Best RV Loans

Our top pick for recreational vehicle (RV) loans goes to Alliant Credit Union. It offers a variety of competitive RV loan products for a borrower who plans to live in their vehicle either occasionally or full-time with fast funding.

Though membership is required in order to obtain one of these loans, becoming a member is easy: you’ll just need to be an employee of (or retire from) one of Alliant’s partner companies, have a family member who is already an Alliant member, live in certain communities, or be a member of certain partner organizations. If none of these apply to you, you can simply support Alliant’s partner charity and you’ll be eligible for membership.

RV loans through Alliant Credit Union are available to both part- and full-timers. While many lenders only offer loans to those who use their RV recreationally, Alliant accepts applicants who plan to live in the vehicle full-time.

Loans are offered up to $400,000 with repayment terms as long as 20 years. Rates are competitive and range from 5.09% APR to 5.54% APR. There are no prepayment penalties or fees involved with an Alliant RV loan. Refinance loans are also available to qualified applicants, and both original and refi loans are offered to borrowers in all 50 states.

Same-day funding is possible in many cases, and loan pre-approval is available if you’re still shopping around.

As a membership-based banking institution, there is some information that Alliant does not publish online. For instance, they don’t specify things like down payment requirements for RV loans or loan-to-value (LTV) limits for refinancing. Also, potential borrowers are not able to rate-shop without joining the credit union.

Getting approved for a competitive loan can be tough if you have poor credit or a past bankruptcy. Through Southeast Financial, however, borrowers with bad credit aren’t just accepted—there’s an entire loan program dedicated to them.

The Credit Challenge Program offered by Southeast Financial offers to connect borrowers with credit scores as low as 550 to banks willing to offer them RV loans. Past bankruptcies are allowed as long as they’re discharged, with stable income requirements of only $25,000.

Recreational vehicles accepted for collateral can be as old as 15 years and loans are offered up to $1,500,000. Repayment terms range from 60 to 240 months, and there is no penalty if you pay off the loan early. Loans are only available for recreational vehicles, however; if you live in a park model or in a motorhome full-time, this loan isn’t for you.

In order to connect a poor-credit applicant with a loan product, Southeast Financial will look at past installment loan history. This means that if you haven’t had an installment loan before—or if it wasn’t repaid as agreed—you may have trouble getting approved (or snagging a lower rate). On that note, Southeast Financial does not publish partner rates when it comes to non-prime loans, though it does offer to reduce your rate down the line once creditworthiness has been established.

Bank of the West, also known as Essex Credit, was founded in the U.S. in 1874. This bank offers highly competitive interest rates and a variety of flexible RV loan products to customers in all 50 states, as long as they have a good credit score (specifically, a score of 680 or higher). For creditworthy borrowers, this lender provides access to rates starting as low as 4.74% APR (up to 10.54% APR).

RV loans through Bank of the West are available from $10,000 all the way up to $2 million, with repayment terms ranging from 48 to 240 months. Loans are very inclusive as well and are offered for a variety of different vehicles and uses.

For instance, RV loans are offered to both part- and full-timers whereas many other lenders only offer loans to recreational owners. Loans include a variety of recreational vehicles such as Class A/B/C motorhomes, fifth-wheels, travel trailers, pop-ups, truck campers, and even certain horse trailers. Park models and tiny homes are some of the only exclusions.

Financing is available to both new and used vehicles from model year 2011 onward. Mileage limits are 60,000 for gas engines and 100,000 for diesel engines, whether you’re buying used or refinancing. Down payments range from 10% to 30%, depending on the purchase amount, and added expenses—such as taxes, title fees, warranties, and loan processing fees—are rolled into the final loan, as long as maximum LTV limits are met.

Since the loan being offered by Bank of the West is contingent on collateral, pre-approvals are not available. Loan approval can take one to three business days before you’ll get a credit decision, and then there is an additional wait of 9 to 12 business days for RV loan applications to be processed—so it’s definitely not the fastest lender around.

It’s also important to note that there are fees involved with a loan from this bank. There are no application fees or prepayment fees, but Essex Credit does charge loan processing fees.

If you’re looking for a competitive RV loan that offers quick funding, LightStream is the best option. This lender—which is part of the Truist family—can provide RV loan funding as soon as the same day you apply.

Loans through LightStream are offered starting at $5,000, enabling borrowers to purchase smaller or more affordable recreational vehicles than many other lenders will allow. LightStream will only lend up to $100,000, however, and repayment terms are limited to between 36 and 120 months.

Interest rates range from 7.99% APR to 17.14% APR* with autopay, depending on the loan amount, repayment term, and borrower’s creditworthiness. An auto-pay discount of 0.50% is also offered. There are no prepayment penalties or fees to worry about with a LightStream RV loan, either.

If you want to save even more, LightStream also has a Rate Beat Program, which offers an interest rate 0.10% lower than a competing lender. Certain terms apply (you must have been approved for a loan with the same terms no more than two business days earlier, for instance), but this gives borrowers a great way to snag even lower rates.