Used Airstream values Covid 19

[reginac]

Right now there is a two year back order for a new airstream. (Obviously if you are willing to pay way above sticker you can always get it faster.) Because of that demand, the used market has significantly inflated prices. I have seen rigs that used to go for $8,000-10,000 being sold for $15,000. And they sell! It’s just crazy! I truly feel that the value of your airstream is based on how you customize it for you, your fellow adventurers, and your style of travel/living. Price is all relative. If you pay $5000 but can’t afford it you will never fully enjoy it. If you pay $125,000 but you can afford it, you don’t think about the cost or value because you are too busy out and about enjoying your new rig. No one can decide the right price for you AND price does not determine value.

[Saluda372]

Have never heard the time frame to be that long.

[Andy Squared]

My experience with most larger purchases in life (cars, houses) the best time to buy is in between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Buying from a dealer, that salesman needs a good month to buy Gifts, private individual wants gains or losses in that tax year and money in their pocket before Christmas. This is not gospel, just strategy on my part. Most of the folks I know that got burnt out on their RV made the realization at the end of summer - hey I didn't use this very much. They put it on the market and if it hasn't sold by Thanksgiving, they are getting more anxious because of the payments and storage fees. But that was pre-Covid. Airstreams/RVs are like lottery tickets to most people, they are buying a dream and throwing money away.

[Drtrash]

Looking forward to the RV bubble burst for FC25, never thought i would see a rv turn i to an appreciating asset, awsome for seller but fantasy land for buyer. Makes me want to sell my artic fox for grins but then will be stuck home pining away for AS

[Daquenzer]

All bubbles deflate over time. I saw this as a real estate appraiser in the real estate market, and I can nearly guarantee it as an Airstream owner. The question is always when will that happen? If I knew I would be very rich. There have always been doom and gloomers out there in the stock market. Yet had I followed their advise I would be in a terrible position. But also be careful of people that over promise as well. Moderation and prudence is the key.

As with anything, best to buy what you can afford at a reasonable value. But when things are “hot” be careful not to get caught in the frenzy. I have seen the frenzy in the real estate market turn out very badly for people. Be careful of what I call “irrational exuberance.”

[Vitaver]

The thing about the economy (and everything else) is that if you wait long enough, everything will cycle. On the big toys’ values, not limited to Airstream’s or SOBs. I looked through IWS into a 500K+ Renegade built over a big rig (International, 12 litter diesel engine carrying its on generator, 500 galones of fresh water, washer and dryer) and there are none in the market, new or used. Every boy (and some girls) once dreamed on driving one of the Big Boys on the road, no exception here. They expect a 10% non refundable deposit without delivery date which could extend, by contract, indefinitely. Whatever it is, it will change... Enjoy the moment, is all you’ve got.

[Grace-n-Pup]

Originally Posted by tandersoAB

Yes we are definitely not in a hurry. I was shocked to see a 2007 25 ft safari listed at $63000 CAD, which is more than the trailer cost new. I was hoping that these prices are inflated due to high demand and that seems to be the case. Hopefully by spring 2022 the values have normalized.

We bought our 2005 25 Safari in 2019. I have seen a few out there this past year that are very similiar to ours. The price wasn't outrageously more than ours unless you put alot of weight on that it was a year older but I felt with the higher demand it kinda wasn't to crazy. They were 9-12% higher. One was less than 5%. Yes it is more, but watch closely and you still maybe able to find a good deal. We watched for a year before we found the "one" and with the right price attached. Keep researching. I kept a little price history of ones that I saw and liked to price compare as we went along in our search. And like someone said above buy what you can afford and only if you are ready to use it. We made the committment to oursleves that we were going to camp at least one Thurs- Sun once a month and 1 full week each year. For us the ROI on a new one wouldn't have been worth it so we bought used.

