts FY27 guidance by 46% as tariffs pressure margins

Kunes Auto’s first CTO aims to unify auto, RV technology operations

Managing inventory key to 2025 success for dealers

Stay Informed with Our Newsletters

The Roadmap Podcast

SPONSORED

Why credit unions give dealers an edge in today’s auto market

Driving better decision-making across auto finance operations with SAS

Auto finance’s first line of defense: Raising the standard in integrated software partnerships and data strategy

Retrieve your password