By Marilyn Odendahl, Truth Staff
modendahl@etruth.com
ELKHART -- Wholesale shipments of recreational vehicles sank in September to numbers not seen since the recession of 2001, raising fresh concerns about how much further shipments will fall before the industry hits bottom.
A total of 15,400 motorhomes and towables were shipped in September, a 42.5 percent drop from the September 2007 shipment numbers, according to the Recreation Vehicle Industry Association. Not since November 2001 when 15,300 units were shipped has the industry seen comparable totals.
Moreover, shipments of travel trailers, the units that buoyed the industry in recent years, fell to 8,600, the lowest September total since 1992.
Fall and winter months typically turn in lower shipment results as retail sales slow on the dealers' lots. Consequently, shipments could continue to decrease through the end of the year, squeezing dealers in particular.
"Everybody believes the RV industry will come back but nobody's for sure when," said Mark Bowersox, director of the Recreation Vehicle Indiana Council.
In September, 1,700 motorhomes were shipped, a 62.2 percent drop from the 4,500 that were shipped one year ago. Shipments of towables totaled 13,700, down 38.6 percent from the 22,300 reached in September 2007. Year-to-date, total RV shipments have fallen 24.6 percent to 211,900 in 2008 from 281,100 in 2007.
To try to stem the decline, or at least cushion the industry, the RVIA and the Indiana association are looking for ways to loosen the financing that banks have been reluctant to give in this market, Bowersox said. In addition, the national organization, like the automakers, is planning to approach the federal government to find out what help is available and what the options are through the $700 billion bailout.
"We can't sit by and let this downturn continue without doing anything," Bowersox said.
Monroe City RV, a family-owned dealership near Vincennes, weathered the recessions of the early 1990s and 2001, but this time, said co-owner Millie Hansen, the economy is "much worse."
The repeat customers are not visiting as often, choosing to keep the units they have for a little longer than they usually do, and the consumers who are serious about buying do much more comparison shopping before making a decision.
To survive, Monroe has started offering rental units for longer terms to appeal to snowbirds or construction workers who use the RVs as living quarters.
The dealership is "hanging in there," Hansen said, and during these times, that is about all an RV sales lot can do.
Whether shipments will return to even the 2004 total of 370,100 units is unknown. Bowersox wondered if previous years' totals might have been artificially high because of the relaxed lending practices that approved loans for many, including those with weak credit scores.
The tight market has forced some dealers in Indiana to close their doors, Bowersox said.
An RV dealership near Monroe is going out of business but Hansen is confident her company will stay open.
"I like the RV business," she said. "It's a pretty good business. It has its down parts but most of the people are good to work with."