A recreation
vehicle (RV) is a vehicle that combines transportation and temporary
living quarters for travel, recreation and camping. There is an to fit
every taste - from rugged sport utility RV's to luxurious motorhomes
- and an RV to fit every budget, with most priced between $4,000 and
$400,000. Interest on most RV loans is tax deductible as a second home.

Quick
Facts
-
An
RV is a vehicle that combines transportation and temporary living
quarters for travel, recreation and camping.
-
Two
main categories of RVs are motorhomes (motorized) and towables (towed
behind the family car, van or pickup). Type A motorhomes are generally
the largest; type B motorhomes or van campers are the smallest and
type C motorhomes generally fall in between. Types of towable RVs
are folding camping trailers, truck campers, conventional travel trailers
and fifth-wheel travel trailers.
-
The
annual retail value of RV shipments is $14 billion IN 2005.
-
There's
an RV for every taste and budget. Prices for new RVs are typically
$4,000-$13,000 for folding camping trailers; $4,000-$26,000 for truck
campers; $8,000-$65,000 for conventional travel trailers; $48,000-$140,000
for type C motorhomes and $58,000-$400,000 for type A motorhomes.
- Factory-to-dealer
shipments reached a 27-year high in 2005, rising 3.9% over the previous
year. A total of 384,400 RVs (motorized and towable) were shipped in
2005. During December 2005, RV wholesale shipments increased 12.4% over
the same month a year prior.
-
The
state of Indiana is the largest state producer of RVs, with 63.8%
of all RVs made in 2004, up from 58.0% last year.
- Nearly 8 million
American households own an RV.
- 1 out of every
12 vehicle-owning households in the United States owns a recreation
vehicle
More RV's are owned by 35-54 year olds than by any other age group.
- The recreation
vehicle industry supplied approximately 100,000 RV's and Emergency Living
- Units to the Gulf
Coast for victims of the 2005 hurricanes.
- More that 384,000
new RV's were shipped to dealers in 2005, the highest total in 27 years.
Indiana is the
home of the RV industry
- More than 63% of
all recreation vehicles made in the United States in 2004 were produced
in Indiana.
- Elkhart County,
Indiana, produced more than half of the nations RV's in 2004.

- Indiana companies
build RV's that range in price from around $3,000 to more than $750,000.
Out of the 50 states, Indiana ranks 8th in retail sales, with Indiana's
RV dealers selling to consumers across the country and beyond.
- The RV industry
creates jobs for more than 60,000 Hoosiers and contributes around $65
million in taxes to Indiana governments each year.
- Indiana is home
to more than 200 privately owned campgrounds totaling more than 35,000
sites. A significant amount (42%) of campground patrons come from outside
Indiana, bringing with them $320 million tourism dollars each year.
- Camping is also
available at 25 state parks & reservoirs.
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