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Trade-ins... when did things change?

pacificnw
Explorer
Explorer
So I am in the market for a new MH and I have a 10 year old MH that I thought might be of some interest to dealers selling new MHs. Not so. When did this change? Did I miss something?

Here are some parameters... NADA retail valuations on my MH range from low 28k to average 32k. Reasonably, or so I thought, an RV place could sell my unit for a minimum of 30k. Its in nice shape.

I have spoken to 3 dealers and not one has suggested a trade in value north of 18k. One said maybe 12k. Another said no one is lending money for a 10 year old MH. Are they stupid or simply lying?

In my estimation they would serve their potential clients better if they simply said... "we don't want your trade in."

Am I wrong? And when did all this change?
42 REPLIES 42

pacificnw
Explorer
Explorer
Report... things are working out the way I had originally hoped they would. I did find a dealer that was interested in my trade, gave me a valuation that was close to my expectations and made me a great deal on the new MH I was interested in. The NADA info was useful for reference purposes. My initial assumptions/expectations turned out to be close to reality. It just took a couple "go-rounds" for things to settle out. Maybe the stars lined up just right, who knows.

Thank you all for your input and advice.

fortytwo
Explorer
Explorer
Try trading, or selling, a gasser - even in mint condition - with over 10 years and over 100k miles. Possible - have done it - but you have to find a buyer who recognizes the useful value of the unit, and is looking for one like it at a good price. That's a very, very small target in the buying pool. If you don't get lucky your MH will simply deteriorate away -- tires get older, seals get compromised, rubber gaskets rot, fluids go bad, etc.

A dealer, new or consignment, has to keep the lights on. If you want the new unit most times you're going to take a hit disposing of your old one.

There's an early 2000's 40 foot Mountain Aire DP sitting on the road at the front of the storage lot where I keep my MH. Been there with a "For Sale" sign for over a year. Thousands of cars pass every day. Holding on for what you believe your unit is worth is a huge gamble.
Wes
"A beach house isn't just real estate. It's a state of mind." Pole Sitter in Douglas Adams MOSTLY HARMLESS

Bill_Satellite
Explorer II
Explorer II
The RV is not worth what you think it's worth, it' worth what someone is willing to pay for the RV. If you want the best price then you need to sell it yourself and find someone who also believes it's worth what you believe it to be worth. You can then go to the dealer and see if you 2 can come to an agreement upon what the RV they are selling is worth. If you still can't see eye-to-eye then the dealer won't sell and you won't buy.
It's all a game of dollars. The dealer is in business to make many dollars to pay all the bills involved with being a dealer. If he buys your RV for retail and sells his RV for wholesale, how long do you think he will be in business?
What I post is my 2 cents and nothing more. Please don't read anything into my post that's not there. If you disagree, that's OK.
Can't we all just get along?

Hikerdogs
Explorer
Explorer
pacificnw wrote:
I am not seeking 30k for a trade-in. Like any reasonable owner I am seeking a fair valuation so that I know what its worth. That way one can see how much room there is between what it could potentially be sold for and what the dealer is offering. Profit is what keeps dealers in business. Fair pricing is what keep customers coming back. I am sorry but a 12k to 15k profit is gouging.


I think the offer of $18,000.00 is within the realm of reality. As mentioned very few banks will lend money on a motorhome that old. That means all the money the dealer spends will be out of pocket sitting in inventory until it sells for cash. That could be only a few weeks, or it could be several months.

We had a similar situation when trading in a 12+ year old motorhome. It was in perfect condition, but had over 100,000 miles on the odometer. We visited several dealers, and the best offer by far was a little over 60% of the supposed NADA retail.

We saw it advertised a week later at about 80% of the supposed retail. It was sold within a month, and I doubt the new owner paid the asking price.
Hikerdogs
2013 Winnebago Adventurer

DiskDoctr
Explorer
Explorer
bclinton wrote:
What is funny with some dealers...they are asking 10% more for the used trade ins than I could find a new one for. Their answer after I questioned that was always....the used market is great....


Used costs the dealers more because they are already "completely built" - unlike so many of the new RVs that are not finished or working properly when they hit the lot 😞 LOL

John_Joey
Explorer
Explorer
pacificnw wrote:
... Another said no one is lending money for a 10 year old MH. Are they stupid or simply lying??


This was the case when I bought my first Class A in 2008. If you're just using the MH as collateral then a bank will not loan money. If on the other hand you're using your good credit score, or home equity then there is no problem. Of course cash is always king 🙂

Now you know why some RV owners always have those nice new rigs. They trade them in every 5 years because they still have value and their payments won't go up that much.
There’s no fool, like an old fool.

Bill_Satellite
Explorer II
Explorer II
OmaDonna wrote:
Question - don't want to make the same mistake twice. Looking to upgrade from a 2015 Coachmen by Forest River 404RB purchased new that had $50k worth of options, the biggest being an upcharge for a 400HP Chassis versus the standard 340 hp, (which we paid too much for, that was the mistake) So WITHOUT the upgraded engine, low retail per NADA (which I understand is not the greatest) is $136k, avg is 165k. I am told by dealer that "trade" value is $117k per a "quarterly NADA report" they get? Anyone? Giving me $175K on trade-in, but I'm thinking ok if you say "trade value" is only $117k, then $58k is all you are giving me off MSRP which is only 13%, which is not enough. Am I looking at this all wrong?


