troubling news..

[JimMcGee]

Yep, condition, condition, condition. A local broker once told me a clean boat will sell quickly in ANY market.

Want to get more for your boat. Clean it, polish it, take ALL your junk off, scrub out the mold, clean the bilge, get rid of any odors, spritz down the engine so the cabin doesn't smell like oil and diesel, rent a steam cleaner from the supermarket and steam your cushions so they're clean and don't smell like mildew. scub and varnish that cockpit teak. Take some boat soap to the canvas.

One afternoon with a brush and bucket can make a huge difference in price and how quickly she sells.

If you don't want to be bothered look at it this way - when's the last time you got paid a couple of grand for a day working on your boat and hanging out in a boat yard?

Heck you can even drink a beer or two...

[jameswilson29]

If only more people would believe the news reports that the economy is recovering from the recession, we would be recovering from the recession...

[chucklesR]

I didn't buy my boat for it's resale value.
I bought it for it's value to me (priceless).

[jimgo]

Denise, I offered that guy a deal a few months ago, and he snubbed his nose at me. The boat is now on eBay with a starting bid of $5,000.

From what I've heard about the Philly/NJ area, 30+' boats are selling pretty well IF they are in good shape (increased sales are due to the NorEaster and Hurricane Sandy). I'm going to guess that his boat isn't in good condition.

[Lake Superior Sailor]

Denise; A good boat is like a good women; & We would not trade you !..........Dale

[deniseO30]

Awww Lake, thanks..

[JimMcGee]

Originally Posted by jimgo

From what I've heard about the Philly/NJ area, 30+' boats are selling pretty well IF they are in good shape (increased sales are due to the NorEaster and Hurricane Sandy). I'm going to guess that his boat isn't in good condition.

I ran into Tony Tumas (Chesapeake Bay Broker) at the AC Boat show and he was busy as hell with used boat sales. He said he really hadn't seen much demand from Sandy yet. Evidently a lot of people are still wrangling with insurance companies. I don't know that new boat sales are seeing the same kind of activity.

[jimgo]

That's interesting, Jim, because a PopYachts broker on the Chesapeake, and three brokers on Barnegat Bay said they've been seeing insurance checks. Of course, brokers are trying to stimulate demand and may exaggerate a bit when chatting to a prospective buyer.

I'm editing to add: I do agree with your assessment regarding new boats. From what I've heard from the brokers (and again, it's not exactly from the most disinterested of sources), the people with insurance money (like me) generally have a perception of a soft used boat market, and are using the money to "buy up" either in size or quality.

I've been searching for a replacement boat since November, and I can tell you that I've seen the nice boats get snatched up. As you mentioned, the fact that his boat has been on the market for so long suggests to me either a) it's a real dog, or b) he hasn't done a good job advertising it.

Denise, from what I've read of your boat and your personality (i.e., your habits for upkeep), I suspect your boat would go for significantly more than his.

[JimMcGee]

Jim, I've been hearing around the marina that BoatUS has done a good job servicing boat claims' but haven't heard positives about many others. You also hear some real horror stories.

Take it all with a grain of salt as you only see a subset of people who happen to be working in the yard this time of year and a lot of what you hear is third or fourth hand. This spring when everyone is around will be telling.

It might be interesting to set up a survey for people with Sandy claims to gauge their experience with insurance companies. It would be useful to out the bad ones.

[JimMcGee]

Now back to our regularly scheduled program

Denise, if your boat is as nice as it sounds from some of your posts I doubt you'll have trouble selling it. You might try putting the word out at the yacht club that you're kicking the idea around. You never know who might be interested.