Buying an RV or any car for that matter from a private seller
requires that you know what you're doing beforehand. The article
below describes that buying an RV from a private sell can actually
be a good thing, we agree with the comments. However, we do stress
that you need to be cautious buying any vehicle from a private
seller, make sure you have the history and the mechanics of the
vehicle checked out.
Buying an RV from a Private Seller
Just as the RV Dealer isn't your enemy - the Private Seller can
be your best friend. They don't have ANY appreciable overhead built
into the sale, other than the cost of their advertising, and/or any
repairs or refurbishing to be done to the RV.
The private seller is usually much more motivated than a dealer.
They only have ONE unit on which to concentrate their efforts. Many
times their sole intention is to rid themselves of the burden of
their no-longer-needed RV.
In RARE cases, they are WISELY selling by owner so they can move
on to a unit more suited to their present needs and desires. This
allows them to sell their RV for a higher price than a dealer would
allow them on trade-in, while still offering a bargain to their
potential buyers.
Purchasing from a Private Seller can work to your advantage
in many ways:
1. Lower overhead = Lower selling price.
2. Higher motivation = Lower selling price.
3. No over-pricing to allow for trade-ins.
4. More complete vehicle history.
5. A more personal transaction.
Because of these benefits, buying an RV from an individual may
allow you to save thousands of dollars over buying a similar unit
from a dealer.
You MUST however do your due diligence prior to the actual
purchase. Any faulty systems left unchecked or untested will likely
become your own burden unless discovered PRIOR to your purchase. In
other words: "Caveat Emptor"... or "Buyer Beware".
For now, let's take a look at some of the advantages of buying
an RV from a private seller.
Lower or NO Overhead Costs
Most individual sellers will incur minimal selling costs when
selling "by owner". Most of these costs will come from advertising
in local newspaper classifieds, Internet advertisements or other
forms of marketing.
When compared to the costs incurred by an RV dealer, the
individual has a major advantage. First of all, they have no
commissions to pay upon the sale. Commissions in the RV industry
are commonly set at approximately 20% of the gross profit.
In other words, if a salesman sells an RV for an average profit
of $5,000 - Then $1,000 of that is going to the salesman as
commission. This is not a concern for the private seller, therefore
sales commission ALONE can be a potential gain of $1,000 or more to
the buyer. (Not to mention the other $4,000 the dealer gained over
his wholesale price)
Also, because of the minimal or nonexistent overhead of the
individual seller, profit is commonly NOT a motive for selling. In
MOST cases, the sellers simply want to rid themselves of the unit.
This usually translates into THOUSANDS of dollars in savings.
While most private RV sellers will try to achieve a RETAIL sales
price when the unit is initially offered, they rapidly tire of the
stresses of the sales process and lower their "perceived" value of
the RV. In other words, when they start the sales process, they
have an unrealistic impression of their RV's value. After dealing
with prospective buyers for a minimal amount of time, they rapidly
become educated on the true value of their RV.
Seriously, think about your own experiences. How many times have
you tried to sell something for a premium price, only to accept a
lower, yet HONEST offer for much less than your original price? It
all goes back to the old saying: "One in the hand is worth two in
the bush." In other words, fatigued sellers WILL accept a bargain
price if the offer is GENUINE. It ends their suffering - so to
speak.
The key is to FIND these fatigued sellers when they are weak.
Just as the predator on the African Plains seeks out the weaker and
slower prey, you must find the weary seller - and strike when they
are at their weakest point. Ruthless -yes... Unethical - no. It's
the law of the urban jungle. Live and prosper by the law, or live
and pay a higher price... still by the law. (I can't believe I just
wrote that)
Higher motivation = Lower selling price
Most private sellers are very IMPATIENT. They easily tire of the
phone calls and missed appointments. Many times they tire of NO
phone calls or ANY appointments to view their RV. This quickly
motivates them to consider any and all GENUINE offers.
Many times these sellers have found an RV that they wish to
purchase upon the sale of their present unit. They worry that if
their RV doesn't sell quickly they'll miss the opportunity to buy
their TARGET unit. This also makes for a very motivated seller.
Most of these sellers realize that if they can sell their RV for
a little more than the RV dealer is offering on trade-in, they will
come out ahead. This is a win-win situation for both buyer and
seller. They are willing to accept a little over wholesale for
their RV, and you able to purchase the same unit for MUCH less than
if it were for sale by an RV dealer.
No Over-Pricing to Allow for Trade-Ins
Hopefully you realize that an RV dealer will ALWAYS take a
trade-in at, or even BELOW wholesale. Also, that same dealer's
"sale price" will nearly ALWAYS be set HIGHER than the actual
RETAIL price of any particular unit. This is done to allow room in
the price to show the buyer a retail price for their trade-in.
We know that there was a time you may have traded a car, boat,
RV or something else to a dealer (of any kind) and thought you
actually received RETAIL on your trade-in.
You DIDN'T - EVER! If you don't accept this for ABSOLUTE truth,
then we have failed in our efforts to educate you in the
dealer/individual sales process.
Complete Vehicle History
Most RV dealers DON'T want you to contact the previous owner of
a used RV. Go ahead and try it... Next time you're looking at a
used RV, ask the salesman if you can contact the previous owner.
You'll be amazed how the salesman can come up with excuses NOT to
contact the previous owner... at least not until the sale has taken
place.
It may be reasons of privacy; it may be against company
policy... it will, however be very entertaining.
Private RV sellers normally have a much different philosophy.
They're TRIHILLED to provide complete records of service work,
maintenance, storage information, etc. If they don't... you might
want to ask a few more questions. This is a good indication of a
negligent RV owner. They may be passing their headache on to you.
Do your homework and ask for as many details about the unit's
history as possible.
A more personal transaction
One of the most gratifying aspects of buying a used RV from an
individual is the personal aspect of the buying process. As a
result of your investigation of the RV, you become intimately
involved with the seller.
Hopefully, the RV you are considering has been the seller's
prized possession. They have loved it and taken care of it. They
have (hopefully) kept complete records on each and every repair,
improvement and service work done on the vehicle.
Selling their prized RV is practically the same as losing a
child to college. In many ways, these conscientious sellers may
seem to be sizing you up as a potential owner of their pre-loved
RV. However, at the right time, and for the right price... They'd
more than likely sell it to a carnival.
Barry Wilder President - Best Rate, Inc.
About the Author
Barry Wilder has been associated with his family RV business for
over 25 years. He is currently the owner of Best Rate Financial
Services, providing loans and refinancing for RVs, boats and
aircraft. They also provide RV and Boat Warranties.