This is not just an Ericson question, We are relatively new to the sailing world... 2 years and are looking at a larger boat. I know this topic is so variable and there are two sides, the buyers and the sellers. As buyers how can one determine the value of a boat, it seems that sellers prices are considerably higher than any "blue book" one can find. How are those values determined? I don't expect to "steal a boat but want to make a fair purchase. I do not want to insult a seller but want to be realistic. We missed out a boat this spring by a day where it sold for one half of the asking price. i certainly do not believe all sellers inflate the asking price that much. Any help would be appreciated
Determining Value
- Thread starter pknier
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- determining price upgrades
You're asking some good questions.
Note that there is almost no "blue book" of prices for sailboats, per se, due mostly to small production runs for a great many boats. Even those that have over 100 built, or over 500, are small tatters compared to the vast numbers of power boats cranked out.
I know that there are some sources of information like this, but I have found that you just have to survey the publications that have active ads for your region, and nowadays you can also check the larger internet sources as well. I sort of, as a general rule of thumb, view advertised prices as about 10% higher than the selling price.
Without taking advantage of their time too much, you need to talk to brokers about what you are seeking and what a realistic price will be. Brokers can really help you, once you decide what you want to focus on.
Speaking of price, condition will be a huge huge factor. You can find the same model and year of boat at two prices, one half (!) the asking price of the other one --- and both may well be fair prices. I am not trying to be funny.
Once a boat is over 10 years old, deferred maintenance can severely drive down the price. OTOH, a boat that has been continuously upgraded and cared for can be worth a lot more.
As an example, our boat has a nominal value of 60 to 65K. This sounds OK, but this year I invested around 6K in: complete re-rigging, all new electrics in/on the mast, 3 new instruments and transducers, and a bottom job. This was overdue, given that the original rig was new in 1988.
If you find a used boat where preventative maint. has not been done... the price must reflect this, even tho the owner insists that "everything still works and the rig hasn't fallen down". Yeah, Right.....
If the engine has over 1K hours, have the injectors been overhauled? ALL hoses replaced? Etc. Etc.
I could go on, but I only want to make the point that price and real value are varying concepts. When shopping, be prepared to see a lot of overpriced boats...
When we spent a year shopping for our "next" boat (the one we have now) in 1993/94, a wise surveyor told me to research the models I was truly interested in, and then to see what a turn-key version would bring on the market. Then, assess the one I was ready to offer on, and list what it would need to meet the benchmark I started with. Then, subtract from the asking price what I would have to spend to get the boat to that benchmark point of preparedness, and that was the *most* I should offer the seller.
I quickly found that several boats I and my wife were considering would require the seller to pay us several thousand $$ to take their boat!
Welcome to reality!
:eek:
We had a cash offer rejected on a couple of boats we really liked, based on this "unromantic" way of buying. Then we found a tired boat that was fundamentally sound, but in need of a lot of clean-up and updating and repairing, and negotiated down close to what we felt it should be worth, and bought it.
After working on it as well as sailing it for 7 years, we are in more than its current market value, not too terribly much...
Let us know how the search goes.
Fair Winds,
Loren
Olson 34 #8
Note that there is almost no "blue book" of prices for sailboats, per se, due mostly to small production runs for a great many boats. Even those that have over 100 built, or over 500, are small tatters compared to the vast numbers of power boats cranked out.
I know that there are some sources of information like this, but I have found that you just have to survey the publications that have active ads for your region, and nowadays you can also check the larger internet sources as well. I sort of, as a general rule of thumb, view advertised prices as about 10% higher than the selling price.
Without taking advantage of their time too much, you need to talk to brokers about what you are seeking and what a realistic price will be. Brokers can really help you, once you decide what you want to focus on.
Speaking of price, condition will be a huge huge factor. You can find the same model and year of boat at two prices, one half (!) the asking price of the other one --- and both may well be fair prices. I am not trying to be funny.
Once a boat is over 10 years old, deferred maintenance can severely drive down the price. OTOH, a boat that has been continuously upgraded and cared for can be worth a lot more.
As an example, our boat has a nominal value of 60 to 65K. This sounds OK, but this year I invested around 6K in: complete re-rigging, all new electrics in/on the mast, 3 new instruments and transducers, and a bottom job. This was overdue, given that the original rig was new in 1988.
If you find a used boat where preventative maint. has not been done... the price must reflect this, even tho the owner insists that "everything still works and the rig hasn't fallen down". Yeah, Right.....
If the engine has over 1K hours, have the injectors been overhauled? ALL hoses replaced? Etc. Etc.
I could go on, but I only want to make the point that price and real value are varying concepts. When shopping, be prepared to see a lot of overpriced boats...
When we spent a year shopping for our "next" boat (the one we have now) in 1993/94, a wise surveyor told me to research the models I was truly interested in, and then to see what a turn-key version would bring on the market. Then, assess the one I was ready to offer on, and list what it would need to meet the benchmark I started with. Then, subtract from the asking price what I would have to spend to get the boat to that benchmark point of preparedness, and that was the *most* I should offer the seller.
I quickly found that several boats I and my wife were considering would require the seller to pay us several thousand $$ to take their boat!
Welcome to reality!
:eek:
We had a cash offer rejected on a couple of boats we really liked, based on this "unromantic" way of buying. Then we found a tired boat that was fundamentally sound, but in need of a lot of clean-up and updating and repairing, and negotiated down close to what we felt it should be worth, and bought it.
After working on it as well as sailing it for 7 years, we are in more than its current market value, not too terribly much...
Let us know how the search goes.
Fair Winds,
Loren
Olson 34 #8