Am I not asking enough money?

[dtype38]

I'd like some opinions on this please because I'm a bit stumped. I'm having trouble selling an old vehicle and I'm starting to think that perversely it might be because I'm not asking enough money for it. The vehicle itself is a actually a 26' American motor home, but as it's some 35 years old I thought this would be the best forum to ask on.

The old girl should probably have gone to the great RV park in the sky many years ago, but partly through necessity, and partly sentimentality, I've thrown enough money at it to keep it sound and in good working order. I put a modern V8 in it with cat converters, it's got lots of new bits, a brand new MOT and pretty much everything works, including the fridge, aircon, central heating, microwave etc, etc.

Times change though, and now I need to sell it..... but what sort of price to ask? I checked the market and found as followed: a brand new motor home this sort of size would tip in at a cool £75k-£100k (yes I know that's silly money, but that's what they are!) A ten year old one will still fetch £25k-£30k and even at twenty they're good for £10k-£15k. I've actually got my 35 year old one insured at an agreed value of £7500.

Well, I thought to myself... it's hard economic times, I've had my money's worth out of the old girl, so I'll punt it her out really cheap for a quick sale and someone can bag themselves a bargain. So, I decided on just half of it's insurance value at £3250 and stuck a for-sale sign in the window, with no price, just my phone number (its parked on a busy road). In the few days since I've had several enquiries. Great, I thought, but every time I say the price, there's a pause, then 'I'll have to get back to you'.... then no return call.

I can't understand it. I think it's total bargain. Am I sadly deluded? Or.... as I'm beginning to suspect.... are people thinking 'at that price there must be something badly wrong with it'? Am I putting people off by making the price 'too attractive'? Any thoughts?

[EvilPumpkin]

Sounds possible - there's always the "if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is" mantra - and in fairness, 99 times out of a 100 that's the case.

Maybe it's worth asking them to make an offer?

Do you have any pix?

[dtype38]

Sure:

[EvilPumpkin]

ok that definitely looks like more than 3K's worth of motorhome. I've seen ones online that are nowhere near as nice as that for double the price.

If you quoted me that price, I'd assume it was going to blow up as soon as I pulled away from the kerb!!

I think I'd probably expect to be quoted 8-10K for it, as seen, particularly as it's got an MOT.

That's just me though - not sure what everyone else thinks.

[davyboy]

Its true value is what somebody is prepared to pay for it. If you want £3,250, then the best thing to do is to shove it on eBay with a starting bid of 99p and a reserve of £3,250. Nobody will know what you want for it and it will bid up to its 'true value'... which hopefully will be more.

[gt917]

Strewth,

i wish i had known about that. I would have happily have bought it from you, but have now sold my trailer and scrapped the van, and purchased a Fiat Ducato based tilt and slide transporter for 7 grand !!!!

Do not despair, and don,t drop the price. It will sell.

[dtype38]

Phew, at least I'm not going mad! I was worried you would say I was still being optimistic... Perhaps next time someone rings I'll say I'm looking for £7.5k, but would be open to offers. Thing is, I'd rather have £3.2k in my pocket now than £7.5k at some undefined time in the future...

Ebay is a possibility, but I'm a bit hesitant to go for an auction because it's a big ask for someone to bid without seeing it, and it's not much time to arrange test drives etc. Perhaps a classified on ebay or on "that other site". But how much to list for?

[EvilPumpkin]

could try advertising with these guys as well.

I'd put in an offer myself if we hadn't already bought Evil!

[dtype38]

Ok, cool. I've got plenty photos, so I'll get on and type up the blurb.

Shame you lot are all sorted, cos I reckon if one of you had said you were a fellow 10-10ths'er, waved £2.5k under my nose and smiled sweetly, I would probably have sighed deeply and accepted...

[davyboy]

Originally Posted by dtype38

Ebay is a possibility, but I'm a bit hesitant to go for an auction because it's a big ask for someone to bid without seeing it, and it's not much time to arrange test drives etc. Perhaps a classified on ebay or on "that other site". But how much to list for?

It's no problem at all to list as an auction. If you're concerned about people not seeing before they bid, just add a line to the listing to say that you welcome any potential bidders coming along to inspect and test drive it BEFORE they bid. It's quite normal for people to do this.

[dtype38]

What happens if someone offers a good price before the auction ends? Wouldn't I be obliged to let the auction finish, even if it wasn't for as much money?

[davyboy]

Originally Posted by dtype38

What happens if someone offers a good price before the auction ends? Wouldn't I be obliged to let the auction finish, even if it wasn't for as much money?

Nope, you can pull it from the auction any time before the final 24 hours. Make sure you that you add 'I have the right to end this auction early as the item is also advertised elsewhere.' If somebody does offer to buy it off you before the end of the auction... just cancel all the bids to that point and end the auction.

