Selling a caravan to a dealer, but who?
Hi,
We’ve decided to give up caravanning, just too many other conflicting priorities. We have a 2020 Adria Adora Isonzo, in great condition with extras. It is 8.25m long, and is the 8 foot wide version, so not necessarily a beginner’s caravan.
But it’s proving challenging to sell it. Private ads in various online media haven’t worked, and we’ve had it on sale or return at the original dealer now for 2 months, and nothing. It seems there is a glut of pre-owned caravans, as the Covid lockdown buyers now look to exit the hobby.
Has anyone any experience of the various ‘we buy any caravan’ type dealers? Largely being online, I’m wary of possible scams, so interested in any successful transaction stories.
thanks
Ian
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Yes, I did it some years ago. Price agreed in advance but not high, driver came to collect caravan, and money was in my bank account before he took it away. When he got back to base his boss phoned and squealed, said there was damp in one corner and he wanted some money back from me. I declined.
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I don't think it is just your caravan that is difficult to sell as the market is heavily overstocked.
Last June I sold my showroom condition 5-6 year old Eriba to an Eriba main dealer as I could not sell it the time frame needed privately. Over the previous 15 years I'd sold each of my 3 Eriba's at a profit, but not the last one, and "lost" £4K over the 6 summers I'd owned it. The dealer went on put it up at an inflated price and took 9 months to sell it.
I would try your main dealers as they should know exactly what your van will sell for and give the best price. I doubt you will like it though.
Colin
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Ian, it is very difficult to sell caravans and motorhomes at present as dealers’ forecourts are overflowing with them. Things have changed dramatically in the last year or so. Trying to sell by brokerage could be a very long winded job. Unless you’re happy to wait and take your chances on prices dropping further, I suggest you ring as many dealers as you can and seek a cash sale. If you succeed, you may get a few thousand £s less but the deal will be done. A dealer will put the money in your bank and will wait for you to check online that the money is there before taking the van away. Some of those ‘we buy any van’ types have been trading for years and some are actually well known dealers.
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Irrelevant for you I am afraid. It was an Eriba caravan sold back pre Covid to a specialist company for those caravans, 150 miles away but advertising in Club magazine.
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Ian
Earlier this year, due to some, hopefully, sortable mobility issues, we decided to sell our five year old motorhome. We just didn't think we could get the use out of it that the investment and ongoing costs warranted in the coming year. We went through all sorts of scenarios. Dismissed selling it privately as I was concerned the financial aspect. Did contact one of those companies that advertise as being willing to buy motorhomes for cash. The one we tried said sorry they have too much stock which sort of set the alarm bells ringing a bit. Eventually we went back to the dealer we purchased it from and who had serviced it. They made us an offer over the phone and honoured that when we took the van in which whilst not generous was reasonable and in the end it was all done and dusted in a few days. Since selling it at the end of May I have been keeping an eye on it and it looks as if it has only been sold this week so the market does seem a bit slow. So that is my story.
The view seems to be that there is a lot of stock out there, some of it new unsold models from 2023/24 so it seems a difficult market at the moment. Selling to a dealer is probably the easiest method but I think you have to be prepared to take a knock on the price. When we made the decision to sell we wanted the process to be quick, not drawn out. I will never know whether I got a good deal but looking at what is happening I think I did OK.
David
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It is a buyers market for most things at the moment. The rapid post Covid boom turned into an equally sharp post boom downturn. It is possible there will still the usual post election consumer spending bounce, although that is now in doubt given the lunatics trashing the town centres over the past week. Do as David suggests and don’t look back.
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"Wow"!!! i think in your case "size matters" I have a Coachman 7.3 mtrs long standard width, if i was to purchase an 8m+ van firstly i would have to look at how i could accomodate this on my current hard standing and even with a mover would i be able to manouvre this up my drive, i guess i would also have to plan more carefully my routes when touring whereas now i am more of an hitch up and go type person, and lastly cost, looking on line your caravan would have cost in the region of £20k new and i guess you are looking for a similar price, probably out of reach for a vast number of people. Some 12 years ago i paid £10k for my Coachman and even then i remember looking at it somedays and wondering why i had forked out such a large sum for something that probably sat on my drive for 6 months of the year, i am sure that some folk who have looked at your van have similar thoughts, good luck with sale though.
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Thanks for the comments. To be fair, I haven’t really noticed the size difference in length or width, compared to when I had a van same size as yours. But that extra 6 inches width really feels a lot when you’re inside the van.
When towing, the extended vehicle mirrors are still wider than the van so are a useful indicator. But I agree some country lanes are a bit tight.
A chink of hope now. The dealer where I’d placed it on sale or return has now taken a deposit they tell me, so fingers crossed this goes through.
Ian
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That’s good news. Hope it works out.
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So the dealer has had your caravan for two months but hasn’t paid you for it? That strikes me as a one sided business deal.
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ET
I suspect its a Commission Sale where the dealer is selling on behalf of the owner. In those circumstances the van owner wouldn't get any money until the van has been sold, less any commission the dealer is charging. Selling a van this way usually means the owner gets a better price than just selling it directly to the dealer. Things do take time to sell. My motorhome, which I sold back to the dealer in late May has only been sold this week, I think things are slow at the moment.
David
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That’s how brokerage works. The dealer advertises the van and attempts to sell it on the owner’s behalf but you/owner retain ownership until it’s sold. The dealer then takes an agreed fee for selling it and the owner usually receives more money than if he’d sold to the dealer for cash. There’s nothing one sided at all.
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Dealer has no risk and can’t lose but caravan owner can. That’s one sided to me
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How can the van owner lose? He benefits from the advertising and forecourt facilities of the dealer and doesn’t have to deal with scammers. He can also take the van away if he changes he mind.
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It's the way boat sales within marinas have been operating for as long as I can remember - indeed, if you're a permanent 'resident' within a marina, you are prohibited from selling privately and have to go through their brokerage.
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Not really the case. It depends on how quickly the seller wants to sell. If its urgent they can sell privately or direct to a dealer. If selling to a dealer they are going to get way below the forecourt price. If the seller is not in a particular rush he can come to an arrangement for the dealer to sell it on his behalf. Its an arrangement that can suit both side as the dealer does not have to invest in buying the van and the seller generally gets a better price, but not until its sold. For motorhomes there is a company called Motorhome Depot who will sell a motorhome on behalf of the owner. They do all the advertising, viewing arrangements and finance. When its finally sold they take a commission.
David
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…..and they also run Caravan Depot. They will do brokerage or cash sale.
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