A Tale of Two Trailers

In the last post, there was a brief mention of price concerning vintage travel trailers. For those just entering this highly specialized market, it can be hard to recognize fair prices. As far as we are aware, there isn’t a definitive guide specifically for vintage units.

NADA can be a good place to start for baselines. You can also check all the various web sites where you might find RVs for sale, including those of dealerships. Even in the search for vintage units, you don’t want to rule out the dealerships. You never know where you might find that nifty gem that speaks to you. (Or how far away it might be, for that matter.) What is the point of all this searching? To help determine a reasonable price for your future vintage trailer. Granted, the definition of reasonable can be a highly personal thing. The monetary value of an item gets down to how much someone is willing to pay for it. There are some individuals who think nothing of paying an outrageous amount of money for something if they feel it’s highly prized by society at large. It may not matter to them that the item in question saw its glory days many years ago. Others pinch their pennies so hard they scream. They seem to have a knack for unearthing things at bargain basement prices. And let’s not forget the perceptions of sellers. There will be many occasions when buyers and sellers will be miles apart concerning the perceived value of an item.

So, where do you really start? You have to establish your budget up front well before beginning your search. Especially for vintage trailers, you not only need to establish what you’re willing to pay actually buying it, but how much to spend after, making it the RV of your dreams. Unless you’re in the business of restoring and immediately selling vintage trailers, rid yourself of the notion you’re making an investment. If you own something for many years after restoration, depreciation will probably rear its ugly head. Keeping in mind this is something you want for your own pleasure may help in minimizing the likelihood of overpaying for something.

Now, on to the Tale of Two Trailers… (It’s a mini epic about gaining perspective.)

Once upon a time, there was a middle aged couple who decided they wanted an RV. They looked at just about every unit they could find on the internet. Any dealership or private seller within half a day’s driving distance was visited. They looked at RVs of many classes and sizes, even 5^th wheels. (Mostly out of curiosity on the last one, since these RV dreamers didn’t own the right kind of tow vehicle.)

When it was finally decided only an Airstream would do, the search primarily narrowed to the internet. With the internet the world is our oyster, isn’t it? No, not really. It just created many interesting conversations about the probability of looking at a possible prospect three states away. But before a consensus was reached the prospect sold. Poop! Well, it may have been too small anyway.

Then, one day… “Wait a minute… here’s one only four hours away. Interesting, it’s at a dealership.” One said to the other as they handed the laptop to their loving and patient spouse. “Hmm… it might be promising. It’s possible to look at it and be back home in the same day.” The other replied. Still, it wasn’t the only Airstream for sale. Since the couple wanted to make sure they found their best choice, the site was saved for later.

They kept coming back to the listing. (Trailer A) The photos were squinted at many times. The meaning of “As is” was discussed more than once. Finally, the dealership was contacted. It sounded like it was in reasonable condition for something that was more than 30 years old. A refundable deposit to hold it could be made until it was convenient for the couple to look at it. A gut feeling (perhaps a wee bit of queasiness?) made itself felt. After this conversation they went back to the internet and found another Airstream that had just been listed by a private seller in the same metro area as Trailer A. It was also a Sovereign, but one year later. And $900 less. (Another gut feeling!) A phone call revealed someone was already coming to look at it that day. The next day the wife received a text that Trailer B was still available.

What to do? The couple wasn’t sure they wanted to work with a private seller. However, they weren’t getting a definitive answer that Trailer A was road worthy enough to be towed more than 200 miles. One night before going to bed, the couple decided to go look at Trailer A the next day. No money was leaving their hands until they knew what they were really receiving for it.

Having previous experience with Magic Internet Cameras, they weren’t too surprised to discover Trailer A was in terrible shape. They were prepared to do a bit of work since the project force was strong with them. Still, they wanted to finish and enjoy their RV before they died. Ripping something down to the chassis didn’t interest them. Needless to say, Trailer A also wasn’t road worthy. The tires were too old, the axles looked wobbly, and the electrical hitch wiring/tow connector was gone. The couple didn’t want to spend extra to put the poor thing on a flatbed trailer. It also didn’t help the dealership couldn’t come down much on asking price. (See above, before our epic began. Bear in mind perception can be influenced by many factors. Trailer A was a trade-in.)

The wife still had the phone number for Trailer B, which was about half an hour away. Thank goodness for motivated sellers. They were willing to make the time to show it on short notice. While it was a 1979 time capsule getting a bit rough around the edges, Trailer B was intact and still had many of its desirable original equipment, such as the rock guards covering the front windows and the Zip Dee Awning. (If an Airstream was once equipped with these, it can be difficult and/or expensive to replace them.)  All the hitch equipment was intact, and everything was in decent enough shape that Trailer B could be towed to its new home.

Ultimately, the couple decided to purchase Trailer B. One would assume this is the happy ending. Courtesy of an evil troll who attempted to purchase the trailer while both parties were trying to finalize the transaction, things became a bit uncertain for a little while. It turned out the troll lacked understanding of a certain magic document needed to make the trailer sale legal. (No, it’s not a bill of sale.) The troll had to retreat back under their bridge. The sellers, a young couple in the process of buying their first castle, were anxious to earn some extra money. A week later, they made the 7 hr. drive (round trip) to deliver the trailer. So one epic finally ended favorably, and another is beginning.

The moral of the story? While you might not have the opportunity to do same day comparison shopping, make sure you have more than one possibility lined up. Try to keep them all within your desired price range. Having more than one potential trailer to look at takes the pressure off buying something you know isn’t right for you. By some fortunate twist of fate we made the choice to look at Trailer A first. It certainly made a difference in determining if the price of Trailer B was fair.