RV Repair Manual
for the RV Do-It-Yourselfer
Just as the RV dealer isn't your enemy, the private seller can be your best friend. They don't have any appreciable overhead built into the sale, other than the cost of their advertising, and/or any repairs or refurbishing done to the RV.
The private seller is usually much more motivated than a dealer. They only have one unit on which to concentrate their efforts. Many times their sole intention is to rid themselves of the burden of their no-longer-needed RV.
In rare cases, they are wisely selling by owner so they can move on to a unit more suited to their present needs and desires. This allows them to sell their RV for a higher price than a dealer would allow them on trade-in, while still offering a bargain to potential buyers.
Because of these benefits, buying an RV from an individual may allow you to save thousands of dollars over buying a similar unit from a dealer.
You must however do your due diligence prior to the actual purchase. Bring along a pinless digital moisture meter to check walls and ceilings for hidden water damage, an OBD2 diagnostic scanner to check motorhome engine codes, a tire tread depth gauge, and a handheld propane gas leak detector. Any faulty systems left unchecked or untested will likely become your own burden unless discovered prior to your purchase. In other words: "Caveat Emptor"... or "Buyer Beware".
Most individual sellers will incur minimal selling costs when selling "by owner". Most of these costs will come from advertising in local classifieds, internet advertisements, or other forms of marketing.
When compared to the costs incurred by an RV dealer, the individual has a major advantage. First of all, they have no commissions to pay upon the sale. Commissions in the RV industry are commonly set at approximately 20% of the gross profit.
In other words, if a salesman sells an RV for an average profit of $5,000, then $1,000 of that is going to the salesman as commission. This is not a concern for the private seller; therefore, sales commission alone can be a potential gain of $1,000 or more to the buyer (not to mention the remaining margin the dealer gained over wholesale price).
Also, because of minimal or nonexistent overhead, profit is commonly not the primary motive for selling. In most cases, sellers simply want to rid themselves of the unit. This usually translates into thousands of dollars in savings.
While most private RV sellers will try to achieve a retail sales price when the unit is initially offered, they rapidly tire of the stresses of the sales process and lower their perceived value of the RV. After dealing with prospective buyers for a minimal amount of time, they rapidly become educated on the true market value of their RV.
Most private sellers are very impatient. They easily tire of phone calls, missed appointments, or having no inquiries at all. This quickly motivates them to consider any genuine offers.
Many times these sellers have found an RV that they wish to purchase upon the sale of their present unit. They worry that if their RV doesn't sell quickly, they'll miss the opportunity to buy their target unit.
Most sellers realize that if they can sell their RV for a little more than the dealer is offering on trade-in, they will come out ahead. This is a win-win situation for both buyer and seller: they accept a little over wholesale, and you purchase for much less than dealer retail.
An RV dealer will almost always take a trade-in at or below wholesale. That same dealer's list price will nearly always be set higher than actual retail to allow padding room to show a buyer an inflated trade-in allowance.
Most RV dealers prefer you don't contact the previous owner of a used RV. Private RV sellers normally have a much different philosophy. They are thrilled to provide complete records of service work, maintenance, storage information, and equipment upgrades. Asking for detailed documentation helps identify conscientious owners versus negligent ones.
One of the most gratifying aspects of buying a used RV from an individual is the personal aspect of the transaction. You get direct insight into how the vehicle was loved, maintained, and stored throughout its lifespan.