1962 Trotwood Lark 3K

This one looks pretty cute, especially if you go for the woodsy cozy cabin look & feel. I myself prefer the open, light, with lots of windows look. You definitely want to check into the corners, a dim or fuzzy picture can be quite deceiving, no matter the sellers intent. I would ask that they open up the curtains & get some real photos, if it were me. This one does look pretty cute, though.

In the corner, by the stove, it lurks......i would not buy this.

I am going to swim against the current on this one. boholady...I went back and read all your posts. You say "we" are looking for our first vintage camper, but you did not indicate how many people will be enjoying it. If there are just you and a significant other, this Trotwood is worth considering. You said your budget is $5K. This Lark is in the same class as the MUCH COVETED canned ham shaped Shasta Compact. It can be towed by almost anything. Ones this size are fairly easy to re-sell. Trotwood has been making campers since the 40's I believe. The photos are not good. I do not believe $3K firm is really that firm. I'd bet each day it gets staler, the actual price to buy it gets a lot closer to $2500 cash...half your budget. If you have a couple kids that would not be able to take advantage of maybe a child hanging cot, which this might have, I'd say it is too small, but it could be a good entry level cute vintage camper for a couple, and nccamper's tutorial on a paint job could transform the exterior, while just taking a nibble out of the remaining half of your budget. A camper the size of this Lark (1200#-ish) is also going to be the most economical to tow as far as not reducing your mpg the way a 16' camper weighing 50% to 100% more will do. This is one I would personally inspect if within a comfortable drive. I would take my ice pick though, and hope to be pleasantly surprised (while planning on taking advantage of at least the obvious sign of previous leakage in the front curb side corner as mentioned by redhed83402 to drive that "firm" price down to $2500).

My husband and I had a 16' Shasta airflyte up until recently and it was a great size for one toddler and a baby....but not two boy toddlers...as I now have. I wouldn't be able to get them to sleep next to each other on the dinet bunk without waking each other without much re arranging. That said anything is better than a tent!!!!!
We upgraded to a larger 18'9" terry with an upper slide bunk and a huge wrap around dinet...we haven't used it camping so far. But logistically it makes much more sense. I feel you would be comfortable in something with three sleeping areas, especially if you plan on more kids as we do.
The sixties trailers seemed to be ideal for bunk space, and not just using hanging cots.
These trailers are cheaper and a few manufacturers were still using the canned ham shape and wood interiors. I would target those trailers and keep it as light weight as possible. You can find 16' trailers with three bunk spaces that are around 2500lbs or less. Once you load up the car, the kids, fill up with gas and the trailer with water, load firewood, your spare tire, camp gear and propane, a battery system etc, you will be towing over 3500lbs.

Also, you didn't mention specifically if you wanted a bathroom...with toddlers, you know why that is important. I cannot tell you how difficult it was to deal with a freshly potty trained kid and a big trailer on a long trip in the middle of boiling hot nowhere, and always looking for a bathroom quick! We eventually brought his potty along, but were stuck with what was left behind, so we still had to deal with stuff...too gross. And not to mention, a ton of places you expect would have bathrooms, don't. So maybe figure out if that is important to your family to have a bathroom on hand.

Oh, and a shower, I grew up tent camping with a wash basin to bathe in, these out door kids "baths" are ok up to a certain age, then it's just awkward or too cold...etc. and having hot water is always nice when kids are picky...heating up pots of water is time consuming...my boys got so filthy every second of our last camping trip, I finally decided I needed a shower to hose them off with warm water at least on a daily basis...but it depends on where you camp really.

I definitely think you will be able to find something like we did from the mid to late sixties with only a small amount of work needed to get it campable by next season... but bear in mind you need to really focus on your inspection and know your boundaries when it comes to restoration and repairs. Replacing things like water tanks and toilets is easy, but dealing with rot is a whole extra level you don't want to deal with.
Keep us updated with leads!

Something caused the vinyl on the wall above the window to bubble.  Ours was like that when we bought her, and it was definitely  from water.  In fact, even thought the seller said there were no leaks, we viewed her during a rain storm and it was pretty obvious that there was leakage.  When we got her home, I poked the wall covering with a pin and water poured out.  The framing on that end was all rotten.

I bought the camper knowing it leaked as it was only $600. (We are in Michigan) She was a lot of work, but I love her!!  

We're headed to see this one. She sent me a couple more pictures. 3 hours in the car with two little boys is always an adventure.