How to buy a used toy hauler

4x4ord wrote:
Obviously I don't know a lot about your specific situation but I'm thinking if you need to involve a bank in a 6 - $8000 toy purchase you are "paying too much for a well used trailer." I think in many cases used trailers on the dealer lots were almost donated to the dealer when the previous owners traded their old trailer in for a new one. I would have no problem offering 40% off the asking price on a 15 year old trailer. If you get laughed at leave your name and number and try again at the next dealer.

Maybe I actually will try this. I guess I find it so dishonest when someone lists a trailer that is worth $5500-6500 for $9000 that I don't think they'll deal at all. The reason I started this thread is that I really wondered if this is common or not.

I do not need to involve a bank at all, I just have a hard time figuring out what trailers are really worth. There are dozens or hundreds of brand names (although there might be 4-5 companies that make the bulk of them) and no real way to tell what they sell for. The guy who bought my camper from me said he ordered his toy hauler (new) from some place in Michigan and they delivered it to his door over 1,500 miles away because he couldn't find that great of a deal locally. I sold my camper for a fair price and I'm just looking to buy another one for a fair price. I had always thought "high retail" was only for the most pristine of units, but then I see units that are not in terrible shape but definitely need work with asking prices at double or more of their NADA value. Personally I'd rather have one that needs some work and save some money if I had the choice; wheel bearings, grease, brakes, etc., are cheap.

I get the vibe that many dealers are using their own money to loan people more than market value for their units so that they can sell them for inflated prices. In the year 2018, customers have such easy access to information, I find it hard to believe that can be a sustainable business model. Many of them are trying to push their customers to finance. I don't need financing and would be happy to pay cash right now if I could find the right unit. My budget is flexible if I find a nicer or newer unit than I'm looking for, but right now, I'm hoping to find a 2000-2005 or so unit and I'll upgrade to a nicer one in 5-10 years when I have more money.