[Bcc75]

The thing with an economy like this is that you have to be patient. That applies to RV's, houses, cars, whatever. There is always somebody out there, somewhere that's motivated to sell something. And...don't limit your searches to local dealers/sellers. If you are willing to hitch up your Airstream and drive cross country on a trip, then you should be willing to drive more than a couple of hours to buy it. We searched 4 states, found a motivated dealer, and negotiated 20% off MSRP....and took delivery in 2 1/2 months, but that was a unit that they already had on order. Had we ordered from scratch - 6 months .

[Sailorguy]

We would really like to have another Airstream and have the cash to buy it now but just can't swallow the Inflated Prices due to the Virus situation. This is a temporary Market Condition that will correct itself sometime this year. It's like playing Musical Chairs, I don't want to be the last one standing when the Music Stops and all the Chairs are full! No doubt there will be a glut of AS available within the year!

[Bill M.]

The price one is willing to pay is affected by the time frame the purchaser needs to meet. Some of us do not have a few years to wait for things to come down. Which is not going to happen anyway. My guess is that serious inflation has moved in to stay a while. At my age the time to use a trailer is now and maybe only now. And if one thinks that Airstreams are over priced they can always buy another brand. I see many trailers sitting on dealers lots. They do not look scarce.

[Halford1]

best thing to do is to research and watch with patience and SPEED. get yourself approved by bank before starting (if paying with loan)

I sold my 16' Bambi $5,000 over my target price and bought 2019 FC 19CBB $8,000 below Blue Book and RV TRader value.

it was the 3rd 19 footer I attempted to buy, first one was at actual price, 2nd slightly reduced and 3rd was reduced greatly. Glad it did not work out in buying the 1st two due to seller changing mind for cash only and 2nd was title issue. 3 months of being Airstreamless, finally bought it

Careful research with patience, financially prepared and buy fast. Now it carries some risk if you do not look at the AS before you buy it. The AS seller was very honest and it had 3 damages which were covered by warranty that was transferred to me. The seller probably did not know that. Not the value of this AS skyrocket due to warranty repairs done.

[wagvan]

I am low key counting on this. We have been working our way up to owning and restoring an Airstream. We are now in the research phase, but have to empty, fix up and sell our house first. So not taking Covid into account, we are 1-3 years out for buying our Airstream. We are looking to buy on the very cheap end of the price range. So I am hoping that people will be offloading Airstreams when we are looking to buy and that the prices will reflect that. My only fear is that what I keep seeing in the non-AS RV world is bunches of RV flippers who are doing crappy "renos" where they are poorly painting and covering RV surfaces and then trying to sell their "lipstick on a pig" renos for a premium price. (And I am not talking about well done renos...)

[Sailorguy]

We were interested in a used 2021 Caravel that was listed for more than a new one. Does this sound crazy or is it just me? This not only "turned me off" but it also caused me to second guess an Airstream along with a few other points.
Here are the reasons:
1. We were interested primarily in 22-25 foot models. Along with Prices, the Tongue Weights (25 Footers) were excessively high which would push us into a TV that, in our opinion are ridiculous. We couldn't see ourselves driving a monster vehicle that we would use maybe 10% of the time to Tow, while the remaining 90% of the time we couldn't find parking space at the Mall or even inside our Garage. We had a 1989 AS Excella that was had a reasonable TW, what happened, now 900lbs plus.
2. There is no doubt the quality of AS has slipped considerably, Dealers will even tell you this if you haven't noticed. Not only in the assembly but also in the design stage. The quality of materials is also not what it used to be.
3. Here is an example of the design disconnect I've noticed. Airstream is the only manufacture, that I know of, that has the Panoramic Wrap Around Windows, a great feature! However, they don't use them across their Model Range to the extent they could. We would probably buy their 22-foot Caravel today if they offered it with the "PWAW" and Twin Beds. This would necessitate them using a "Wet Bath" installed on the Road Side, which would be fantastic, but no they install a Big Separate Bath Room in the rear end. This KILLS views!
4.The above as caused us to seriously consider the Oliver Trailers, which have the old Airstream quality and design features and benefits!

[Vitaver]

Originally Posted by Bill M.

