Dealership Mark-ups for Used Motor Homes

billsenick wrote:
I didn't know Bush made a recession !!!:S

Now you know.

MM.

I didn't know Bush made a recession !!!:S

gonesouth wrote:

Conclusion? NADA is great for comparing theoretical values of coaches you may see as equivalent, but there is no substitute for poking around in the market to find out what your dream coach is actually selling for.

Great post. I've used NADA low retail for years to shop, but used it along with watching how long comparable used units would sit for sale.

My "nutshell" summary for people who want the simple answer for RV shopping is to try to get a price at NADA low retail with no options. Oversimplification but it at least keeps people from falling prey to inflated dealer prices.

For cars, I've found that clearbook.com has pretty darn good pricing information on used cars if there is enough data points for it to use. I wish there was something like that for RVs. I'd pay to subscribe to it.

Back before the Bush recession in 2007-2009 the market was a lot more stable and two guys did an analysis of NADA values vs available sold values from PPL. They determined that there was a significant discount for units with no slides, and also made other conclusions that I think meant that most dealers seemed to buy used units at 20% less than NADA wholesale.

Another conclusion that is still valid is that the NADA guide is still great as a source of MSRP for used units.

Next is that the value of options is highly variable, so if you want something particular look for it, and if you find it you may get the option very inexpensively.

A third is that the used 'book' values are all calculated, and based on predefined amounts of depreciation per year. So, every coach with an MSRP of $100K after 3 years comes out at $50K!

However, since then the market has rolled around quite a bit and there is still a lot of volatility. For example, I bought my last Beaver from a dealer at 60% off NADA and sold it privately 2 years later for about the same discount off NADA.

Conclusion? NADA is great for comparing theoretical values of coaches you may see as equivalent, but there is no substitute for poking around in the market to find out what your dream coach is actually selling for.

Tom N wrote:
Dealers have wholesale invested in their used units and sell those for retail......mostly. Both values are in the dealers NADA guide. Ask him to see his.

Oddly enough, at the Tampa show, I spoke to a buyer, from one of the big names south of you. He told me that last few weeks of auctions used A's were bringing about 20% below book wholesale. As many others have clearly explained, there is absolutely no reason to believe that you have any inside knowledge as to how well, or poorly, a dealer bought a used unit you are interested in. They may of paid 100% of currently published wholesale, or ended up paying significantly less.

As a rule they don't seem to want to talk selling price but trade in and monthly payment. Or you can have the one like the salesperson at Lazy Days who told us they didn't want a personal check for the full amount, since they made their money off the financing. We ended up buying the same 40QSH Phaeton, but ours was new, instead of a year old with 6,000 miles. Ours, from another dealer, came with a full factory warranty and was $20,000 less than their used one.

All I can add is this. It seems nobody ever figures in what the dealer does to the unit in preperation to place it on the sale lot. (Of I understand-every single unit that anyone has ever traded in has been in perfect condition). I know, everybody says that theirs was perfect. Sad truth is, there has never been a perfect trade in, shoot, I have never seen a perfect new one. Every unit that goes thru our shop (even straight from the factory) we have had to do something to it, before placing it on the sale lot.

Seems the average MH gets about $7000 worth of parts/labor. The average trailer gets about $2000.

To answer the original question. NO!!!!! There is no real formula of figuring markup/markdown on RVs. Or cars/trucks/boats/ETC.

Effy wrote:

et2 wrote:

Effy wrote:

et2 wrote:

Effy wrote:
I can't see how that kind of blanket math is used. I imagine selling a trade really depends on what kind of deal was, or is to, be made. They will price it just like any other unit - competitive to what similar or same units are selling for. They can only charge what the market will bear. If the same unit is selling 25% less somewhere else, theirs will sit.

Isn't that what they said? :h

no

I see, so your "they can only charge what the market will bear, vs "whatever the traffic will bear" is a more precise explanation . :R

Did that make you feel better?

And to answer your question um no. Did you read op's post? He said he heard that used RV market follows a 25% increase. The answer is no. I wasn't responding to a previous poster. What part aren't you getting? If you wanted to reference someone else's post, try including in yours. Otherwise we have no idea what you are talking about. If I said something similar to someone else, who cares? Maybe I was typing and got caught up doing something before I posted it and someone said something similar. Does it make you feel better to point that out? You need that sort of validation? Man, some of you guys would rather troll on here to pick apart other's posts than actually be helpful. This forum compared to others has the worst population of grumpy, one-uppers and forum critics I have ever seen. Maybe you should try your hand at editing instead of bothering the rest of us with wasted drivel.

You're correct, I was in reference to the other you posted right after. So my apology is in order. It happens, I'm not perfect. Sorry it got you all worked up for nothing.

I would compare the price listed in NADA with the dealers price. Consider the condition of the unit and decide if the dealer seems to be getting a fair profit.

Tom N wrote:
Dealers have wholesale invested in their used units and sell those for retail......mostly. Both values are in the dealers NADA guide. Ask him to see his.

Not true. Read my previous post. MOST dealers will have less than wholesale invested. FYI, NADA and Blue Book are NOT an accurate reflection on actual values on RV's. Doug