[dtype38]

Okay! Well, if I put it up tonight that'll give people a chance to come round at the weekend. Thanks for the advice.

btw.... do you think it would get more bids if I start it at £3k and say NO RESERVE!

[davyboy]

Originally Posted by dtype38

Okay! Well, if I put it up tonight that'll give people a chance to come round at the weekend. Thanks for the advice.

btw.... do you think it would get more bids if I start it at £3k and say NO RESERVE!

I think it might cost you more in up front fees if you do that. If enough people are interested in it, it will bid up.

If you're unfamiliar with it, eBay can seem a little daunting particularly for big ticket items like vehicles... but it's really very straightforward and it works. Also, make sure you that you say something along the lines that a deposit of £250.00 [or whatever you think's reasonable] must be paid by PayPal within 24 hours of the end of auction... the balance must be paid in cash when you collect. If you've any questions at all, drop me a PM or post up here and I'll do my best to help.

[dtype38]

Ironically I actually bought this on ebay, so I don't know why I'm hesitating! Thanks for the advice on payment. I'll also have a read up on the listing charges and see what the difference is between reserve and starting price. I'll pm you if I need help. :-)

[eps]

I usually start my auctions nice and low - people then think that they'll get it for that price and it gets a bit of interest. Most are turned off by a high starting price, even if it will realistically go way past that - it's a big psychological turn off. Of course you may well be wanting to get a certain amount for it, or happy to see it go for 1k (say) but at least it's gone...

Decent photos, the opportunity to allow people to test drive it etc.. and see it and you should get a fair price for it.

[dtype38]

Yeh, that's all fair.

Actually, what I usually do with smaller stuff is list with a starting price of the very least I would take for it and say "no reserve" in big letters. I've rarely not sold things and usually get quite decent prices. I take your point about a really low starting price getting the bidders excited. I was brave and did that with a GoPro Hero2 which did actually go on the make good money. With something this big though, I wouldn't want it to go too cheap. I mean I could get more than £1k if I sold the juicy bits and scrapped the rest!

So that would suggest using a reserve price, but personally I'm usually put off bidding on listings with a reserve. To me a low starting price and "reserve not met" isn't really a low starting price at all because it can't be bought for that. Just artificial way of making it look cheap. Not a fan.

So, how about about a Fixed Price listing with a "make me an offer" option? Its a free option and final value fees are based on actual selling price so doesn't matter what the starting price is. I could go for something quite big like £8000 and if someone has a punt at half that I'd still get the money I was after.

[Al Weyman]

Is it on Autogas because if not thats the killer, I know as I have a 92 Chevy Dayvan but fortunately I converted it when I first bought it so I have more than got my money back and it will also be a lot easier to sell (I think!).

[dtype38]

No, not autogas. Standard unleaded. And yes I know that makes it expensive to drive very far. But on the plus side, if someone wanted to do it, it does have a bloody great lpg tank under it for the heating/cooker (I mean so big that a fill up lasts about 5 years!!). So the conversion should cost too much.

[davyboy]

Originally Posted by dtype38

So, how about about a Fixed Price listing with a "make me an offer" option? Its a free option and final value fees are based on actual selling price so doesn't matter what the starting price is. I could go for something quite big like £8000 and if someone has a punt at half that I'd still get the money I was after.

Normally the offer based sales go for a small bit below the offer price. I know this isn't always the case... but more often than not. People know that, so an £8,000 price is unlikely to have someone serious offering £2,000-£3,000. They might if the asking price was £3,500 or £4,000. Another down side is that these sales/offers don't have the panic/excitement of an auction counting down to a final price. People regularly bid and pay more than they ordinarily would have done had it been a straight sale. There's a psychological impetus to 'win' it.

[dtype38]

That's fair, except for the last bit which I'm not so sure about. For something this big I don't want to encourage anyone to "get excited" and bid more than they're completely happy with. For small items it doesn't matter and most people will accept paying over the odds on impulse now and again. But for this amount of money, if someone did that I think they'd probably just try to back out of the deal.

So my current thinking is either a starting price of £1 and a reserve of say £3250, or a starting price of £3250 and "No Reserve" in the title. I would normally go the latter, but I just noticed that ebay policy is that they have no problem with people asking or being told what the reserve is during the auction. Possibly because they charge £7.99 for a reserve so make money anyway. Maybe that's the best of both worlds.

[davyboy]

Yep, I think it probably is.

[dtype38]

Decision made. Thanks folks.

[CTD]

Originally Posted by dtype38

Sure:

Hmm, it's almost bigger than my Apartment! (and if I keep it over 1 year, it's cheaper )
Maybe there is some Lemon effect if it's too cheap!?

[dtype38]

Not wishing to show my ignorance.... Lemon effect?