buyer beware

[ac7880]

JEH,
2 years ago plus I sold a mechanically solid nicely upgraded 83FC35
tubo with very good tires and batteries for $30,000. I was a 2 bird
owner and needed to sell one. I did a lot of the work myself and
had about $45,000 to $55,000 in it.

The current owner has had little expense since and is still enjoying
it. The coaches are out there. Pics of the coach I sold when I
still owned it are here:
http://rides.webshots.com/album/154715312Axawnh
http://rides.webshots.com/album/192165894pfPFdO

The moral, or lesson is that I sold a nice coach for 30K over 2 years
ago. Do not give up, simply search long and hard for a coach that
is "almost" complete. Spend the time to look. Take no one way
trips, buy no coach sight unseen. Spend several thousand dollars on
travel to find the "right one".

These forums are the best place to find the right one, as owners here
tend to maintain and upgrade, plus other members have usually seen
the coach.

Dan
94 BB BMC 37'


--- In WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com, "bubblerboy64"
wrote:
>
> Mike, That's the kind of information I need to hear. I was looking
at
> some older NA coaches and it seemed to me that $30k might do it.
> Apparently not? I am just trying to gather together an idea of what
> is involved. I was thinking that perhaps paying $20 or about that
and
> figuring another $10k might do it. I am not going to be able to
> invest $60K. I just would not get my moneys worth for what I would
> be using the coach for. I am not looking for a 10 out of 10. But I
> was thinking that for $30K a guy could have a very presentable BB
> which was solid. If you are telling me you bought the best you've
> seen and still needed to spend another $45k doing the labor
yourself
> I pretty well better forget it. JEH
> >
> > I started out with a "fixer" for 15k. Rear bath FC.
> > I wuz lucky, it's the cleanest FC I've ever seen, and I have
> inspected a few. Bought it on the internet from on line pics.
Blown
> engine. Figured I fix it up a little and flip it. It turned out
to
> be so nice, decided I never find a better one.
> > Now that I am putting the final touches on the charge air cooler
> install, not to mention the exterior restoration, the change over
to
> 24.5s the unending chassis electrical issues I'm getting real close
> to $60k and not much of that is farmed out labor. I did all the
> heavy mechanical work and most of the inside repairs, water system,
> lighting, vents, etc.
> > Depends on how you choose to spend the money, most of the good
> deals are when somebody dies. It pays to be a buzzard.
> > Cold but true.
> > Mike Hohnstein
> > Germantown, WI
> > 83 FC 35rb
> >
> > ----- Original Message -----
> > From: bubblerboy64
> > To: WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com
> > Sent: Friday, May 04, 2007 1:48 PM
> > Subject: [WanderlodgeForum] Re: buyer beware
> >
> >
> > And again my position as a buyer. My first preference would be
a
> > completely "ready to go" older FC rear bath coach needing
> nothing. At
> > a price which is "fair". And I have seen some likely prospects.
> > Coaches which have had leather interior and repaints which have
> > pushed the asking prices into the range of the pushers. See
> that's
> > the problem. I've fooled around with antique car restorations
and
> > this is so similar. A restored vehicle is not likely to sell
for
> the
> > cost of the restoration. I feel some sympathy for the seller
when
> > you know what he has invested to get it right but as a buyer
> paying
> > for his restoration just doesn't work either. So what's a nice
> coach
> > like I am looking for really worth? Well, it's worth exactly
the
> > price negotiated between the seller and the buyer and there is
> the
> > rub. There are a couple real nice newerFC buses on the Bill
Board
> > right now with prices from 50 to 60K. So are they in
competition
> with
> > the pushers (?) I can't say. And what does that tell you about
> the
> > older FC's. One fellow has a 1975 listed for 30K. I e-mailed
him
> > see what he comes back with. From what I have been able to
figure
> to
> > this point his bus would have to be a ready to go coach plus
> some.
> > But on the other hand as a buyer I could see that a guy could
> easily
> > spend $15k and then in a short time spend an additional $15K to
> get
> > it right. Price is certainly not cost. Not to belabor a point.
If
> > you have something worth the money do the work required to
prove
> it.
> > I could see spending $30 for a really nicely restored older
coach
> but
> > it would have to be exactly what I want with the proof there
of.
> So
> > I guess what I am saying is that I personally am not looking
for
> a
> > fixer upper. I can do some repairs but frankly its not my idea
of
> > fun. Certainly others would feel differently. JEH
> >
> > wrote:
> > >
> > > On 5/4/07, davidkerryedwards wrote:
> > > >
> > > > Hence, the market for older Wanderlodge's with some needed
> > repairs will
> > > > probably always be a little more healthy than for
refurbished
> > coaches.
> > >
> > > Kerry,
> > >
> > > I agree to an extent. Personally, I think most people would
> rather
> > > have a refurbished coach - I know I looked for one that was
> > advertised
> > > as not having any problems. The disconnect between buyer and
> seller
> > > comes in price: Most buyers aren't willing to pay a premium
for
> this
> > > work.
> > >
> > > In my search, I found that people were tending to
sell "average"
> > > coaches in a certain price range - what I considered "market
> price".
> > > Then there were the occasional "refurbished" coaches where
folks
> > > wanted twenty grand above "market price". I wasn't going to
pay
> > that.
> > > In fact, I wasn't going to pay "market price" for a coach
with
> a lot
> > > of problems, either.
> > >
> > > As a buyer, here's how it worked for me: A good coach with
> nothing
> > > wrong commands full market value, perhaps slightly more. In
my
> > range I
> > > identified mid eighties PT-40s and the market value I came to
> was
> > > about $50,000. Now, I wasn't going to pay full market value
for
> a
> > > coach with a lot of issues. Something that needed major work
I
> might
> > > have paid $35k for, but sellers still thought they could get
> $50k.
> > On
> > > the flip side, many "perfect" coaches, folks were wanting
$80k.
> > >
> > > When all was said and done I did find a very good coach with
> almost
> > no
> > > problems (few things here and there, but they all have those)
> right
> > > near what I considered to be fair market value. This tells me
> that
> > > those wanting $80k for their similar coaches are high, as are
> those
> > > wanting $50k for something that needs $20k worth of work to
> make it
> > > half as nice as mine.
> > >
> > > So, there's my two cents worth.
> > >
> > > -Ryan
> > > '86 PT-40 8V92
> > > Tri-Cities, WA
> > >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
> >
>