Mark up on used Motorhomes

[1967bowesj]

Now before I get into this I’m not against dealers/traders making a markup, that’s how business works.
But here’s the rub for this weekend, we started looking/ intelligence gathering as we may be looking for a different layout.
So off we popped yesterday, rough as when we started looking so made our excuses and left that one.
Found a second dealer that had about 3 vans we thought of checking the layout, so off we popped.
Looked round all three, dealer chatty so spent time in an older 2009 Burstner A class.
Not go the garage we wanted but most everything else, was in need of a full weeks cleaning, few easy repairs that needed doing and some more needed cosmetics, all 4 camper tyres had 2011 or 2012 stamps so was in need of a bit money spending on it so wasn’t expecting a great reduction or trade in as it was already lower than most I had seen.
Now here’s the rub, salesman looked in his glasses guide lol, then he said he would check to see what mine goes for online, had looked and it’s between 29995 and 32995, without the extras….to say we was a little taken back when he offered me £20000 for mine.
Would anyone have any firm recent knowledge if this is the mark up in these times?

 

[Simon Meadwell]

Sell yours private and tell him to do one.

 

[1967bowesj]

Sell yours private and tell him to do one.

That’s the way we may go

 

[CazPaul]

It probably is the mark up around ten grand, they have to factor in doing some work on the van, cleaning, giving a warranty, making a profit, overheads, bills, wages etc to pay

 

[Stealaway]

As above
I've think that dealers will work on a 20% markup and consider that any extras don't add value - they only make them easier to sell.

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[Jake Royd]

We bought a 2008 motorhome from a dealer, 5 years ago.
Our first so not wanting to buy privately.
It was stickered at £29950.
After a degree of polite haggling and a throwing in of accessories etc.
We paid £29000 with 2 6Kg gas bottles supplied.
Cash sale.
This would suggest the sort of money off a reputable dealer may allow.
This was before the post COVID boom.

My guess is a dealer at this price level will need to make £5k at least.
Any less and after overheads etc. He's not making enough.
So it suggests he gave the seller about £24000 as a maximum.

 

[Tombola]

I've no problems blem with dealers making money..they are always gonna go for the best deal. We can always walk away.

Think of this...a friend of mine last year had to sell the static they own in Wales as the site was being sold and re vamped...it's was an immaculate van huge quite modren even though a little old.
They sold for 10k to a local dealer that handled the move off site etc etc..

It's now up for sale on a very popular site all in for the first season..36k and it will sell..

 

[Fdhadi]

I think about 10k on a px of 25k. So that’s 10k less any repairs, service, overheads and warranty.

 

[suavecarve]

I m not in shock at those prices.
A deal has to be good for both parties and if it isnt for you then you dont sell yours

 

[Parrot Face]

I just haven't got a clue about dealers profits. We bought a new vehicle for £70,000 and they gave us £38.000 for our Knaus. We kept looking at the selling price for our Knaus and after about a year it was on their forecourt for £32.000. We were really happy with that deal.

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[grasscutter]

Traded my last van in with a dealer. I got £25k ( which I was happy with). I knew it needed two new windows due to cracks. I had been unable to source them due to their odd shape.
Dealer had it out for £39k the following week and it sold with the cracked windows.

 

[PP Bear]

I posted this back in 2013, so 10 years now, when I first dipped my toe into the world of motorhoming. Still have the same van and it’s been, and is, awesome for me. I think if the dealer had shown more willing and offered to do the cam belt and a full service, I’d have shaken on the deal, but glad I didn’t as I definitely got the better van.

2013:
It's understandable that the dealer has overheads to cover, that a motorhome may stand for sometime before a sale occurs and that the chances are you'll pay top dollar. For that you should expect a first class service, an immaculately displayed model, a habitation check and mechanical service, plus a warranty too.

I was looking for an Autotrail Dakota SE and had £35K to spend, so was looking for a 2006 (ish) model as I should be able to cover that with this amount of cash to spend.

