Dear Vintage Trailer Buyer, an Open Letter

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Dear Potential Vintage Trailer Buyer,

I received your list of 50+ questions about my vintage trailer that I have for sale. (See bottom of letter for link to the questions.) Honestly I think your questions were extremely well thought out! I think that it shows you really know how to do your homework and that is fantastic…BUT…and you probably saw this coming…most sellers will see that many questions and think it’s just too much of a hassle and move on to the next potential buyer. Not because they are being deceptive but due to the literal time that it would take to answer them all in detail. Whereas, if they have a buyer come out to see the trailer they can inspect it and the seller can answer whatever questions they have verbally. A seller may also assume that you are looking for a brand new trailer with no flaws instead of one that is 40-50+ years old. There are such buyers that do expect perfection and there is nothing wrong with that except unless the trailer is a ground up restoration, their expectations of perfection are likely too high.

So there definitely is two sides to the coin from a buyer and seller’s prospective and I hope I can adequately address both. Let me give you an example of a recent situation with a seller; A seller listed her trailer for sale online and ended up pulling her ad off after less than 48 hours because she felt completely overwhelmed by all of the questions she was getting bombarded with by so many people. That and the fact that she wasted part of her day with someone who was actually looking for a completely different type of trailer! Additionally she had trouble with no-shows…so as you can imagine it can be frustrating for a seller.  She said she’d rather just let it sit there than mess with buyers. I myself received a taste of what she was talking about when I put up one of my own trailers for sale and found myself a bit overwhelmed trying to keep up with the number of interested parties. Of course being involved in the vintage trailer fancy as I am I know the popularity of these trailers but wow, if there was any doubt in your mind about the vintage trailer craze being alive and well, let me reassure you that it’s just blazing right along! It appears there are many more people looking to buy one than there are trailers to be had.

Now don’t get me wrong, asking questions is fine and I totally expect people to do so! However, you also have to slip on the sellers shoes and ask yourself at what point would they pass by your inquiry and move to the next interested party? I personally think the best way to ask questions is in person as you are looking at the trailer. I know that is not always possible and I’ll touch on the topic of buying a trailer sight unseen in a moment. But if the trailer is close enough, get there quickly and be the first person to see it if you can. Don’t break any speeding laws or risk your life mind you! However, getting their first gives you the advantage of securing your buying position and you can ask questions in person as you inspect the trailer. If you find too many faults with the trailer, you can walk away and continue your search for the next prospect. If the seller already has someone ahead of you scheduled to see the trailer let the seller know you would like to be next in line to see it. You never know, the first person could not show up or simply not buy the trailer! Don’t break any speeding laws or risk your life mind you!

The next best way to ask questions is to do it over the phone and do it in a conversational manner. Don’t have a list in front of you and start firing off the questions one after another. Instead pick out the most important ones and ask a couple, then pause and ask the seller something like “Did you do a lot of camping with your kids?” or something more on a personal level. People love to talk about their lives so turn the conversation back and focus on them for a minute. This will break up your questions and the seller will feel less bombarded.  If the trailer is one that you can go see in person, keep the phone questions to a minimum and set up a time with the seller (as soon as possible at the seller’s convenience) to see the trailer. Remember once you are there in person you can ask any questions you need to!

You also said you have a hard time getting to the trailers in time before they are snapped up by someone else? While I don’t recommend buying sight unseen for everyone, sometimes that is a more successful option for some people. I’ve purchased two vintage trailers sight un-seen and only went by photos and the info the seller provided. One was my 1955 Bellwood. It completely exceeded my expectations! The other was a 1964 Shasta Astroflyte and it too exceeded my expectations. Some might say it was just luck. But I’m not totally convinced of that. I think part the reason is that I went into both of those purchases armed with as much info from the ad, checking out the seller online if possible and with the attitude that;

1. It’s a leap of faith and I’m not using my kids college money to fund it…so guilt free spending. I also would only risk a certain amount. Meaning I’m not going to risk $10k!! If you are using your savings that you can’t afford to risk, then simply don’t do it. Instead wait until you can find one closer that you can see in person! I’m not saying I have disposable income because I don’t but I felt comfortable enough (see #) that the gamble wasn’t going to put us in the poor house.

2. I did NOT expect everything in the trailer to work or be perfect.

3. I totally expected to have to sink more money into the trailer for at least minor repairs (my idea of minor is a panel of birch replaced, roof vent resealed, seams resealed, propane lines checked, wheel bearings re-packed, new tires, etc.,.

4. I researched the seller by looking up his/her name and address and even phone number online to see if they were real people. If your results show a UPS store as their address, it’s pretty likely a SCAM! I also spoke to the seller on the phone numerous times. You can get a feel for people over the phone and by asking specific questions. Remember those questions where you ask about the seller’s life? Questions like that can offer you conformation of where the seller lives, if they are really selling the trailer, etc., Granted some scam artists are quite slick. You have to feel confident in the transaction!

Again, I highly recommend if you can see it in person do so! Would I buy another trailer sight unseen? That’s hard to say for certain but I’d prefer not to as it is quite a risk. I do understand that sometimes it is a tempting option though especially if you have been looking for some time with no luck. If you do buy one long distance and sight unseen try and buy from a friend of a friend. Or a situation like that. Also keep in mind that just because a trailer is listed on a auction site does not make it scam proof. I recently heard from someone that bid and won one and the seller wanted them to wire the money in full even though the buyer was planning on driving to pick it up. The seller said no and insisted they wire the funds. Huge red flag! She ended up reporting the seller and of course did not send him any money.

I do hope some of you find this letter helpful. I really just want to save you from losing out on a trailer in the future. I think a lot of sellers who are getting a lot of interest in their trailers are just going to bypass someone who has a huge list of questions. To have questions is not a negative reflection on your part as it shows that you are doing your due diligence. However, with it being such a piranha feeding frenzy when it comes to buyer’s trying to snatch up these trailers, you have to change up your strategy a bit and possibly even take some calculated risks. If the popularity of vintage trailers ever wanes and it becomes more of a buyer’s market then a seller’s, you will no doubt have the advantage and I bet the sellers will answer every last one of your questions cheerfully in hopes you will buy their trailer. But until that ever happens consider my advice.

Best of luck to you and keep looking because there is one out there with your name on it!

P.S. I’m including a PDF download of the 56 questions so graciously provided by a potential buyer. Get it by clicking HERE. Read them and imagine yourself a seller….As a buyer, pick out the ones that are most important to ask at that moment because you have a small window of opportunity, don’t waste it by overwhelming the seller and losing the deal!

P.S.S. No that image of a woman pulling her hair out is not me 🙂

Kelle www.LittleVintageTrailer.com www.VintageTrailerAds.com