Used SMB value?

[redrock]

May I suggest you check out the website I built for my currently-for-sale rig at http://sportsmobileforsale.us.

In the section on Price, I wrote a bit on how I derived an asking price. In the End Note (at the bottom after the pictures) I wrote about fuzziness of value in the SMB marketplace.

That info might be useful for evaluating values of any Sportsmobile you might run across.

[yogiyoda]

Ebay doesn't seem to have any SOLD Sportsmobiles. Craigslist only shows asking price. Does the forum on this price usually show the final sale price or just final asking?

Redrock, that looks like a clean vehicle with a well thought out price. Just doesn't quite fit with my needs. -no need for 4X4 but do need A/C and water etc.

[Ocsmb]

You're not gonna find sold prices anywhere but you can 'watch' eBay ads and you can call/email the sellers of Craigslist or any ad for the matter.

[redrock]

Originally Posted by Ocsmb

You're not gonna find sold prices anywhere but you can 'watch' eBay ads and you can call/email the sellers of Craigslist or any ad for the matter.

And they'll either tell you what they sold it for or they won't. And if they do tell you, they'll either be telling the truth or they won't.

It's like the old riddle:

You're in a room with two doors. One of them leads to Life, one of them leads to Death. You don't know which one is which. (Presumably you want to know which one is the door to Life.)

There are two people in the room with you. They both know which door is which. One person always lies, the other always tells the truth. You don't know which person is the liar and which is the truth-teller.

What one question can you ask either person that will get you the correct answer to which door leads to Life?

[jage]

Back when I was shopping I'd say, as a rule of thumb, if they were SOLD they were sold within 5% of the asking price. I haven't shopped or paid attention for quite some time however.

You'll find a similar dilemma, I think, with local vs. travel- half way across the country is more common than local, and as tough a bullet as that is to bite I think a lot of us have bought further away than we ever thought when we started looking.

In the end, the people who came up with near the asking price and were willing to travel to the SMB are the ones who own them- not every purchase is a Cinderella story, but by and large that seems to work so people keep doing it.

Again, it's been a long time since I shopped and I'm largely drawing from my personal experience.

[Aldercrest]

Originally Posted by redrock

It's like the old riddle:

You're in a room with two doors. One of them leads to Life, one of them leads to Death. You don't know which one is which. (Presumably you want to know which one is the door to Life.)

There are two people in the room with you. They both know which door is which. One person always lies, the other always tells the truth. You don't know which person is the liar and which is the truth-teller.

What one question can you ask either person that will get you the correct answer to which door leads to Life?

What would the other person tell me?

[yogiyoda]

Thanks!

[warholic]

hello -
The best way is on Sportsmobile.com, "for sale" section ... track it for awhile. You have to get a feel for the strength of the market first. Back in 2007 used SMBs held their value pretty well bec there was more demand, but in the depths of the recession not as well. So, what is the market like today?

When I built mine in 2010, it took a little over 4 months to complete once they received delivery of the van. What is the lead time today? That will give you an idea of the market for SMBs.

Also, call up some of the sellers and tell them your dilemma and ask them what they think. All SMB owners are faced with the same dilemma when it comes time to sell. How did they arrive at their asking price?

Also, ask Sportsmobile what they think - not sure who to ask there. But they know what used ones are selling for.

I did this exercise in 2009 when I was debating new versus used. You can depreciate the Ford van part by itself as a starting point, but that is not completely accurate and is only 30% of the cost of the SMB if you get a full spec 4x4. My cost new out the door was about $100k and the Ford E350 was about $30k. So, the SMB part was about $70k. How much to depreciate the SMB part?

Probably something like 5% depreciation per year the first 3 - 5 years or so, then flatter after that. This assumes a CLEAN, LOW MILAGE SMB. This does not account for INFLATION.

Aren'y you glad you asked???

warholic

[Michisurfer]

What's everyone's thought on this rig...buying from a friend
2000
E-350
130K
Pop Top (Sportsmobile)
Rear bench fold down
one cabinet (basic) no other cabinets

stripped down- basics- no sink, no stove, etc
7.3L ...the beast
rear diff
2WD
buying from a friend and feel its a fair deal, $17,500K
Again- its stripped down and basic
thoughts?

[Grampswrx]

That’s a good deal for that motor and a pop top. Sounds like the interior is at least something. Many vans with that motor and a full build are in the $25k range even 2wd.