Gator Egg, I hear you. I sure hate to see anything abused or neglected as if it were a throwaway. We buy most vehicles used, but like you, I'm pretty picky.
Our 4-year-old used
Scamp did come with a few dings on the exterior and looked like it had never seen a coat of wax. I'm sure that helped the price, which was a good thing. Some TLC- cleaning and waxing, new decals, replacing some rusting hardware- has it looking pretty sharp. The dings are still there, though, so like k0wtz, it's nice not having to stress over the first chip in the gelcoat. Call it a "patina" and it sounds better.
The interior is where it counts- that's where we live. "My dirt is cleaner than anyone else's," as someone once quipped. Our
Scamp still looked and smelled new inside, helped by our dry Southwest climate. No
leaks and no pet or cigarette odors, which are huge turn-offs for me. Most important, the "boss" approved.
In the end I believe in taking care of things so they can be used, not kept as garage queens. You may have to accept a few warts in a used trailer. Molded trailers are fairly forgiving of neglect and can be made like new again.
Under 2000# dry is pretty restrictive. Even an empty but fully optioned 16'
Scamp can exceed that. What is your on-the-road weight limit or target? You might want to see the sticky thread "Trailer Weights in the Real World" in the General Chat section. Post #297 links to handy spreadsheet of the data.
Best wishes!