As a van owner, you hold the key to happiness in your pocket. At GoCamp, we hold the key to your success. When you first start renting out your RV or camper van it can be overwhelming. There’s so much you think you should do, or could do, or want to do. It can seem like too much to tackle.
After years of helping van owners achieve success in the camper van and RV rental market, we’ve figured out that some things are more important than others when it comes to renting out your camper van. Understanding insurance? Very important. Fretting over whether or not to offer firewood as part of the nightly rate? Not so important.
To help you get started renting out your camper van or RV, we’ve compiled all of our lessons learned over the years into a handy list of the top ten things you should think about when renting out your camper van.
#1 No One Should Rent Out Their Baby
A lot of RVs are someone’s baby. Babies shouldn’t be rented. In our experience, if you want to rent your RV to make money, you’ll need to think of your RV more as an asset than as a member of the family. If you shudder at the thought of a nick in the paint, or are too particular about how your RV can be used, then renting might not be for you.
#2 Set Clear Goals
Get clear on your goals. Why are you doing this? How much money do you want to make through renting? A little here and there? Or are you trying to cover your monthly payment, and maybe more for upgrades? Define your why, then the how will follow, including a pricing model, calendar availability, and various rental terms.
Example 1: You want to make as much money as possible.
To make as much money as possible, you might set a competitive nightly rental rate and go for a relatively high utilization rate. High utilization rates are often achieved by lowering nightly minimums, such as allowing shorter-term three-night rentals in the high season. This strategy also requires that you forego personal use of the RV in peak rental periods such as summer and major holidays.
Example 2: You want to make a little bit of extra cash, but still use the RV a lot.
If you still want access to your RV for lots of personal use, and only want to make a modest amount of money, you could set a higher nightly rate, and offer week-long rentals or weekend rentals only when you don’t have your own plans for travel.