Did you know you can rent your RV and make some extra cash?
As much as you’d love to be in your RV and on a fun road trip adventure, it’s likely that for the majority of the year that it’s parked in your driveway or storage.
But did you know that instead, you can make money from renting your RV?!
You can seriously make some great money from renting out your RV and turn it into a full-blown business.
Whether or not it will be a profitable plan is up to you. Luckily, we are going to share our best tips for renting your RV in this article to ensure you make as much as possible from it.
Let’s dive in:
Is It Profitable To Rent Out Your RV?
Is there anything better than making money from something that you aren’t using?
RV owners don’t typically use their RVs all summer, or even all year, and RV rental companies could help boost your income by putting yours to good use!
As exciting as your business idea sounds, you need to make sure that you’re going to be making a profit.
Rent Your RV Out Easily
To start off, you need to sign up to sites for good advertising to rent your RV out- easily and quickly! We’ve got suggestions down below to get you started.
You could list on a few different sites to ensure more bookings, but make sure you don’t double book yourself!
You will need information, such as your RV type, the make/model, the year of the RV and your contact information to get started.
When you advertise your RV, you need to show it off – take good photos, add a detailed description and make sure you’re honest.
When Is The Best Time To Rent Your RV?
RV renters will likely want to take your RV for a spin in the summer months.
Many travelers go in the summer because of the weather, plus that’s when kids are out of school and parents can get time off from work.
This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t use your RV all summer long- but you should plan your family vacation and camping and then schedule when you’ll be renting out your RV.
Where To Rent Your RV (Where To Advertise)
RVshare
Features: RVShare is the largest peer-to-peer rental marketplace, so you should be able to get plenty of potential renters.
To figure out how much you could rent out your RV for on RVShare, they have a handy rental estimator to give you a rough idea.
You get to choose who rents your RV, as people can send you a message about them and when they want to rent it. They will have a profile that you can check out as well.
RVShare has an insurance policy and they also offer Rental Insurance where the renters cover the cost. It covers $1 million excess liability coverage, State Statutory Limits, and a $1,500 deductible.
There is also a security deposit on each rental that the renters have to pay, which is extra protection!
RVShare has 24/7 Roadside Assistance, which covers towing, tire changes, lockout help, battery help, and emergency supply service.
Fees: It’s free to post your RV on RVShare. We found the fees a bit confusing to understand on RVShare, but there is a commission rate that you will have to pay at the time of booking.
To find out how much the commission rate is, you will have to log into your Dashboard and click on Account Information.
The commission rate is based on the amount of revenue you have booked- this is what we found a bit confusing.
After the rental, there are 10% commission rates for things like tolls and damages that may have been incurred.
Types of RVs you can rent: There are lots of different types of RV that you can rent on RVShare, such as:
- Class A, Class B, and Class C motorized RVs
- Fifth-wheel trailers
- Toy haulers
- Travel trailers
- Pop-up campers
Outdoorsy
Features: Outdoorsy is an RV rental marketplace, which is perfect! Their site is easy to use and has many benefits to sign up for.
One of the many pros of using Outdoorsy is its referral program. If you refer a friend, you will get $75 off your next trip, and they will get $50 off their first one.
The amount of money you can make depends on the type of RV you have and your location- they have a calculator where you can get a feeling of how much you could potentially make.
Outdoorsy has 24/7 Roadside Assistance, verification of all drives, and $1 million insurance coverage (which covers the RV renter, RV owner, and the vehicle).
They also have 24/7 customer support via email, phone, and online chat.
Fees: To list on Outdoorsy is completely free. For completed listings, it’s an 80/20 split.
Outdoorsy earns 20% and you get 80% of the total purchase price, including any add-ons the renters choose to have.
Types of RVs you can rent: There are so many different types of RVs that you can rent on Outdoorsy, such as:
- Camper van
- Pop Up Camper
- Small RV
- Class B RV
- Fifth-Wheel truck
- Class A RV
- Class C RV
- Trailer
Airbnb
Features: You’ve probably heard all about Airbnb by now, the hugely popular property rental site.
But did you know all the things people can list on Airbnb?
If you take a look, there are tons of really cool and unusual places that you can stay. There are tree houses, gypsy caravans, pods, and more!
There are RV rental options that you can provide- for example, if you have a property with good privacy that people may like, you can rent out your RV as a “staycation” single-family campground.
Alternatively, you could offer your RV for a country road trip experience. This is a popular option for renters who have more people coming along. Perfect for big families!
Fees: When a booking is confirmed on Airbnb and you receive RV payment, they take a 3% service fee that’s automatically deducted from the host payout.
You may have to pay other fees as well, such as if you offer experiences.
Types of RVs you can rent: The types of RV seem limitless, as long as everything is legal!
It’s definitely in your best interest to look on Airbnb before listing your RV, as you can get a good idea of what you should be charging and see what benefits other RVs offer. Check out your competition!
Extra Considerations
When you plan on renting out your RV, you need to think about all the extra little details as well. As the RV owner, you are responsible and must prepare.
Unfortunately, it’s not just as simple as posting your RV for sale- it’s a vehicle that someone will be driving, which means that it needs to be safe for them and others on the road.
Liability Coverage
This is all dependent on where you are listing your RV to rent out, as this will likely be included in the rental agreement. Insurance coverage of any kind is a sound business practice- it will help you in the long run for renting out your RV frequently.
Liability Coverage is something that you will need to make sure that you have, as it will cover your 3rd party liability.
Roadside Assistance
This could be covered with where you are listing your RV for rental, but if not, you should be prepared.
Roadside Assistance is a must because the last thing you want is for your renter to drive your RV miles and miles away, only to have it break down with no way of getting back home.
Not only that, but it will surely give your renters more peace of mind to know that they won’t be stranded if something goes wrong.
Cleaning Costs
Whenever you’re renting out a vehicle or house, you need to think about keeping things clean!
You’ll probably want to keep costs low by doing the cleaning yourself, at least to start with.
But you may find that you need special equipment or supplies to clean around your RV.
When you get more frequent bookings, you may find that you don’t have enough time between customers to clean it yourself.
We suggest putting aside money for cleaning costs so that you can get someone in quick to clean and have an easier turnaround.
Tax Implications
As always, you need to think about the tax implications when you make some money on the side.
Don’t be put off from renting your RV or earning money with other side hustles because you’ll have to pay taxes!
You may need to set aside some of the earnings for taxes, but your increased income will mean you have some profit to go around.
Speak to a tax professional to find out your expected taxes and make sure that everything is set up properly.
“Extras” To Boost Your Rental Fees
If you want to boost your rental price, there are benefits to increasing your expenses with some niceties and providing renters with a better experience.
There extra features that you can add on to get more money and add value to your RV.
Put yourself in the shoes of your potential renter. What sort of necessities or niceties would they be interested in?
When we go camping, we’re interested in the size of the fridge and if the radio works- we want fewer trips for groceries and music to keep us company.
But other RV renters may want good curtains to block light or have privacy- others may want storage bins under the bed to help with the camping clutter.
You could provide extras that are practical or fun things like cards and games. Have a look through the RVShare and AirBnB- get a feel for what kind of things are being offered.
Final Thoughts On How To Make Money Renting Your RV
If you are an RV owner who’s letting their RV sit around, you are sitting on the chance to make extra cash!
You can make a good amount of money from renting out your RV and use that money to fund your own travels!