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The going price for used trailers?

2K views 7 replies 7 participants last post by  Surefooted 
#1 ·
Well I've been on the hunt for a used brenderup recently, but I'm feeling a little sticker shock seeing some of the prices for used trailers. All of the sale sites usually take down the price once a trailer is sold, so it is difficult to judge what the market is really saying as far as the price of used trailers. So I'm curious, how much did you buy or sell your used trailers for? Especially if you're a brenderup owner, I would love to know!
 
#2 ·
Price depends on several factors.

1) Private sale or Dealership? Obviously the private will be cheaper.
2) How many horses? More horses it can hold, the more expensive
3) How old is it? Newer the more expensive
4) What condition is it in? Obviously, the better the condition, the higher the price.

I just bought a trailer and most I saw that were used and did not need some fixing ranged from $2,500 to $4,500 for 2 horse bumper pulls. I paid $1,000 for mine today. It was a 1988 model with new tires, wiring, and floors. Is a solid trailer that has a side light out, and the license plate light out. While the floor was solid, the side paneling and divider needs to be replaced. I has some minor rust spots, but nothing that is compromising it. Point being, most of the time if it is under $2000, you are probably going to have to fix something (especially if it is under $1,000). That is what I have been seeing at least in my area.
 
#3 ·
Ahh, the frustration of trailer shopping.

I was looking for a used trailer. Found that most of the private-sale ones were in need of TOO much repair and didn't really suit my needs. The main problem I ran into was that they weren't big enough.

I ended up buying my used trailer through a dealership. It is a 2005 3 horse angle haul with a front tack room. All lights work, flooring is good and all the dividers are in good shape. Only problem is it is very rusty (just surface rust). I paid $4500 for it (CDN).

I think I got a pretty good deal - this trailer was likely sitting on their lot for a long time. And this dealership mainly sells new trailers. I've been very happy with it.

When i was looking at trailers in the $1-$2k range, I found most were piles of garbage - or required more work put in to them than I was required to do.
 
#4 ·
I paid $7000 for my Brenderup 2 horse Baron w/tackroom. An animal hoarder neighbor of a friend wanted to sell it to raise money to feed her animals (don't even ask about this awful case). She'd used it once or maybe twice, 8 years previously, back before she had bankrupted herself and her husband left her, and then parked it on a concrete pad and left it. Trailer was caked with dirt and lichen. I think it was worth about $11,000 if she could have cleaned it up and advertised it (she did not have the wherewithal to do either), since it was essentially a new trailer (we replaced the tires of course).

Brenderups are pricey trailers. Around here you can find a nice basic US-made 2 horse bumper pull trailer in usable shape for $2 to $5 thousand. Lower than that, yes, you'll be looking at replacing floors and wiring and such.
 
#5 ·
I went looking for a article I had read and found a different one....:icon_rolleyes:
https://mrtrailer.com/brenderuptour.htm
Not sure what "age" of used you are searching for but after reading this article you might change or update how old you allow your search to go back to.
The trailers are assembled today in Texas from components shipped in from overseas...
Now made to American standards and requirements there is a difference in them..article explains those differences...
There was mention made of another brand of trailer in that article made very similar that might be of interest to you too.

I have no personal experience with Brenderup trailers.
I have 2 trailers myself.
1 straight load 2 horse extra wide and extra high, ramp load.
1 semi-stock 4 horse 7' wide and 7'6" high step up. I can do dedicated stalls or slant load.
My 2 horse was bought used....$3500.
It needed minimal work but any "used" trailer will need work as it is used and all new trailer owners want to do something to make it "theirs" with their mark. :wink:

There was made mention of tow vehicle used....
My thought on that is remember that you must be able to control the start, stop and on-road handling of that trailer.
Please do not under-truck yourself for your safety and that of others sharing the road with you.
Just because you "can" based on numbers does not mean you "should" when it concerns keeping you, your horses safe while enjoying the freedoms of distance away from home riding.
You also need to keep in mind that other drivers on the road sharing space with you may not be respectful, careful or skilled in how they drive their own vehicle and you do need to be on extra-guard against their innocence, stupidity or combination of not-knowing you just should not do certain things around horse trailers...
Do be on guard at all times while hauling your precious cargo!

Enjoy your trailer search...
:runninghorse2:....

 
#6 ·
I purchased my Brenderup new 19 years ago, and it is still going strong!

Used Brenderups in good condition are in the 10K price range. Very, very important to make sure the trailer was well cared for as can't get parts for the trailers anymore. The last ones made are 2011 or 2012 when they stopped production. I was going to trade mine in on a bigger one...was about 6 months too late having the money saved.

Better to keep Brenderup trailers protected from the weather when not in use. I keep mine under a carport with ten foot side walls (trailers are tall).

My floor is still as solid as when I purchased it because I always clean it out after every use.

Other than replacing tires, replacing the plug after I accidently ran over it, and repainting it twice, I have had no maintenance issues at all.

Love my Brenderup!!!
 
#7 ·
I spent 5 casual and 3 serious years trailer shopping and I understand your frustration. In all that time though, I never came across a Brenderup for sale within 500 miles! They aren't very popular around here. I was even considering buying a new Shadow Stablemate but threw that idea out when the price went up by $1500.

I bought a trailer just by being in the right place at the right time from a fellow boarder. It's a pristine 'like-new' 2003 Merhow Equistar 2H bumper pull with dressing room, carpet, water tank and I paid $5000 for it. It doesn't have a speck of rust on it having been stored inside every winter and the interior looks like it never had a horse in it. I'm thrilled to have ended up with such a great trailer but even after all that shopping, my good luck was the result of "word of mouth". I told everyone in my horsey network that I was looking and that generated a lot of leads.

There is a lot of dangerous junk out there with wildly varying prices. We are in the "rust belt" where the salt on the winter roads makes any kind of vehicle literally melt away. There is no "Kelly blue book" on horse trailers (although there is one scam website that you have to pay for) so it's almost impossible to establish an average price. With time though, you do start to develop a sense of which pricing is ridiculous and what is worth going to look at.
 
#8 ·
You guys are amazing, thank you so much for your input! I may be moving away from the Brenderup. As much as I love the idea and the reviews I just cannot find a decent one close enough to me to justify the cost and drive to pick it up as it would be sight unseen. With the brenderup off the table, I might look into upgrading to a truck and then that would open up my trailer search. Currently we have an SUV that is rated for 5,000 lbs (4,000 would be my max for piece of mind) but without a lightweight trailer like the Brenderup I don't know if I can transport comfortably. We are moving 16 hours, thus the need to make some Trailer decisions, but I am thinking of using a transport company to get my boy there and then once we are settled start looking again so that I can be ready for emergencies.
 
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