Thinking of Selling, but told prices are dropping like a stone (101 Viewers)

[Sue]

Very depressing..
We are thinking of selling our IH Motorhome… it’s simply time to move on, but we have been told that, although prices went up after covid, they are now dropping like a stone. The market is weak because the future is so uncertain
What does everyone think? Is this your experience?

 

[steve69]

Wrong time of year. Springtime usually sees an upswing in prices.

 

[Steve and Denise]

Funny thing is every time I want to sell something the market has fallen

 

[Tigger-Tim]

There are lots of unregistered 2024 caravans and motorhomes sitting around unsold. And many dealers will have had to commit to a set number of 2025 stock.

If you have no trade in, there could be some great deals. But dealers are not looking to buy used stock.

 

[M-J]

Prices are gradually becoming less inflated and back to normal.

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[suavecarve]

We got lucky (again)

P'exed our old one for 50K at start of August, which they put up for 59, dropped it to 58 and dropped it again to 56. Nothing to do to it to sell it apart from a valet.
Pretty certain we wouldnt get 50K for it today if they want their 10K mark up.

 

[PhilandMena]

A number of dealers have gone bust this year. Its difficult for them as they have to place advanced orders for new stock and if they get the numbers wrong, they either have no new models to sell, or have a number of new models they have not sold when it comes to buying next years models.

 

[PaulW2]

Very depressing..
We are thinking of selling our IH Motorhome… it’s simply time to move on, but we have been told that, although prices went up after covid, they are now dropping like a stone. The market is weak because the future is so uncertain
What does everyone think? Is this your experience?

How old is the van and how much has the price dropped by compared with what you thought? No guarantee that if you hold on for a year the price will improve. All things being equal older things are worth less.

That said, there are clear seasonal trends and it's often better to sell when the buyers are looking.

(Also, is the source of the insight that prices are dropping like a stone someone who will profit from taking the stone off your hands?)

 

[chaser]

The big big thing about today's oil powered motorhomes is that in ten years time they are all going to be worthless.
They can't do anything but go down to scrap price.

 

[Brains]

General consensus is the bubble has burst.

Availability and therefore Prices were on the way up from about 2017.
First came Brexit that increased prices due to import tax closely followed by the pandemic and production stopped at the same time as demand went through the roof.
Like others in 2020 we had a call from our insurer 4 months after we had paid the annual premium telling us to pay more as the value of the vehicle had doubled.

2021-22 all the builders had massive queues due to the stop in production, and the global shortage of parts.
I spoke to a dealer over a beer in the summer of 2021, at that time he had already sold his 2022 quota, and expected to sell his 2023 quota within a couple of months.

Those people that ordered new vehicles at the top of the market in the summer of 2021 are only getting their vehicles now.
But production has been back to normal for nearly two years, order length is now measured in weeks and months not years or quarters.

Also after a a few years of Motorhome holidays, a lot of the 2018-2022 newbies, will be deciding that motorhome ownership is not for them long term, and are looking to move on.

Consequently prices in 2025-26 will return to the new normal.
No shortage of stock at the dealers, and they don't want millions of quids worth of assets sitting in the yard for months on end.
But it does mean as a buyer, you should be able to find exactly what you want at a price half of what it was a few years ago.

Remembering it's a seasonal business.
Sell in Spring/early Summer, buy in Autumn/mid Winter.

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[Pausim]

Very depressing..
We are thinking of selling our IH Motorhome… it’s simply time to move on, but we have been told that, although prices went up after covid, they are now dropping like a stone. The market is weak because the future is so uncertain
What does everyone think? Is this your experience?

I don’t think of a motorhome as an investment. When it is time to move on, it is time to move on. However if selling but not buying then autumn is probably not the time to do it. People start thinking of holidays after Christmas.

 

[DandJ]

To the OP, the only way to find out is to go and see what you are offered. If you were lucky enough to have bought perhaps 5 yrs ago, before the silly price rises, you may find that you've 'lost' a normal amount presuming you considered an OK amount of annual depreciation/running costs when you bought it?

 

[Saucer]

A lot of the vans that I’ve marked on Autotrader, especially the well specced ones, continue to sell. You definitely need to be realistic about the price because it really is a buyers market. Give people a reason to buy yours rather than another.

 

[PaulW2]

The big big thing about today's oil powered motorhomes is that in ten years time they are all going to be worthless.
They can't do anything but go down to scrap price.

Is that because they're going to be electric? I've thought about that and wondered whether the ICE motorhomes may not hold up quite well because they're more 'fit for purpose'.

 

[Pausim]

The big big thing about today's oil powered motorhomes is that in ten years time they are all going to be worthless.
They can't do anything but go down to scrap price.

I am thinking along the lines of PaulW2 . Unless the EV alternatives get vastly improved range and charging, the ones we are buying now could be much sought after in future years. Even if the EVs are eventually improved there could be a big gap in the second hand market until the improved ones are several years old and turning up on the second hand market in large numbers.

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[Jim]

Remembering it's a seasonal business.
Sell in Spring/early Summer, buy in Autumn/mid Winter.