I found only 2 for sale within a reasonable distance, one at a dealer and one private. I visited the dealer first in Southampton as they were nearest and viewed the 2006 4 birth SE with 36000 miles on the clock. The dealer told me that I'd get a habitation and mechanical check, but that I'd need to change the cam belt "just to be safe" I asked the price and he said about £200 just parts. When I enquired as to why they would sell me a motorhome for this price without maintenance that was required, they simply replied that they wouldn't cover this in the sale and it's for peace of mind only. The vans age said it needed doing, especially if it had been sitting for some time. There was also no microwave fitted and while it was an SE, there was no extras to talk of and looked tired and unloved. The dealer said that they'd prepare it before i collected it. Asking price £34,900. I info'd the dealer that I would be looking at the private sale the next day and get back to them.

When I visited the private sale, the vehicle was immaculate and was gleaming both inside and out. There was a box full of receipts, manuals and every single bit of history. It was a 6 birth on a 2006 plate, had covered 11000 miles, had the microwave, a solar panel, fitted satellite and TV system, DVD player fitted in the dash, as well as numerous extras they would be leaving in her (leveling ramps, 2xpower cables and connectors, hose and fittings etc), it was exactly what I was looking for. The price was £34,000 and we shook on £31,000. I spent 3 hours at the sellers house, half of which was spent indoors drinking tea and making new friends. The lady then went on to mention that a dealer from Southampton had called her and mentioned that someone was coming to view the van and that he would buy her's there and then on the phone as he wanted to make a sale on the one he held. She refused his offer.

After one phone call back to said dealer to "discuss" his tactics, I paid the lady and have now had a fabulous first year in my wonderful motorhome and I couldn't be happier

I know that dealers need to make a living, but not at my expense. I'm a military man and we train for EVERYTHING, so maybe the sales guys should undertake some form of training too, it might just make a difference to completing a sale or not.

I'll now always look to buy private as the owners are usually proud to sell on their "homes" and display them in their full glory, it keeps the private sales trade alive and you usually save money in the process. You can also buy a warranty if needed for peace of mind.

Read on dealers, I know your not all bad, but there isn't much press for honest ones I'm sorry to say

 

[Wack]

Given how much can go wrong on a 10-15 year old motorhome, from a leak to a full mechanical breakdown it's amazing any dealer would want to retail them

No wonder they want 10k profit in one, I bought mine for a good price in a private sale 2 years ago but it's had a clutch, alternator and a the electrics fixed since then

 

[AndyPK]

Just for information, we sold our van to a dealer for £43,800 and it is on sale for £54,995 on their website…..

 

[Lenny HB]

UK dears appear to work on much higher margins than our continental friends probably due to much higher overheads. But a lot of them still take the micky.

When we traded our last van a UK dealer offered us £40k, our Belgium dealer €60k about £52k, & he said if someone wants it without a warranty they can have it for €62k with a warranty it will be €65k, a week after we traded it was up for sale for €65½k.

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[PP Bear]

Given how much can go wrong on a 10-15 year old motorhome, from a leak to a full mechanical breakdown it's amazing any dealer would want to retail them

No wonder they want 10k profit in one, I bought mine for a good price in a private sale 2 years ago but it's had a clutch, alternator and a the electrics fixed since then

In my 10 years, I’ve had very little fail on the van. Those bit that have failed, are as a result of my learning and caused by me. Normal serving aside.

I needed a new heating element as I was powering up on EHU and left the water heater switched on, BEFORE filling with cold water. By the time the tank was full and I went to bleed the system, the element must have been near glowing red. The rush of cold water, blew the element and shorted out the electrics. Took me a forever to diagnose the fault and then dismantle and replace the element. Now I switch the heater off, fill, bleed and turn it on.

Replaced the shower mixer tap, as during the drain down one year, I forgot to disconnect and drain the shower hose. It froze solid, splitting the mister clean in two

Only other faults have been me replacing the water pump because of scale and reduction in its pressure and minor niggly wiring issues, from the rubbish, useless fitters that put the van together.

 

[PP Bear]

Just for information, we sold our van to a dealer for £43,800 and it is on sale for £54,995 on their website…..

Blimey

 

[PP Bear]

Just for information, we sold our van to a dealer for £43,800 and it is on sale for £54,995 on their website…..

Thats just reminded me of an incident from 1976, when my dad had traded in a mark 1 Ford Escort 2litre Mexico in canary yellow (still pains me today to think about it) for a brand new mark 1 puke orange Ford Escort estate, and the dealer put an extra £300 on the price for resale and my nutter of a step father, went into the showroom and beat the guy up

 

[Roby2008]

Sold my 2013 Miller MH with 98,000 km on the clock for 34k to a dealer in September, which was about what I paid for it, I was happy as the MH had been worked hard and was showing it`s age, Euro 4 emissions etc, and I was able to order a new one, it`s up for 54k on their website, profit is fine, but that seems excessive.
The market is slowing at the budget/mid range and there are many new MH`s on the market in that price range, I am half hoping he catches a cold on the deal.

