RV & Camper Prices vs Inflation

Ozarker

Well-known member
Inflation is real. You can argue what caused it but, the cost of everything has gone up in real terms.

Ask yourself why eggs have doubled or more in price. Fuel costs are basically double what they were, chicken feed has gone up in similar manner, etc.

Whether your wages have gone up at the same rate or not largely depends on what you did during the shutdown to improve your lot or sit at home soaking up benefits while watching TV, doing Social Media, and playing video games. Most people's wages were basically flat and are now starting to rise a little in most cases. Whether wages increase to match inflation or not varies from person to person and their profession.

Regarding prices of Overlanding equipment, part of it is also due to customers demanding added features that older options never had. Part of it is also more stringent government requirements of all sorts. I am not anti-green or anti-safety but, a lot of their Green initiatives have done nothing but drive up costs of products of all sorts, again I go back to fuel costs for my Tacoma which are twice what they were pre-pandemic. This is largely due in my case to Biden's Presidential policies to promote Electric Vehicles, solar and wind power, and similar political policies.

All of this directly impacts the costs of Overlanding trailers, van conversions, and Recreational Vehicles of all sorts. Higher input costs, added features, and related government mandates for improved environmental and energy efficiencies all related directly to more stringent government requirements and related costs add to the mix of higher costs.
Great example of my previous post about economics and political views. Simply misguided.
 
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Sid Post

Observer
This is incorrect. Fuel costs have not doubled. Gas now costs about 50 cents a gallon more than pre-pandemic. Prices dropped early in the pandemic due to low demand, then took a jump when Russia invaded Ukraine. At any rate, prices vary with the global cost of oil and no president or government has much influence. This is easy to research if anyone really wants to know.

I was paying ~$1.79/gallon then, now I am paying anywhere from $2.79 to $3.19/gallon at the moment which is down from the $3.59/gallon I was paying.

My diesel is down to $3.19/gallon from $5.99/gallon. 😮 Wonder why a steak or loaf of bread got more expensive? Fuel costs are a big part of the price of a steak or loaf of bread in the local grocery store. It's not price gouging by the grocery store that eggs went to $6/dozen and are now down to $4/dozen when pre-COVID they were commonly available for ~$1/dozen.

I don't know where you live and get your cheap gasoline but, I live in rural East Texas and have farm property in Oklahoma as well. For me, gasoline and diesel in Oklahoma are a bit higher than the prices above in East Texas.
 

Sid Post

Observer
I notice inflation and rising prices haven't slowed our glutinous consumption.
We love credit debt 🤪

Yes, personal debt levels in general are way up.

Carmax just announced another 25% setback to account for car loans that have gone into default.

[Political commentary is against the terms of use - comments removed]
 

Sid Post

Observer
Obviously, some here are doing fine and don't feel the pinch of rising costs and stagnant wages. Good for you.

[Political commentary removed - against the terms of use]

While still, others are struggling to feed, house, and clothe themselves.

Yet here we are, discussing a first-world problem of travel trailer or recreation vehicle pricing. It's a bit like complaining about poor fuel economy from your MB SL600 or similar status-symbol luxury car.

Yes, my Taxa Tiger Moth was significantly more expensive when I got it last year. Whether it was over-priced or not is an open question but, it takes me to places I would not otherwise be able to go to so, it was a price I was willing to pay and one I could afford. This can't be said of a lot of people though and their aspirational purchases.
 

Sid Post

Observer
I notice inflation and rising prices haven't slowed our glutinous consumption.
We love credit debt 🤪

Yes, some people just chuck common sense out the window. A lady in town I run into occasionally is really proud of the Ford Bronco she bought and that she only had to pay $20,000 over sticker to get it! 😲🤣😲🤔😮

Some people are simply foolish with their "credit".
 

Sid Post

Observer
Wrong again. Avg price for gas hasn't been below $2/gallon since about 2004. Eggs are $3/dozen. Try to keep up.

Again, I don't know where you live but, gas and food prices across the country vary a lot. If you are outside the USA, even more factors come into play.

Gas where I live is cheaper than a lot of places I have traveled. National "average" gas prices don't reflect reality for what I see locally at normal retail pumps where I live. The same can said of eggs at my local retail options. What eggs cost in Ohio, Pennsylvania, or California has little bearing on what I pay in Texas which is currently $~4/dozen at most stores around me. Sure, at some point transportation becomes feasible just like what happens with California produce trucked all over the USA. What the "national" average price for a dozen eggs is at the national level has little bearing on what I pay locally.

And no, I don't believe there is some conspiracy, insider trading, price gouging, or other shenanigans. It is normal market forces in my local region that determine the price I pay locally. What eggs and gas cost a thousand miles away has very little bearing on what I pay locally. And food specifically, I try to shop locally for produce or meat. No Chinese Tilapia or Asian Shrimp on my dinner plate in Texas!

When I lived in Arizona, I don't recall ever seeing gasoline in California for less than $4/gallon, frequently pushing $6/gallon but, I don't use that as a valid data point for my costs to fill up.

Colorado and Minnesota were both a lot more expensive when I traveled there. Gas on my trip to Albuquerque, NM was a lot more expensive there than in Amarillo, TX on the same day (I-40 travel).

Where you live and where I live are apparently worlds apart in terms of the cost of gasoline. Times past, I got eggs for $0.25/dozen. I don't; consider that a valid data point though as most local grocery stores were $0.99~$1.29/dozen.

At this point, I think we can agree to disagree. And I wish you well.

If I still lived in Huntsville, Alabama, my travel trailer would have likely been cheaper there than it was out West at the time but, I wasn't willing to drive out there and spend a few days looking and haggling either.
 

Ozarker

Well-known member
....... During the Trump administration's early days, I got eggs for $0.25/dozen. I don't; consider that a valid data point though as most local grocery stores were $0.99~$1.29/dozen.....
Pre Covid prices...

Nothing really caused the local price of eggs to change.

Our economy does not run out of the White House, the implication that it does is political pundits from all kinds of media.
 

rruff

Explorer
Inflation is real. You can argue what caused it but, the cost of everything has gone up in real terms.
Nope. Not on average.

"According to the Census Bureau, real median household income reached $80,610 in 2023 — up 4% since 2022, when real median household income was $77,540."

Regarding gasoline prices:
651aedc91f36f8a4b70318ce_6441553df58b3314cc20d6c1_Monthly%2520US%2520Real%2520and%2520Nominal%2520Unleaded%2520Gasoline%2520Price.png
 

Sid Post

Observer
Nope. Not on average.

"According to the Census Bureau, real median household income reached $80,610 in 2023 — up 4% since 2022, when real median household income was $77,540."

Where I live, most people don't make nearly that amount of income even with two parents working full time. On the road I live on, about 1/3 of the households are currently on public assistance.
 

anume

New member
A helpful tool for price trends on commodities is the FRED data from the St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank, for instance their data series on eggs:



And this series on "Producer Price Index by Industry: Recreational Vehicle Dealers":



Clearly there's some significant volatility recently and the big question is does it continue or revert to the pre pandemic average on eggs and RVs? Do I have to decide between them to fit my budget LOL?
 

Obsessed2findARuggedHybid

Well-known member
This discussion is so enlightening and educational man this is so much fun.

One point I would like to throw out there to further deepen this string is climate change and it's corelation to inflation.

Just kidding please don't. What's up with all you folks are your trailer winterized and in the garage?
 

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