Page 15 - Spring 2018 GMC Vintage RVing

For additional technical presentations, papers, manuals, and other information go to gmcmi.comTo sell your coach quickly and easily you absolutely need professional quality photos. Today’s buyer does a lot of shopping online where the items are photographed under proper lighting conditions and described carefully. They will expect the same while shopping for a GMC and that shoppingwill likely start by looking online. So, put away your cell phone and use a real camera or hire some one to take the photos foryou. A school photography program or a local camera club are places to look. Do a good job of post processing. You are not trying to “Photoshop” your coach to look like something it is not, but you do want to show it as close to what it really looks like as you can. A photo taken at noon on a sunny day will have blown out highlights and deep shadows that will mask the real appearance of your coach. Good post processing will restore detail in the highlight regions and bringout the detail in the shadow areas as well. Pay particular attention to lighting when photographing the interior. You want it to appear calm, cozy and a fun place to be.Post the pics on a simple website and put the URL in your ads. The prospective buyer wants to see pics right now, not days or weeks later, so saying that more photos are available via email won’t cut it. Many buyers will go right on by your ad and look at one where theycan see good photos immediately. Show at least 10 shots in all four categories. The more, the better. You cannot have too many. A few hundred dollars spent to do this step right will pay great dividends in terms of how fast your coach will sell and how much you will net.So, where can you advertise tobest reach prospective buyers?Local or CraigsList ads are fine if yours is a run of the mill coach with few distinguishing features. Buyers from these sources will be expecting to pay $2,000 to $10,000 andthe transaction will likely focus on price. They usually don’t look at such sources expecting to buy a GMC, they only happened onto the ad and thought it might be interesting to explore.GMC club listings or GMC Facebook listings will likely net you people who are specifically looking at buying a GMC. Buyers from these sources will know fair value and be expecting to pay fair value, so the transaction will focus on condition.Editor's Note: GMCMI members selling their GMC Motorhome can receive a free ad listing on the gmcmi.com website (plus up to nine photos), quarterly magazine and announcement on the GMCMI Facebook page, Vintage GMC Motorhome Facebook page and the gmc.net. Simply send an email to [email protected] with your ad content, contact information, location, price, and up to nine photos.In addition, GMCMI members selling their GMC Motorhome can transfer the remainder of their GMCMI membership to the new owner! Simply inform GMCMI and a new member packet will be sent to the new owners. Plus, the new owner can purchase the GMCMI Flashdrive for only $10! (including shipping)Your buyer may well come to you because someone already in the GMC community knows of your interest in selling your coach, and, after seeing your ad, spreads the word which directs the buyer to the ad and to you. If the prospective buyer likes what they see and your coach is what they want, their decision to buy will have a lot to do with how much they trust and respect what you tell them.How should I price my coach for sale?Only you and your buyer can determine what is a fair price for your coach but here are some guidelines relative to what it costs in 2018 dollars to refurbish one that may help you establish a proper price.Most buyers will be looking to pay around half refurbishment cost so really nice GMCs will commonly change hands at around $17,500 to $55,000. If you price your coach much above $55,000 then you will be competing with the buyer opting to do their own “restoration” instead of buying yours. A run of the mill GMC will change hands for between $7,500 and $15,000.Do not make the mistake of thinking you can ask way too much for your coach in the hope some one will “make an offer” substantially less. Many buyers will simply not even look at your coach if they think it is grossly over priced – and that word will spread quickly through the GMC Community – much to your detriment. Similarly, when you have to start reducingthe asking price hoping to find a buyer, many buyers will think there is something wrong with your coach so will approach looking at yours with a low ball offer in mind or will simply look elsewhere.You want to price your coach fairly knowingthat there are buyers out there looking to find a coach they like and trust in a price range they think they can afford so your asking price is a critical part of their decision to look at yours instead of some other coach.In the final analysis, come as close as you can to being the ideal seller – one whom the buyer can trust to tell the full story. Be a seller who is forthcoming about the good and the bad and who wants the buyer to be fully satisfied.If you are the buyer, come as close as you can to being the ideal buyer – one who knows these are 40+ year old machines that willnot necessarily drive or perform like a new car. Approach GMC ownership with eyes wide open while looking forward to the joys of making this available coach into your dream coach. Be realistic, knowing that no matter how carefully this GMC has been kept, something can and likely will go wrong tomorrow on your watch!Enjoy the process no matter which side you are on!Exterior:Interior:Systems:Mechanical:Total refurbishment costs in 2018 dollars: $35,000 to $110,000$8,000 to $20,000 $5,000 to $50,000 $10,000 to $20,000 $10,000 to $20,000One can easily spend far more than these amounts, but you really don’t need to.SPRING 2018 GMC MOTORHOMES INTERNATIONAL 15