Best Strategies for Selling a Class B RV Privately Near Seattle

[jimforjim]

Hi all,

We've got a Mercedes Sprinter Class B that we've decided to sell. We're located near Seattle, and the Blue Book value of the RV is $105K or so. We'd much prefer to do a private party sale, rather than sell to a dealer, for obvious reasons. I would be interested to get others' suggestions on best places to advertise, thoughts on marketing/photos, gotchas to avoid, etc. How long does it typically take to sell an RV if the price is fair (I've seen some really unrealistic prices on some classified ads)? Thoughts on pricing?

Thanks, Jim

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

Since this is a request for advice rather than an actual ad, I've moved it to General Discussion so others can reply.

If you are interested in buying this coach, please contact the owner directly via a private Conversation. This section is NOT for sales inquiries.

 

[Kirk]

Most folks find that RV Trader get wide coverage and generates a lot of interest as long as the RV is reasonably priced.

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

Different buyers may be looking at different aspects as key criteria, so provide lots of photos, both general views and details like dashboard, battery compartment, water valves, fridge interior, etc. Include plenty of details too, such as:

• Battery size, amp-hour capacity & age
• Fresh & waste water capacities
• Tire age & mileage
• Any optional features

If the advertising space is limited, Summarize the main points and offer to email additional photos & details on request.

RV Trader (RVT) is the top venue for advertising a private sale. No tricks, just shows your ad to a wide audience.

You can also get a lot of views using Facebook Marketplace or your local Craigslist(s), but they also draw a LOT of bargain hunters, tire kickers and scammers. You may not find it worth the effort.

Beware of agents who contact you with an offer to sell your RV quickly and at some wonderful price. They rarely do that, but once they establish they are a selling agent for your RV they can demand a commission on any subsequent sale simply by claiming the buyer saw their ad but then contacted you on his own. I recommend ignoring all such unsolicited seller offers.

Consignment sales can be great if you don't want to deal with inquiries from lookers & tire kickers while waiting for a qualified buyer, but select the consignment agent carefully. All too many will put your RV on their sales lot but do little to encourage a sale. If it's an RV dealer, they generally give their sales people more incentive to sell one of the dealers RVs than the consigned one and your RV gets ignored a lot. There are some highly regarded ones, though, e.g. PPL Motorhomes. I've heard that NIRVC and National Vehicle are decent as well.

 

[jimforjim]

Many thanks for your responses. They make a lot of sense, and are along the lines that I was thinking, so it's good to get some confirmation.
Thanks again, Jim

 

[RV_Lee122]

One of the best pieces of advice I read was dont quickly discount a lower offer right away after listing it. People turn away offers and then wait months for another one to come along. I made an offer on one when i was shopping and was told no, only to see it with the priced lowered to my offer months later after I had already bought mine.

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

One of the best pieces of advice I read was dont quickly discount a lower offer right away after listing it. People turn away offers and then wait months for another one to come along. I made an offer on one when i was shopping and was told no, only to see it with the priced lowered to my offer months later after I had already bought mine.

Probably one of the most difficult things for an RV owner is deciding on the selling price. The tendency is to value much too high, especially if you owe money on a loan for it, so the offers will seem like real low-balls. You need to do do a lot of market research, and the JD Powers Price Guide for RVs is NOT anywhere near s accurate as those for cars & trucks. You can't take it as gospel-truth.

 

[Kirk]

Adding to what Gary said, no two used RVs are in the exact same condition or have the same options and extras. The marked in one location may be far different than the same market in another part of the country. Even new RVs rarely sell for the exact same price to different buyers. The best you can do is to learn the general range and then decide what you can live with.

 

[Jackiemac]

@TonyL

Who did you advertise with? If I recall you reckoned RV Trader was poor.

 

[TonyL]

@TonyL

Who did you advertise with? If I recall you reckoned RV Trader was poor.

We paid RV trader and did not get a single enquiry, despite all their hype.
We placed adverts on Craigslist in several locations but most enquiries were complete scams at first but we found a way to reduce them.
We eventually sold to a genuine enquirer on Craigslist. Advertising there is free.

 

[jymbee]

We placed adverts on Craigslist in several locations but most enquiries were complete scams at first but we found a way to reduce them.

Care to share your Craigslist stretegy?

 

[TonyL]

Care to share your Craigslist stretegy?

It was something suggested by Tanglemoose.
Scammers tend not to read the complete advert, real buyers do.
We noted that all the scammers only contacted by text message and made excuses when you tried to contact them by phone as to why they couldn't talk.
In the write up we asked for interested buyers to only make contact by phone call, as text messages would not be answered.
We still got scam messages but we now had a fair idea that the advert hadn't been read properly.
Yes, there was a chance we missed another potential buyer but it reduced the annoyance.

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

I've had the best results selling RVs & equipment on RVing websites, either here in the For Sale board or on IRV2's Classified ads pages.. The audience is 99% real RVers, though there are some who are a bit delusional about making a deal. But it's not the as large an audience as the big RV or vehicle sale sites.

 

[jimforjim]

Again, thank you for all of your insights. Lots of good thoughts here. I hope others may benefit from all of these ideas as well.
Regards, Jim