Back in 2008 I purchased an Adria Coral Compact 590SP motorhome for £35,000 and sold it in 2010 for £29,000. Here we are eight years later and dealers are offering the same vans of the same year for £32,000. What happened to eight year's depreciation?

I sold the Adria to buy a nine year old 2001 Eriba Troll for £12,000. I sold that for £10,500 in 2012. Six years later Eriba dealers are offering 2001 vans for £11,500.

I sold the 2001 Troll and bought a seven year old 2005 version for £12,500, selling it in 2013 for £12,000. Five years later dealers have seven 2005 Trolls for sale at an average of £14,400. Realistically someone selling a 2005 Troll privately now will be asking £13,000, £500 more than I paid 5 years ago.

So where's depreciation gone?

Having said that my current Rimini, purchased in 2015 for £14,000 is typically selling for £12,000 via dealers and I'm asking £11,000. So £3,000 depreciation over three years or £1,000 a year. If I'd stuck with my '01 Troll I could probably get £10,000 for it, £2,000 depreciation in six years or £333 a year. If I'd kept the '05 Troll I'd probably get £13,000 for it, a gain of £500 over five years or £100 plus a year for owning a caravan.

And the Adria? Bought new for £35,000 ten years ago, I'd probably get £30,000 for it now, depreciation of £5,000 over ten years, or just £500 a year.

Why buy UK caravans and lose £1,000 a year, when a new motorhome will only lose you £500 a year over ten years, an Eriba caravan will gain you £100 a year or at worst lose you £333 a year.

Eribas just don't seem to depreciate. Is it something to do with the price of the new vans keeps rising which makes the second hand Eribas rise too.
We're on our third Eriba now and both our previous Puck L & 310 were sold for more than we paid. Each was owned for 2 years. Our current 550 we purchased nearly 4 years ago when it was 18 months old and is probably still worth what we paid for it. Maybe a little more.
Yes they are expensive to buy compared to a traditional van but zero depreciation makes them cheaper to own.

Well, we must be doing something wrong. We have been trying to sell our 2008 Puck L 230 GT since January but no takers or interest. Although I say it myself it is in exceptionally good condition (regularly serviced, Awning etc etc etc). We're asking £11,250 which is significantly less than AL who pitch their 2008 models at a shade under 13k. We've taken it off the market and will re advertise in March but any advice or tips would be appreciated. Fortunately we're in no hurry but it is a shame to see such a lovely van sitting unused at home.

Tony

Buyers tend to be v thin on the ground in winter, known as a very thin time for dealers. They start reappearing as the weather warms up. Your Puck's price looks fine Tony, maybe even a little generous.

I think the constant rise in new prices and the willingness of buyers to pay such sums allows dealers to create enough 'headroom' to keep prices stable, rather than reducing as seen in more normal markets.

IIRC back in 2010 when we purchased our first Eriba the price for a new UK spec Troll was about £20K. 8 years on they're up to £25k, a 25% rise, or 3% a year, during a period of low inflation.

In most caravans the VAT plus £1,000 is lost in the first year. That would put a £25k van at £20k after 12 months and a dealer buying in price of £18K or £19k. As it is 2017 Trolls are being punted at £23k by AL and finding buyers.

Thanks for that Andy, will bear your comments in mind - hopefully March will bring some results.

Tony