 

[The Wino]

In the ops case maybe the initial haggling was too polite!. If there's a valuation that seems reasonable in a guide and you're not happy say why. The dealer will have to make a profit on both the sale of the one you're buying and the sale of the one you're trading in otherwise why would they do the trade in . On the purchase it's is the price fair given the market. On the trade in its is the reduction over what you could sell for privately worth it for the ease and lack of any hassle. They're both things you can decide yourself. I don't know what motorhome depot charge to act as agents that's another option obviously as they have no premises and most likely no warranty comeback it should be cheaper.

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[Jim]

Just for information, we sold our van to a dealer for £43,800 and it is on sale for £54,995 on their website…..

That sounds about right to me. Some haggling and maybe he'll gross 10k. Out of that will go a massive chunk of taxes and overhead, as well as risk.

I learned just the other day that a van I sold a dealer cost him many times any possible profit putting right a serious problem that neither of us knew or discovered at the time of selling. The shower tray had been leaking for years and shortly after the new owner bought it, he, along with the shower tray, fell through the rotten floor.

Add all the on-costs a dealer has and you soon realise that 10k profit on a particular van might not be profit at all when spread across the business.

 

[philann]

It’s not about the actual values, it’s all about the ‘cost to change’ and there will be different values for the part-ex depending on which vehicle you are wanting. You might get a better offer on yours, but less of a deal on the new one, or less for yours and a great deal on the new one.
Cash is not the best way to get a good deal, the dealer will make much more in commission if you take a finance package, and will often build some of the into reducing the ‘cost to change’

 

[The Wino]

That sounds about right to me. Some haggling and maybe he'll gross 10k. Out of that will go a massive chunk of taxes and overhead, as well as risk.

I learned just the other day that a van I sold a dealer cost him many times any possible profit putting right a serious problem that neither of us knew or discovered at the time of selling. The shower tray had been leaking for years and shortly after the new owner bought it, he, along with the shower tray, fell through the rotten floor.

Add all the on-costs a dealer has and you soon realise that 10k profit on a van might not be profit at all when spread across the business.

I think the number of MH buisnesses that have gone bust suggests this is pretty true. However it then comes down to whether the trade in value is worth it for the reduced hassle and peace of mind. In a situation like Jim what would happen after a private sale where the buyer has no warranty but knows that at the time of sale?

 

[VXman]

I just haven't got a clue about dealers profits. We bought a new vehicle for £70,000 and they gave us £38.000 for our Knaus. We kept looking at the selling price for our Knaus and after about a year it was on their forecourt for £32.000. We were really happy with that deal.

Thats just means they made a 'BIG' profit on the new vehicle. They will play around with the prices on the selling vehicle and the part ex. If they give you a excellent px then the price on the new vehicle will be higher. They might have sold the new one for £60K but then they would have given you 28K for the Knaus.

I prefer to sell privately for whatever I can get and walk into the the dealer with cash ready to strike a deal.

 

[MisterB]

If 'dealers' are so bad, why are so many of them still in business? My view is that dealers need to make a profit, they don't just have premises to pay for and maintain, they have bills. They have staff to pay, they have pension schemes they must contribute to, they have taxes to pay on profits, accountants to pay, insurances to cover. They need to be able to make profits at good times in the year to carry them over for the bad times in the year.
I am sure there are lots of things I've missed out.

How much profit they need to make is dependent on all those factors. No one is forced to sell to a dealer yet lots of 'us' do !!

As a general principle, let's stop knocking those who continue to support our 'hobby' unless you have a specific bad level of service, someone making profit out of buying and selling is not classed as bad customer service in my opinion.

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[gus-lopez]

Cash is not the best way to get a good deal, the dealer will make much more in commission if you take a finance package, and will often build some of the into reducing the ‘cost to change’

here in spain many vehciles are sold with 2 prices . one for finance & another, higher , for cash. as you cant Actually 'pay' with actual cash over 2500€ now to a dealer it means any sale that isn't finace. .i-e bank transfers