The value of self build

[david.c.hall]

There have been questions on various forums as to the value of self build, particularly when coming to sell. With a certain amount of Gloom and Doom from some!

So. In late 2011 we went to IH Motorhomes (who we are told are very amenable to making small changes, as they are built to order) with Credit Card in hand to pay a deposit on a IH Tio RL, if we could agree on a couple of bespoke bits.

The 'Starter for ten' price was £58,000, and with a couple of extras would have been £60k! BUT when we asked about incorporating our changes we were just told by the sales man that 'I don't think Ian (Ian Hartley) would do that'

So we came away a bit disheartened without parting with any money.

Having done a couple of self builds in the past it was decided to go down that route and in 2013 a new L4H2 Ducato arrived and was converted into the Motorhome, which some of you have seen.

The total cost was approx £38,000. And I have been happy to see that currently IH have a 2012 one for sale for £49,500 and Three Counties have a 2011 one on at £42,995.

Now I don't suggest for one moment that I could sell mine for anyway near those amounts, but I think that I would stand a good chance of getting a better return than had I spent £60k with IH in the first place. And invested less to do so!

Down side is that having pointed this out to the co pilot, it is now being suggested that I should order another van and start all over again!

David

 

[roadliner]

You're a glutton for punishment David. But then again it is addictive. I'm on my second one with another in the pipeline for daughter! Dave

 

[Liberty hall]

David
We had a chap pull up on the drive just after Muttley was finished. I was packing to go away thinking he wanted directions!! He said he’d been watching us doing the build and asked to look inside I said please do.
He asked would we sell him I said everything has a price!! So make me an offer knowing how much he’d cost due to keeping a spreadsheet..
Without hesitation he said £15k the good lady looked at me knowing that would give us a small profit!! I hesitated for a while which didn’t help my cause.
Needless to say we still have Muttley,having seen your van last year I think you’d see a return very close to the figures quoted..
I find a link for you to order a new van
Take care
Ken

 

[Deleted member]

The self build re-sale market is bound to be limited as the larger dealers only want to sell you what they have in stock (ex PX used) or the brands that they have a dealership for. Many punters like to buy from a dealer because they think (often erroneously) that they will get a warranty and good service. It is also generally easier for a buyer who may well want to PX his old unit and/or use finance. Some people may well also be brand/club loyal and wish to continue with the same make. Whilst it may be possible to get an agreed insurance valuation for a self build at or close to its build cost, when it comes to selling a vehicle is only worth what someone will pay for it. As a general rule I would guess that if buying a new van a top quality conversion using all new proprietary components and getting good discounts on the vehicle and parts a self build will SAVE between 30%-40% of the "makers" price. This is a significant saving, but does not include your labour costs. All of this is reflected in the (probably) lower price that can be achieved. I think think that most of us convert our own vehicles (new or used) because the original outlay is less, we can get our own personal preferences incorporated in our design and have something that suits our own particular requirements and of course have the fun of the build and personal pride of what we have achieved based on our own skills and budget. Geoff.

 

[Deleted member]

Having re-read my last post I made a mistake in that I said a self build will COST, I meant SAVE and will edit my post now. Sorry. Geoff.

 

[Deleted member 2]

I have only just seen your post David, it is about a topic which I hold some very firm views.

Over the years I have seen quite literally hundreds of professionally converted panel vans and am sorry to say that very few of them can hold a candle to the quality of design or finish of some of our better executed efforts! And as for the charges being levied, I honestly don't know how these companies can get away with charging such exorbitant amounts.

As for selling our efforts on, I see on Facebook and similar there are quite a lot of very active self build groups as well as make and model specific groups and quite frequently you can see diy efforts being sold on of which, some are so dire that I honestly can't believe how the hell their owners can possibly consider they are worth even a fraction of the amounts being asked!!

My agreed valuation with the insurance broker was reached after sending them the very same details as I had submitted to the DVLA, it being a perfect bound multi paged A4 sized booklet with a clear plastic outer cover with a graphic, image and text content to the level I used to sell professionally to my industrial clients in former years.

If I had done what I was going to do and built another conversion in either a new or nearly new van after completing my first effort in an old and bruised van, then I would have wanted to have an agreed valuation far closer to those being asked by the likes of IH Motorhomes. However as 'Millie' has satisfied our needs and expectations so exceptionally well we have come to love her slightly gnarled external appearance, furthermore no one in their right mind would want to steal her!!

Phil

 

[Deleted member]

As I said before, ANYTHING is worth exactly what someone is prepared to pay for it when it is offered for sale. Geoff.

 

[roadliner]

As I said before, ANYTHING is worth exactly what someone is prepared to pay for it when it is offered for sale

Very true Geoff.

 

[BigStevie]

Hmmm... I've converted a number of VWs over the years which all got sold evetually and all made some profit, or did they? I gave up keeping a record of hours spent on a project years ago, too frightening! My present build, the cheap old Sprinter xlwb is nearly there now and will come in around £8.5k, but not a top end finish by any stretch of the imagination. I've been offered £10k by someone, and I quote 'looking for a cheap van'. I suspect that if I calculate that profit against the hours put in, it'll mean having worked for about two bob an hour!
In reality I guess I could get more if I tried to sell... but I built it to use and don't much give a b****r what it might make.
Having said all this, I recently saw a van that a couple had bought, the crappest conversion I've ever seen, really bad, and on a fifteen year old base Citroen minibus. They'd just given £10k for it...
In conclusion, I think there's always a market for a cheaper van that's ready to go, however rough.

Stevie