I think you are looking at it just right.
What I post is my 2 cents and nothing more. Please don't read anything into my post that's not there. If you disagree, that's OK.
Can't we all just get along?

bclinton
Explorer
Explorer
What is funny with some dealers...they are asking 10% more for the used trade ins than I could find a new one for. Their answer after I questioned that was always....the used market is great....

OmaDonna
Explorer
Explorer
Question - don't want to make the same mistake twice. Looking to upgrade from a 2015 Coachmen by Forest River 404RB purchased new that had $50k worth of options, the biggest being an upcharge for a 400HP Chassis versus the standard 340 hp, (which we paid too much for, that was the mistake) So WITHOUT the upgraded engine, low retail per NADA (which I understand is not the greatest) is $136k, avg is 165k. I am told by dealer that "trade" value is $117k per a "quarterly NADA report" they get? Anyone? Giving me $175K on trade-in, but I'm thinking ok if you say "trade value" is only $117k, then $58k is all you are giving me off MSRP which is only 13%, which is not enough. Am I looking at this all wrong?

fpresto
Explorer
Explorer
NADA is only a guide and a poor one at that. When used for cars and trucks it can give a rough idea because there are thousands sold or traded every day so there is something to go by. With a typical RV how many of that exact same make/model are sold on any given day/week/month? Not nearly enough to give a valid baseline.
USN Retired
2016 Tiffin Allegro 32 SA

hoosiermark
Explorer
Explorer
Nice to see that finally people are talking about net profit. Having the money tied up, having other similar inventory, lack of demand, potential for repairs, time of the year, dealer marketing strategy, etc all play a roll in price new or used. The dealers make offers based upon making a profit, pure and simple. If they can turn 10 units and make $100K, why mess with 30 units to make the same $100K. When I was a banker, we used to price our loans on our asset mix. if we had a lot of car loans we raised our rates and lowered them on other loans that we needed to have a balance in our portfolio. We were a small bank trying to make a small profit, not trying to take advantage of anyone. Same for many RV dealers, large or small.

Ralph_Cramden
Explorer II
Explorer II
tderonne wrote:
I'm seeing $21,100 for low retail on a 2006 Hurricane 31D. Wholesale is a bit less than 90% of that, a bit over $18,000. Seems like the dealer is right where they ought to be.

2006 Four Winds Hurricane 31D NADA value



If something low books for $21K, in black book or subscription NADA (not online version) the wholesale is closer to $13.8K not $18K
Too many geezers, self appointed moderators, experts, and disappearing posts for me. Enjoy. How many times can the same thing be rehashed over and over?

valhalla360
Nomad
Nomad
With trade-in, you are trading away money for making the deal easy.

Also, you didn't say what you are buying. If you were locked in on a $250k MH, they would probably offer you a little more (but not give you as big of a discount on the new unit).

If they don't know for sure what you are buying, they don't want to scuttle the profitable new unit sale by using up their negotiating margin by giving you a big trade-in value. If they give you full retail and then you buy a bottom of the line $50k unit, they would be taking a loss or worse have to backtrack on the trade-in value.

Used units are a crapshoot for dealers. They often have hidden problems that aren't found because they have 15minutes to look it over and find if anything is wrong. They often don't match with what is selling, so even if the NADA is realistic, they may wind up sitting on it for a year or just auction it off on the cheap. They still need to spend time and money getting it ready for sale.

I still haven't hear you say what the "trade-in" NADA value is.
Tammy & Mike
Ford F250 V10
2021 Gray Wolf
Gemini Catamaran 34'
Full Time spliting time between boat and RV

ROBERTSUNRUS
Explorer
Explorer
🙂 Hi, trade-ins are just a number game. Usually a dealer will give you about half of wholesale. A decent dealer will make repairs, fully detail and clean the trade-in, new tires, new brakes, and whatever it takes to make a legal sale of a used vehicle. This costs money. Now I can make you a decent deal on a new unit and give you next to nothing for your trade. Or I can give you a lot for your trade and sell you a new vehicle at full list plus bogus charges to add up my profits.



I was in the tool business. A customer looking for a new tool box was a big deal. The customer's trade in would be a Craftsman set that cost $150.00 brand new. My customer wants a $3,000.00 tool box. I would offer him $200.00 for his old box and sell the new one for list price. Or I could give him $50.00 for his trade in and give him a $150.00 discount on the new box. Either way he still paid the same price and I still made the same profit. But almost always the inflated trade in price made the customer happy and sealed the deal. Like I said it just a numbers game.
🙂 Bob 🙂
2005 Airstream Safari 25-B
2000 Lincoln Navigator
2014 F-150 Ecoboost
Equal-i-zer
Yamaha 2400