Introducing Our Trailer Value Appraisal Service
Buying, selling, restoring, or insuring a vintage trailer often starts with one big question:
What is it worth?
That can be a hard question to answer. Vintage trailers are not like modern RVs. Their value depends on much more than year, make, and length. Condition, originality, restoration quality, rarity, location, title status, and current market demand all play a part. Our opinion of what your trailer would list for in the current market may help you in listing your trailer.
That is why we are now offering a Vintage Trailer Value Appraisal Service through Vintage Camper Trailers magazine.
A Helpful Report for Owners, Buyers, and Sellers
Our vintage trailer value appraisal service is designed to give you a realistic idea of your trailer’s retail value. This can be helpful if you are:
- Selling a vintage trailer and want a fair asking price
- Buying a trailer and want to know if the price is reasonable
- Insuring a restored or original trailer (We do not give an opinion of replacement value.)
- Planning a restoration and wondering what the trailer may be worth
- Settling an estate or documenting personal property
- Curious about the value of a trailer you already own
Vintage trailers can vary greatly in value. A rare trailer in excellent condition may be worth far more than a common model that needs a full rebuild. A trailer with a clean title, quality restoration, and road-ready systems will usually bring more than one that still needs major work.
Our report helps explain those differences. Our report will include several comparable trailers and our opinion on an asking price range for your trailer if you were to list it for sale. It is always up to your discretion what to do with the evaluation we provide.
What We Look At
To prepare your value report, we review the information and photos you provide. We consider things such as:
- Year, make, model, and length
- Overall condition
- Originality and restoration level
- Interior and exterior condition
- Title status
- Known damage or missing parts
- Working systems
- Rarity and desirability
- Comparable trailers currently listed or recently offered for sale
We use this information to prepare a written report that includes a suggested value range and notes on factors that may raise or lower the trailer’s value. We will also offer our opinion on your ad copy if you are selling your trailer.
Why Vintage Trailer Values Are Different
Vintage trailers have a market of their own. Some buyers want fully restored, camp-ready trailers. Others are looking for original survivors. Some are willing to take on a project, while others want a trailer they can enjoy right away.
Because of this, two trailers from the same year and manufacturer can have very different values.
A shiny exterior does not always mean a trailer is worth more. A beautiful interior may still need electrical, plumbing, tires, or structural repairs. On the other hand, a rare, mostly original trailer may have value even if it needs work.
Our goal is to give you a practical, honest look at where your trailer fits in today’s market.
Easy to Get Started
Getting a value report is simple. Send us your trailer information, including as many details and photos as possible. The more we know, the better we can evaluate it.
Once we receive your information, we will prepare a written valuation report that provides a suggested range and explains how we arrived at it. Please allow 24- 48 business hours, as these evaluations receive our personal attention.
Know Before You Sell, Buy, Restore, or Insure
Whether you have a polished aluminum beauty, a canned ham camper, a rare survivor, or a project trailer waiting for its next chapter, knowing its value can help you make better decisions.
Our Vintage Trailer Value Appraisal Service gives you a clear starting point, based on years of experience in the vintage trailer hobby and the current market.
For just $40.00, we will review the details of your trailer and provide a written value report based on the current vintage trailer market.
Order your vintage trailer value report today and find out what your trailer may be worth.
Thank you for the thoughtful comments. You bring up some very important points, especially when it comes to the difference between market value, replacement value, and insurance coverage.
Our VCT Appraisals are primarily intended to help people buy and sell vintage trailers at a realistic current market price. We do this by looking at comparable trailers currently for sale or recently sold across a variety of platforms, along with the photos, condition, restoration level, location, and description of the trailer being evaluated. Since we are involved in the sales and marketing of many vintage trailers, current market value is where our experience and expertise are strongest.
For insurance-related appraisals, we have adjusted our reports to include more detail and a letter outlining my credentials, including buying and selling vintage trailers since 2009, maintaining a classified platform for vintage trailers on a daily basis for more than 10 years, publishing Vintage Camper Trailers Magazine, attending and hosting rallies, and being actively involved in many aspects of the hobby.
That said, we are not aware of any official “Certified Vintage Trailer Appraiser” certificate. Because of that, an insurance company can choose to accept or not accept our opinion of value. We cannot say that VCT Appraisals are accepted “without question” by every insurance company. The best approach is always to check with your insurance provider before purchasing any appraisal or policy.
An Agreed Value policy is generally the best coverage option for vintage RVs. With agreed value coverage, the insured value is established up front, the premium is based on the value, and in the event of a total loss, the insurance company pays that agreed amount, less any applicable deductible. That is very different from a stated value policy, which can still be open to interpretation at the time of a loss. (This is my understanding but always consult an insurance professional.)
An agreed value policy may be established through a recent bill of sale, restoration receipts, photos, or a professional appraisal, depending on the insurance company’s requirements. Our appraisal opinion may be helpful as part of that process, especially when paired with other documentation.
As for litigation, anyone’s opinion of value can potentially be presented, but whether it is accepted or how much weight it carries would be up to the court, insurance company, or other party involved. We are not positioning these reports as legal expert-witness appraisals or full replacement-cost insurance appraisals. They are our professional opinion of current market value based on the vintage trailer marketplace.
And yes, we agree at $40; we think it is a smoking deal too. Our goal is to give buyers, sellers, and owners a useful, affordable, market-based opinion so they have a stronger starting point when pricing, buying, selling, or documenting the value of their trailer.
The actual current market “replacement value” of your trailer is a very important number to know. It’s not the amount of money you have invested in restoring or paid for the trailer. This accurate dollar number is very important to have not only for buying or selling but for establishing how much you need to have in Agreed Value policy replacement value for insuring your investment with an Agreed Value policy.
There’s not much actual printed documentation available to establish why one trailer is listed for $10,000 and why another similar looking vintage trailer is marketed and then sells for $100,000. The forty-dollar cost to do an in-depth appraisal using documented comparable trailer sales seems like “a smoking deal” to me. It makes me ask, are these VCT Appraisals accepted “without question” by the insurance companies that sell Agreed Value policies on vintage travel trailers? Can they be used for litigation purposes? In other words, if a tree fell on your trailer at a campground and you ended up standing in front of Judge Judy suing the campground for the repairs to your trailer and Judge Judy asked “what are the professional credentials of the appraiser that established the appraised value what would you state?
This is a much needed and often overlooked service.
John Palmer