Forum Discussion

aquavita's avatar
aquavita
Explorer
Jun 16, 2014

Trading / Selling

I am looking for some tips on trading in or selling our travel trailer.

We are wanting to trade in our first travel trailer and upgrade to something bigger with a bunkhouse for our kids. We have found the unit we want and are very firm on the exact model we want to buy. The problem is I am not finding many dealerships near me that have it. We could drive to the midwest again like we did with our first one, but then I feel that we would not get as good of a trade in value as where we live in the Northeast (plus the price of gas, etc).

Right now we own a 2012 Cruiser Viewfinder 24-sd in excellent condition. We we were offered $19,200 as a trade for our 2012 this past weekend, but the guy doesn't have any units that we liked at the time. I am pretty sure I won't get anything close to this if we buy in Ohio or Michigan. We want to buy a 2014 Coachman Catalina 303FQB.

I have considererd looking into consignment or private sale, but have never done anything like that. Is it really difficult to sell on your own? How much of a "cut" does a dealer usually take for consignment?

(this is my first post on here so let me know if I did anything wrong)
  • xteacher's avatar
    xteacher
    Explorer
    Jun 16, 2014
    You'll get more money if you sell it yourself, than if you trade it. The dealer's got to make money on it when they turn around and sell it. We put "as is, with the seller given the opportunity to inspect" in our Bill of Sale.
  • 2012Coleman's avatar
    2012Coleman
    Explorer II
    Jun 16, 2014
    dyb wrote:
    Trading/selling ? you likey will lose either way. the problem with selling to a private party is if something breaks shortly after purchase you'll be getting calls as to why you didn't inform the buyer of possible problems, even though at time of sale you were unaware of any problems. What is peace of mind worth. I sold mine back to the dealer I purchased from. He told me up front he he would have to make money on it.
    Disagree - you always put Sold AS-IS on the receipt/bill of sale. For example: The undersigned buyer accepts receipt of this Bill of Sale and understands that the above vehicle is sold in “as is” condition with no guarantees or warranties, either expressed or implied, for the vehicle. Better yet - use This Bill of sale
  • dyb's avatar
    dyb
    Explorer
    Jun 16, 2014
    Trading/selling ? you likey will lose either way. the problem with selling to a private party is if something breaks shortly after purchase you'll be getting calls as to why you didn't inform the buyer of possible problems, even though at time of sale you were unaware of any problems. What is peace of mind worth. I sold mine back to the dealer I purchased from. He told me up front he he would have to make money on it.
  • 2012Coleman's avatar
    2012Coleman
    Explorer II
    Jun 16, 2014
    If you are smart enough to avoid the scammers - and most people are, then advertise it on Craigs List.
  • aquavita's avatar
    aquavita
    Explorer
    Jun 16, 2014
    I'm not really sure. If they normally don't carry that model is that an option?

    The dealership that gave us the high trade in value for our 2012 said he was going to call and see if he could. However he said it could be a 6-10 week wait. My husband would like to complete the purchase of the new trailer in the next few weeks.

    I am waiting on two dealerships to call me back right now.
  • MackinawMan's avatar
    MackinawMan
    Explorer
    Jun 16, 2014
    1. Locate the closest dealer to you that has the unit you want (understanding that this could be several states away of course)


    2. Negotiate a "ballpark price" for the unit to make sure it's near what you can/want to pay


    3. Then bring up your tradein...keeping in mind that most of the time the more they give you for your tradein the more you're going to pay for their unit.

    The reason I brought up negotiating a "ballpark price" BEFORE mentionting your tradein is because it gives you a place to start when trying to negotiate the price for theirs and tradein value on yours.

    Dealerships will give you a ballpark value on your tradein over the phone if they want your business. Keep in mind that it ultimately will depend on the condition of your unit and the dealership actually seeing it and inspecting it, but at least by getting that ballpark tradein value you'll know whether it's worth your time to take that next step with them.

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