RV Ownership Continues To Climb

Above, The Beast at the Cedar City KOA in Utah. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

It was only a short ten years ago that the RV industry (along with everyone else) experienced the Great Recession. Sales of new RVs plummeted and 15 companies filed for bankruptcy in 2008 or 2009 (the recession officially started in December 2007). These included Monaco Coach, Fleetwood Motor Homes, Country Coach, Travel Supreme and Rexhall RV.

Today, the RV industry is booming.

According to the SportsDay section of the Dallas News:

It won't be long until schools close doors for the dog days and families begin hitting the road on summer vacation. 

While some will look to the high country for cooler weather or the beach for some fun in the sun, others may stay closer to home and visit a state park or national recreational area. Either way, many will take to the road with their own home away from home in tow. 

Recreational vehicles are all the rage these days among adventuresome types looking to get away from it all. And they aren't your grandparents' campers, either. 

Many of today's RVs are equipped with slide-outs to make them more roomy, a garage for power toys, satellite HDTV, GPS, Wi-Fi boosters, surround sound, showers, bathrooms, generators and other nifty amenities that allow campers to slumber beneath the stars without leaving their creature comforts behind.

Dealers are feeling the love, too. A consumer survey conducted by researchers at the University of Michigan shows the number of RV-owning households was around 8.9 million in 2011. That number now exceeds 10 million by some estimates, according to Kevin Broom, director of media relations with the Recreation Vehicle Industry Association.

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