Pricing a used Nautique.. your thoughts

[DBattt]

I have been looking at Sport and Air Nautiques and have narrowed it down to a few boats and now comes the hard part assessing a fair value. The question is whether or not the NADA Blue book retail on boats is fairly accurate or a fair price to pay. Or is it over or under priced....I realize that low hours, immaculate condition also way in to paying more or less than the suggested retail price. How accurate do you judge the NADA and Kelley Blue book prices????

Thanks!!!

[AirTool]

Re: Pricing a used Nautique.. your thoughts

How accurate do you judge the NADA and Kelley Blue book prices????

Well, for cars, dealers always wanted to give me LESS than trade and charge me MORE than list. Both books are bound crap IMO.

Search the sites where boats are advertised and decide for yourself what might be a good asking price. Anyone interested is going to look at the boat and make an offer. You will have to decide for yourself how low to go.

[GoBig]

RE: Re: Pricing a used Nautique.. your thoughts

Use the guides as a reference but not as the Bible. Boat values vary much more than car values. Just use this approach and you won't have regrets on the price....

1) set your budget before starting your search. Decide what you can afford first and then look for your options in that price range. Walk away if the seller cannot work within your budget.
2) Look at as many boats as possible, decide what you like/don't like about each model, narrow your search to a specific model and year range.
3) Expand your search radius and be willing to drive a distance to get the RIGHT boat.
4) Be patient - it took me 10 months to find my current ride and I ended up with a newer, much nicer boat at a far cheaper price than I was originally looking for (the whole economy falling off a cliff thing during that 10 month period helped quite a bit there!)
5) don't fall in love with a boat before you buy it. If a deal falls through, it was meant to be - move on.

That's just my $0.02.

[SkiTower]

Re: Pricing a used Nautique.. your thoughts

How accurate do you judge the NADA and Kelley Blue book prices????

Way too low. For the most part not worth looking at and no self respecting owner, even a desperate one, will honor those values. The books don't understand the boats.

[Shooter]

RE: Re: Pricing a used Nautique.. your thoughts

I agree with Gobig. Use NADA as a reference. Dont forget to add the trailer and extras to the book value (they add up quick). I searched for a 210 for a long time and found actual prices were normally higher than NADA unless the boat had issues (high hours or damaged). After looking at enough boats, you will know if the boat worth the price.

[WakeSlayer]

RE: Re: Pricing a used Nautique.. your thoughts

NADA and KBB suck. I just barely use them for reference with autos.

I like GoBig's plan. Especially points # 3 & 5.

Number one is far to practical for me. I think you have to have a fudge factor on a planned budget number, you may stumble into a boat that is just too good to pass up. Number 2 is obvious, and #4, well, I have zero patience, so that one is out.

[mcbridek]

RE: Re: Pricing a used Nautique.. your thoughts

My view - the NADA is a good reference point and it is the best "reference" point that exists. The dealers will set their prices way above the NADA - 25% or more. Private sellers will also set their prices above knowing they will most likely negotiate down. So everything advertized is above the actual selling prices. Sellers also love to add the "price" for options "most" buyers would not buy - what is the value of an option that most buyers don't "require ? Does a walk thru wind shield on the Ski 196 or some super fancy sound system add value ? Not to most buyers. The NADA values have come down in the last 6 months as the boat market has been struggling (to say the least). So there are more realistic vs six months ago. Everyone selling a used boat is having a difficult time selling, prices have come way down. If you are buying a boat in the fall, you need to "forward" price the NADA since it can't be used until Spring (for most the the United States). Last point, low hours adds value, but be careful how much. If one boat has a 100 hours, the next had 200 hours - what is the value ? If someone thinks it is worth $5k, they are out of their mind ! Think what your first 100 hours will cost you - $5000 plus the normal annual $2K (on a $30K boat) depreciation.

[maxpower220]

NADA and KBB are both good starting points. You should watch ebay, that way you can track actual prices that boats (or cars) are selling for. Check all of the internet classifieds (this site, boattrader, etc) you can use several sources to see exactly the price that "people" are asking and maybe exactly what they are selling for.
Having a budget and sticking to it is very important. There are too many resources on the internet to not be informed on every aspect of a purchase (or sell).