Buying a Van
When you decide to live the vanlife, your van becomes your entire home. And buying a home is a BIG undertaking.
You have to consider size, price, amenities, decor, AND mechanics!
The market for RVs and vans has exploded in recent years due to the popularity of vanlife, and there is now a SHOCKING range of options within a HUGE range of price points.
Read on to learn more about:
Amenities you may want to have/add onto your van
Vanlife vehicle options to consider
Price ranges & sites to shop for vans/RVs
Amenities to Consider
What are the vanlife options?
Buy an RV
POSITIVES
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Fast & easy
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Lots of amenities included
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AC/heating/plumbing/electricity all done for you
NEGATIVES
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Expensive $$$
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May need renovations
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The more amenities, the more to upkeep
Van Conversion
POSITIVES
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Total customization possible
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Include as many (or as few) amenities as you want
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Potentially less expensive
NEGATIVES
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Can be very difficult
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Time consuming
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Scope creep can lead to higher costs
Buy from Current Traveler
POSITIVES
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Can be easy & fast but must stay diligent to find a good fit
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Can find van in specific country
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Often cheapest option
NEGATIVES
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Paperwork in another country to transfer ownership between foreigners can be challenging
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May need some renovations
Start Shopping
Cost Comparison
*These ranges are merely based on my personal research and vary drastically based on vehicle condition
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RVs:
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70s/80s: $5K-20K
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90s/early 00s: $7K-40K
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2005-2015: $30K-200K
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2015-2020: $100K-300K
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Sprinter Van Conversion DIY: $30-60K empty van + $10-40K renos
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Van conversion companies:$30-150K
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Vans from other travelers: huge ranges but on avg $5K-$50K
Sites to Shop for Vans & RVs
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Set saved searches on:
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Craigslist (this is where we bought our Class B Year 2000 RV)
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RVs: RV USA, RV Trader, RV Camping World
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Sprinter Vans: Sprinter Vans Unlimited FB Group, Sprinter Forum, Local dealers
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VWs: tough & costly to find (& not my recommended) but follow groups on social media
Buying From Another Traveler:
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Be patient & stay diligent!
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Ask to join Facebook groups like Overlanding the Americas
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Follow vanlife hashtags and conversion accounts on Instagram
DIY vs. Van Renovation Companies
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DIY Renos: Youtube & faroutride OR other social media accounts
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Research this blog, this blog, or this list for van conversion companies
Suggested To Dos when Buying
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If buying an RV, ask for a full overview of every amenity, how to use them, and inspect quality (electric hookup, plumbing, AC/heating, etc)
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No matter what, get a full mechanical inspection by a trusted mechanic
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Move FAST! Good vans at good prices go very quickly
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Do not put any money down before seeing the vehicle in person
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Don't forget to register your vehicle and get insurance!
Our Van
Choosing
our van
After researching, we decided a Class B RV would be the best size van for us with the right amount of amenities (bed area, shower, toilet, AC/heating, electricity hookup). We found & bought the van on Craigslist almost a year before we left for our travels.
Need help with buying a van?
Contact me!
Shipping Your Van Overseas
Shipping your van/RV overseas can be a very daunting and involved task, not to mention costly. You typically need an agent to help you in the process.
Finding an Agent for Shipping
There are a few options for finding an agent depending on what ports/countries you're shipping from, but they all come at different costs so I suggest shopping around on Overlander Facebook Groups or straightforward google searches, or this company (but quotes from here were higher for us than local agents we found via facebook groups).
Cost of Shipping
We shipped our van via a container twice (other option is called RORO- Roll On, Roll Off about which you can learn more via the link below to Overlander Shipping).
Shipped our van from Panama to Colombia with a shipping partner & it took 2 weeks: $1,100
Shipped our van from Montevideo to Texas with no shipping partner & it took 4 weeks: $4,000
Prices vary by route, ports, RORO vs container, if you can find someone else to share a container with, etc. but the cheapest route is at least $1,000 and the most expensive could be upwards of $6-8K so plan ahead!