How to Market and Sell your Horse Trailer

Photo: GM.com

If you are in the market to buy a new-to-you horse trailer but first need to sell your old trailer, following are some things to consider when preparing your ad whether it is going to be placed on a bulletin board at the farm supply store or placed on an online social network, such as Craigslist or Facebook.

Pictures sell

Take as many pictures needed to define just what your trailer REALLY looks like. Good, quality pictures with plenty of light are best. All sides of the trailer should be shown, as well as the floor, topside with mats pulled back or removed and the underneath side. Don’t forget to include a picture of the roof. If you have a living quarters or dressing room in your trailer, take pictures of any appliances or creature comforts you have installed. Potential buyers want to see exactly what they may be buying. If your trailer has an identification or “Vin” plate, include a picture of it showing all of the information it contains.

Include Specifications
Provide as much information as possible about your trailer: Model year, brand name, loading standard (straight, slant, head-to-head), number of horses it will carry, gross trailer weight, air conditioning/heat, etc. 

Box and Living Quarters

Include information on the box length (where the horses load) and the living quarters or dressing room length. Examples of this are 10’ box with a 6’ living quarters, which makes the entire floor length 16’ long. All bulkheads are pretty much standard at an approximate 7’ length. It is also important to include the height of the box and the width. Some buyers may have larger horses and will need to know if they will fit on your trailer comfortably.

Include Maintenance Information

Potential buyers will be interested in the age of the tires and how much tread is left on them, the date the wheel bearings were last loaded, condition of the brakes, the date the trailer was last painted, and whether or not all of the running lights are working. 

Be honest about blemishes

Unless you are selling a new trailer, any interested buyer is going to know there may be some dents or rust on the trailer. Providing a picture of these areas is also helpful. 

Set your price and know your range

If you are not really sure what to ask for your trailer, look online to see how other trailers similar to yours are priced. If you are firm on your asking price, include this in your ad. This will let potential buyers know up front.

Title Transfer

Indicate whether or not you hold a title on the trailer or if you will issue a bill of sales at purchase.

Method of Payment

If you only want to deal in cash and no checks, define this in your ad. If you don’t, an interested buyer may appear with checkbook in hand and put you on the spot about accepting a check when you really don’t want to.

Happy trails!

Darlene M. Cox (kyhomeagain@gmail.com)