Many people say that, but I've never really noticed this phenomenon. Dealer Spring Sales mostly match their autumn sales

 

[barryd]

Bottom seems to have fallen out of the motorbike market also. Loads of bikers selling bikes and wondering why they are not moving. Well because they are now priced too high.

I bet the bottom has fallen out of the home exercise bike market also. Remember when everyone bought them? They were like gold dust in the pandemic. Yep. I bought one.

 

[Andy Norfolk]

We part exchanged our 2016 Adria for a brand new caravan 18 months ago. Had the MH about 3 years. Lost £3k on what we paid for it. Bought the caravan and a tow car for what they gave us for the MH.

The dealer still hasn't been able to sell the MH and hasn't lowered the price. I think we did ok.

 

[VXman]

Very depressing..
We are thinking of selling our IH Motorhome… it’s simply time to move on, but we have been told that, although prices went up after covid, they are now dropping like a stone. The market is weak because the future is so uncertain
What does everyone think? Is this your experience?

When did you buy it? If you bought it before covid then it won't be an issue as prices have just returned to normal.

If you bought it in the period of inflated prices then commiserations.

 

[Onemanandhisdog]

The big big thing about today's oil powered motorhomes is that in ten years time they are all going to be worthless.
They can't do anything but go down to scrap price.

That's only when you can't buy a new ICE vehicle, petrol and diesel will be available for many years after that for the people that bought one the day before! Given the average age of people on here it's not something many have to worry about.

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[Sue]

When did you buy it? If you bought it before covid then it won't be an issue as prices have just returned to normal.

If you bought it in the period of inflated prices then commiserations.

Bought 2015

 

[Sue]

We got lucky (again)

P'exed our old one for 50K at start of August, which they put up for 59, dropped it to 58 and dropped it again to 56. Nothing to do to it to sell it apart from a valet.
Pretty certain we wouldnt get 50K for it today if they want their 10K mark up.

If they want a 10k mark up, then surely selling it for say8k less privately is the best way to go?

 

[Pausim]

Bottom seems to have fallen out of the motorbike market also.

When the bottom has fallen out of your world drink Wadworths 6X and let the world fall out of your bottom.

 

[PaulW2]

There are all the described ups and downs I'm sure. However, if you take the price of a motorhome after the new vehicle 'froth' has blown off - say take the price of a one-year-old vehicle - and then look at the price of that vehicle over time, say for the next 10 or 15 years, motorhomes hold their value much better than cars.

 

[Pocket Rocket]

We are currently looking to buy, but feel that too many dealers / sellers have priced vans too high and still at inflated covid levels. We don’t want to get caught out by buying at a high price whilst it is a falling market.

Other things we have noticed over the last few months: a good van from a reputable brand at a reasonable price does sell, there seems to be a preference for Euro 6 (2016 onwards) vehicles due to emission zones, and a shift towards PVCs / smaller motorhomes.

We’ll keep looking for the right van, but have been disappointed by the relative lack of private sellers compared to dealers (we’d prefer to buy direct). So there are buyers (like us) out there …

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[suavecarve]

If they want a 10k mark up, then surely selling it for say8k less privately is the best way to go?

I tried !

Once I got my P ex price, I offered everyone on here the opportunity of getting it for 50K. The whole history of the van and medical reason for sale is known. The issue was the deal had to go through within 10 days and then someone would have got a bargain.

I wasnt really in the market for purchasing a newer one but our current one came up and I thought it was dirt cheap so went for it.

 

[MisterB]

Sue what is the van, spec etc? You might get lucky with a Funster advert if it's priced right and it's free - try it for a week or two, even if only for feedback on price, advert, photos etc c.

 

[The Wino]

Bought 2015

I think if you sell now you will still only lose normal depreciation at the most probably less but you wouldn't get the daft values that were around last year .
.

 

[Gary S]

We are currently looking to buy, but feel that too many dealers / sellers have priced vans too high and still at inflated covid levels. We don’t want to get caught out by buying at a high price whilst it is a falling market.

Other things we have noticed over the last few months: a good van from a reputable brand at a reasonable price does sell, there seems to be a preference for Euro 6 (2016 onwards) vehicles due to emission zones, and a shift towards PVCs / smaller motorhomes.

We’ll keep looking for the right van, but have been disappointed by the relative lack of private sellers compared to dealers (we’d prefer to buy direct). So there are buyers (like us) out there …

We're also looking and agree with everything you have said.

Speaking to a dealer yesterday and he said current trade in prices are now reflecting the market, but a lot of stock has been bought in too high and dealers will need to take a hair cut.

Think they are still in denial, although suspect its a market correction, rather than an all out crash.

 

[ianp]

If they want a 10k mark up, then surely selling it for say8k less privately is the best way to go?

The issue with that is finding people that have the cash or finance becomes an issue ......... easy with a dealer..! In fact I once heard that used car dealers don't really sell used cars...what they sell is finance and the used car is the gift to promote it! Would think in many cases it's the same with MH's.