$20K for one in almost new condition sounds more than fair... especially in California. Do take it to a dealer and have it inspected to see that no plumbing froze over the winter and that the water heater and furnace work correctly (they should, but spiders really DO like to live near propane and either might need cleaning and adjusting as well as having the webs blown out.
Now, Can you afford it? If you are making a maximum contribution toward your 401K and have savings for your kids college tuitions, and don't have a lot of debt - why not? If you can't sell your house because your mortgage is $200K higher than what you could now GET for it... not a great purchase. If you're already just barely getting by... this isn't the time to take on more debt or even deplete your savings by paying cash.
What ELSE do you do? I've seen people try to maintain six to ten expensive hobbies. We can all fall prey to thinking we MUST have the biggest barbecue grill or wear $1100 shoes, or drive his and her Hummers, etc. Are you going to have to give up something else you value to have this trailer? Will your REALLY give it up?
You never get your money back out of an RV. Take that to the bank. Your friend has already learned that lesson. An Airstream is not an investment... but it CAN be a big money saver. If you normally travel and stay in hotels, staying in a small trailer and cooking "at home" can make your vacations a lot less expensive even after paying the fuel cost to tote a trailer around. If you can visit your in-laws and not have to stay IN THEIR House, it might save your sanity and your marriage! If you go to any kind of tailgate parties, or enjoy sports events or concerts... true sanity might mean going to the trailer afterwards for dinner and a nap while all of the nutjobs sit in stalled traffic for 3 hours trying to get out of the parking lot. Surfing, camping, riding bicycles, kayaking, hiking - all make good companion hobbies for Airstreaming - and camping in the Airstream is comfortable and economical way to enjoy these hobbies more often.
In short, if you're really a "camper" already and are getting tired of tents and air mattresses, or do a lot of weekend trips that you KNOW you will use your Airstream instead of a motel, it makes sense. If you're willing to vacation in Lake Tahoe instead of Tahiti - it makes a LOT of sense. If you've got a lot of people who visit YOU and you can put them in your guest house instead of the living room, that's great too.
Makes some lists:
- Plans for activities that WILL be done using the Airstream
- Amount of money that you can legitimately expect to save using the Airstream vs. motels, resorts, etc. Pull activities you've done over the last 2-3 years that could have been Airstreaming activities.
- Cost of storing the Airstream (check your zoning you might not be able to keep it at your home)
- Cost of furnishing & modifying your Airstream - my current one has a new bedspread $100, a custom table lift $50, extra shelves for the pantry $40, and for my next project I'm replacing the venetian blinds with the rather pricy rollup blinds they have in the CCDs for around $600 (just hate to dust venetian blinds every week).
Do your homework and think this decision over carefully. There's no point in losing your husband over this... (well even that depends!)... but if you can make good cogent arguments in favor of the Airstream, he'll probably buy in. Here's one: You and your buddies can have the house for a ginormous super bowl party... while a girlfriend and I spend the whole weekend touring quaint shops in Napa Valley. (or fill in some other activity like antiquing, museums, arboretums, etc. that will just make his skin crawl.) If he falls for this, hide all of the breakables, and put plastic sheeting over the carpets before you turn the house over to the boys.
Good luck and happy trails with either choice you make. ALSO if you don't get this one... trust me there will be another one that's even better in your future.
Paula