Would You Buy a Motorhome From A Private Party who....
Bought it at auction? just curious guess I could ask him what he paid just wonder why it went to auction.
Forum Discussion
I've bought two MH's from a small local dealer who get's them at auctions in the US. He had been doing this for nearly 20 years ( he just retired) and he had around 7-10 MH's and a couple of dozen trailers/5th wheels in stock all the time. MH units ranged in price from low $200K down to some in the $35K and his prices were some of the best around.
He had a campsite in Florida with his own 5th wheel parked there full time. He'd fly down, scout out the auctions, buy what he liked and have them serviced and or modified down there (new flooring, carpets etc). He'd drive them back to Ottawa (3 -4 day drive - sometimes 3 or 4 at a time with his sales team) and then have a local RV shop go over them again.
He was upfront about what he did and backed up what he sold. (I had a rear jack fail after a few weeks and he had both rear jacks replaced at his expense).
He provided CARFAX reports but did caution that usually only damage was reported if an insurance company was involved and it was not a 100% guarantee.
My current MH was a repo sold at auction where he picked it up. It was a one owner MH with no maintenance records but was extremely clean inside and had some extras added that I believed showed someone did really like and and care for it. CARFAX covered the entire period including the auction and registration in Canada by the dealer. (I had new tires put on (by the dealer), oil changed, coolant flush and an inspection by a local shop).
I still feel sorry for the 1st owner, paying for it for around 8 years and then losing it to the bank.
I also miss the dealership as it is so hard to find a good one that you can trust and truly understands how everything is supposed to work.
I sold my first MH with the full story that it was a repo from a US auction. New owner did not really care, said he has bought cars etc from auctions himself. He still has the MH and has had no major problems.
He had a campsite in Florida with his own 5th wheel parked there full time. He'd fly down, scout out the auctions, buy what he liked and have them serviced and or modified down there (new flooring, carpets etc). He'd drive them back to Ottawa (3 -4 day drive - sometimes 3 or 4 at a time with his sales team) and then have a local RV shop go over them again.
He was upfront about what he did and backed up what he sold. (I had a rear jack fail after a few weeks and he had both rear jacks replaced at his expense).
He provided CARFAX reports but did caution that usually only damage was reported if an insurance company was involved and it was not a 100% guarantee.
My current MH was a repo sold at auction where he picked it up. It was a one owner MH with no maintenance records but was extremely clean inside and had some extras added that I believed showed someone did really like and and care for it. CARFAX covered the entire period including the auction and registration in Canada by the dealer. (I had new tires put on (by the dealer), oil changed, coolant flush and an inspection by a local shop).
I still feel sorry for the 1st owner, paying for it for around 8 years and then losing it to the bank.
I also miss the dealership as it is so hard to find a good one that you can trust and truly understands how everything is supposed to work.
I sold my first MH with the full story that it was a repo from a US auction. New owner did not really care, said he has bought cars etc from auctions himself. He still has the MH and has had no major problems.