The price one is willing to pay is affected by the time frame the purchaser needs to meet. Some of us do not have a few years to wait for things to come down. Which is not going to happen anyway. My guess is that serious inflation has moved in to stay a while. At my age the time to use a trailer is now and maybe only now. And if one thinks that Airstreams are over priced they can always buy another brand. I see many trailers sitting on dealers lots. They do not look scarce.

Depending on one’s situation (age, health, wealth etc) many commodities, including an AS assign a personal/at the time different subjective value to the opportunity to get it on the spot, or wait. I don’t see an objective rule that applies to everyone at every situation. The opportunity may have a value equal or larger than the commodity itself. Consider the value of a gallon of water in the dessert, an antidote to the venom of a snake far from an ER, or a new, shinny, fresh smelling RV when the urge to get out, age or combo of both hits you...

[Halford1]

Originally Posted by Sailorguy

3. Here is an example of the design disconnect I've noticed. Airstream is the only manufacture, that I know of, that has the Panoramic Wrap Around Windows, a great feature! However, they don't use them across their Model Range to the extent they could. We would probably buy their 22-foot Caravel today if they offered it with the "PWAW" and Twin Beds. This would necessitate them using a "Wet Bath" installed on the Road Side, which would be fantastic, but no they install a Big Separate Bath Room in the rear end. This KILLS views!

Has there been a wetbath in 22 footers? I thought Nest, and 16' models only have the wetbath. I have 19' FC but never saw a wetbath in 19' in other models either.

Are you talking about wanting a customized 22' with wetbath?

[rmkrum]

My 2007 International CCD is a 22’ narrow body with a wet bath, front east-west bedroom, a desk in the rear, and dual axles. It’s a bit of a unicorn compared to newer units.

Nowadays 23’ is the threshold for dual axles. We like ours because it’s easy to maneuver, simple, and just barely fits on our driveway.

[LNBright]

Originally Posted by Halford1

Has there been a wetbath in 22 footers? I thought Nest, and 16' models only have the wetbath. I have 19' FC but never saw a wetbath in 19' in other models either.

Are you talking about wanting a customized 22' with wetbath?

There used to be some 22'/23' AS, with dual axles, that had wetbaths... circa 2009 Internationals... has a table in the back corner, beside the wetbath.


(We were shopping used for about a year before we bought our 20': one of the things I was having to avoid was the wetbath, it was a non-starter for us. My initial thought based on current models was that all I had to do was avoid the 16' and we'd miss the wetbaths... but in older models, that's not necessarily true....)

[Sailorguy]

Here is what can happen when you think you are in the Driver's Seat and hold all the cards, (Airstream).
We are sorry to report that we changed our mind on Airstream and just bought a new Oliver Trailer. BTW, we are not their first convert! If you are not familiar with them, I suggest you take a look.
See you on the Road.

Pat

[dznf0g]

Originally Posted by Sailorguy

Here is what can happen when you think you are in the Driver's Seat and hold all the cards, (Airstream).
We are sorry to report that we changed our mind on Airstream and just bought a new Oliver Trailer. BTW, we are not their first convert! If you are not familiar with them, I suggest you take a look.
See you on the Road.

Pat

As soon as they decide to build one in the 28 to 30 foot range, I might too.

[panamerican]

Originally Posted by Sailorguy

Here is what can happen when you think you are in the Driver's Seat and hold all the cards, (Airstream).
We are sorry to report that we changed our mind on Airstream and just bought a new Oliver Trailer. BTW, we are not their first convert! If you are not familiar with them, I suggest you take a look.
See you on the Road.

Pat

I like the Oliver and think it's a well built RV. My problem it that it's too small for my needs. If they made a 28', I might be able to make it work, but 30' would really be preferable, at least to me. But even Oliver's Legacy II starts at about $63k right? Not sure what percent off list, but a 30' FC can with the once 19% could be had for marginally more than the Legacy II and have roughly 7 more feet for space. If it was just me and Mrs Panamerican, it'd be fine, but with the kids/pets, 23' isn't in my future.