What to Put in an RV Co-Ownership Agreement

Most shared-RV arrangements start on a handshake. That works right up until the first real disagreement, whether a damaged slide-out, a missed payment, or an owner who suddenly wants to sell, and then "we never actually decided that" becomes a problem. A written co-ownership agreement isn't about distrust. It's about settling the predictable questions calmly, in advance, so a bad weekend never turns into a bad lawsuit. Below is a clause-by-clause checklist of what belongs in one.

This is a practical guide, not legal advice. Use it to show up to your attorney already knowing what you want, which by itself saves time and money.

Ownership shares and how title is held

State exactly who owns what percentage and how the RV is titled, whether jointly, through an LLC, or otherwise. The ownership split drives almost everything downstream: how fixed costs are divided, how votes are weighted, and what a departing owner's share is worth. Spell it out in numbers, not "we're all equal-ish."

Scheduling and fair access

The single most-used part of any RV agreement is the scheduling rule. Decide:

• How trips are requested and approved, and how far ahead they can be booked.
• How peak weeks like holidays and the best of summer are rotated or capped so no one corners them.
• What happens to unused time, and whether owners can trade or gift their slots.

Costs and who pays for what

Separate the standing costs (insurance, storage, registration, loan) that are split by ownership share from the usage costs (fuel, dump fees, wear) that follow whoever travels. Name the cadence for collecting money and where it's held. If you want a deeper treatment of this, see our guide on how to split costs when you co-own an RV.

A reserve fund for major repairs

Put the reserve fund in writing: how much each owner contributes, how often, and what it can be spent on. Define the threshold above which a repair needs a group vote versus what any owner can authorize in an emergency. This is the clause that prevents a surprise transmission bill from becoming a surprise argument.

Damage, cleaning, and return condition

Define the state the RV should come back in, with tanks emptied, fuel topped, and the interior cleaned, plus what happens when it doesn't. Decide who's responsible for damage caused during an owner's trip versus normal wear, and how an insurance deductible gets allocated. A short, agreed standard here heads off the most common day-to-day friction.

Insurance and liability

Record who carries the policy, what coverage is required, and whether guests or additional drivers are permitted and insured. Note that every owner must keep the coverage current. This protects the group if the worst happens on the road.

How decisions get made

Will routine choices be majority rule, and big ones like selling, refinancing, or a major upgrade require unanimous consent? Designate whether one owner acts as the managing owner for day-to-day items. Clear decision rules keep the group from stalling every time something comes up.

Exit: selling, buyouts, and default

Plenty of groups skip this clause and later wish they hadn't. Cover:

• How an owner can sell their share, and whether the others get first right of refusal.
• How a share is valued at exit.
• What happens if an owner stops paying, including the cure period and the remedy.
• What happens on death or divorce, so the share doesn't land with someone the group never chose.

Keep the agreement living, not buried in a drawer

An agreement only helps if everyone can find it and the records line up with it. SharedRigs lets your group capture these rules, print a formatted summary for your lawyer, and then run the bookings, expenses, and reserve fund against the very terms you agreed to, so the document and the day-to-day finally match.