buyer beware

[Leroy Eckert]

A pre-owned H2 Hummer about 35K comes standard with GPS, moving map display,
DVD, leather seats, electronics inverter and room for a large tent. It will fit
in most any campground. No need for a toad. Missing optional items include,
bed, hot and cold running water, in motion Sat TV, kitchen, convection oven,
bathroom and other important amenities. Looks to me like 35K for a top quality
FC is a steal.

Leroy Eckert
1990 WB-40"Smoke N Mirrors"
Niceville, FL
On Panama City Beach-Folks in the tents are hot---forcast high92
----- Original Message -----
From: Mike Hohnstein
To: WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Friday, May 04, 2007 10:35 PM
Subject: Re: [WanderlodgeForum] Re: buyer beware


Take heart!! Gary Miller has an exceptional example in your price range. Go to
http://www.millercoachworks.com FC33, ignore the sold and 47k asking price, it's on the
market for mid 30's and a real deal at that figure.
MH
----- Original Message -----
From: bubblerboy64
To: WanderlodgeForum@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Friday, May 04, 2007 7:32 PM
Subject: [WanderlodgeForum] Re: buyer beware

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
> >
>
>
>
>
>
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>

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