Anyone trade-in a travel trailer?
08-16-2018, 10:08 AM
#21
Blunt
Thread Starter
I usually sell stuff on craigslist but in this case I didnt want to deal with a bunch of nitpickers and not get much more than what I would get on trading it in.
2 years ago I bought a 2011 Rockwood Ultralite 2604 rear living floorplan. Its 29ft total from tongue to rear. We have used it until about 2 mos ago. It had some delamination on the front driver side window and water was starting to come in the bedroom. Also the awning was ripping, the shower was leaking but not terribly bad. What did it for me was leaking from the delamination and I decided to trade it in. They gave me 9k on trading it in sight unseen. I thought they would offer me less because of the condition it was in.
I bought a 2019 Grand Design Reflection 297rsts. 34ft total from tongue to rear. MSRP was 47200 and I got them down to 33842 before my 9k trade in. It was paid off. I went back to the same dealer that sold me the first one. I ended up financing $26500+3100(extended warranty)OTD after trade in and my payments are only 263 a month. I found out that they sold my old trailer for 14k. Even though they made no profit on my new one, they still made money on my trade. I'm not against any business making money as long as they give me a fair price. I could have sold it for 10-11k as it sits but again I didn't want to get nitpickers timewasters and not having their financing ready since it was paid off. So I felt it was better off to off it for them to deal with it.
In your case since your trailer is 30 yrs old, you're better off selling it because no bank will not finance a 30 yr old trailer. You'll get rid of it.
2 years ago I bought a 2011 Rockwood Ultralite 2604 rear living floorplan. Its 29ft total from tongue to rear. We have used it until about 2 mos ago. It had some delamination on the front driver side window and water was starting to come in the bedroom. Also the awning was ripping, the shower was leaking but not terribly bad. What did it for me was leaking from the delamination and I decided to trade it in. They gave me 9k on trading it in sight unseen. I thought they would offer me less because of the condition it was in.
I bought a 2019 Grand Design Reflection 297rsts. 34ft total from tongue to rear. MSRP was 47200 and I got them down to 33842 before my 9k trade in. It was paid off. I went back to the same dealer that sold me the first one. I ended up financing $26500+3100(extended warranty)OTD after trade in and my payments are only 263 a month. I found out that they sold my old trailer for 14k. Even though they made no profit on my new one, they still made money on my trade. I'm not against any business making money as long as they give me a fair price. I could have sold it for 10-11k as it sits but again I didn't want to get nitpickers timewasters and not having their financing ready since it was paid off. So I felt it was better off to off it for them to deal with it.
In your case since your trailer is 30 yrs old, you're better off selling it because no bank will not finance a 30 yr old trailer. You'll get rid of it.
For your delamination problem, you're talking about bubbles on the exterior walls right? I've seen that before, doesn't look like fun to repair. I think I'd like to stick to one with the aluminum siding. Easier to remove and fix myself, and easier to replace strips if there's any damage... Not many of those with slides though. But I'm also still on the fence about a slide. Kinda need one to have room for a playpen but it's one more thing to break and maintain. We camp often so that weight hanging off the side over time might cause problems. Never had one so I really don't know, I've just been reading a lot about broken slides, leaks, bent supports etc. And they're super expensive to fix. Can't do it yourself either because you need a forklift to remove them from the body...
08-16-2018, 10:14 AM
#22
Senior Member
... I'm also still on the fence about a slide. Kinda need one to have room for a playpen but it's one more thing to break and maintain. We camp often so that weight hanging off the side over time might cause problems. Never had one so I really don't know, I've just been reading a lot about broken slides, leaks, bent supports etc. And they're super expensive to fix. Can't do it yourself either because you need a forklift to remove them from the body...
I'm with you BB. Our current TT has no slides, and I'm not sure I'd want one if we/when we ever upgrade.
I remember camping near Christina Lake, BC a few years ago when the 5th wheel at the site next to us had a problem with a slide that wouldn't extend. The owner had to call a mechanic that arrived several hours later (from Grand Forks, I believe) and cost $400 to fix.
08-16-2018, 10:40 AM
#23
Senior Member
Thanks. Yes I'm not talking about trading in my current one, that will definitely be a private sale. I'm talking about possibly trading the NEXT one I buy down the road and what I would be in for because I'm trying to decide if I should by the new trailer cash or just finance it.
For your delamination problem, you're talking about bubbles on the exterior walls right? I've seen that before, doesn't look like fun to repair. I think I'd like to stick to one with the aluminum siding. Easier to remove and fix myself, and easier to replace strips if there's any damage... Not many of those with slides though. But I'm also still on the fence about a slide. Kinda need one to have room for a playpen but it's one more thing to break and maintain. We camp often so that weight hanging off the side over time might cause problems. Never had one so I really don't know, I've just been reading a lot about broken slides, leaks, bent supports etc. And they're super expensive to fix. Can't do it yourself either because you need a forklift to remove them from the body...
For your delamination problem, you're talking about bubbles on the exterior walls right? I've seen that before, doesn't look like fun to repair. I think I'd like to stick to one with the aluminum siding. Easier to remove and fix myself, and easier to replace strips if there's any damage... Not many of those with slides though. But I'm also still on the fence about a slide. Kinda need one to have room for a playpen but it's one more thing to break and maintain. We camp often so that weight hanging off the side over time might cause problems. Never had one so I really don't know, I've just been reading a lot about broken slides, leaks, bent supports etc. And they're super expensive to fix. Can't do it yourself either because you need a forklift to remove them from the body...
08-16-2018, 11:38 AM
#24
We just bought our first TT almost a year ago. I have never traded in. I just thought this information might be relevant to your original question.
We bought a 2013 Keystone Premier Bullet. The model originally sold with an MSRP of over $40K. The unit was in excellent condition when we purchased it through a consignment service last October, 2017. A 4 year old travel trailer in excellent condition sold for $18K on a consignment lot. I know the owners had to come out of pocket to pay off the loan they had because we had to wait an extra week for them to get the lien released on the title. How much, I'm not sure. Also, obviously, the consignment lot had to make a little bit on it too.
So basically in 4 years, the unit depreciated over 50%.
We bought a 2013 Keystone Premier Bullet. The model originally sold with an MSRP of over $40K. The unit was in excellent condition when we purchased it through a consignment service last October, 2017. A 4 year old travel trailer in excellent condition sold for $18K on a consignment lot. I know the owners had to come out of pocket to pay off the loan they had because we had to wait an extra week for them to get the lien released on the title. How much, I'm not sure. Also, obviously, the consignment lot had to make a little bit on it too.
So basically in 4 years, the unit depreciated over 50%.