Another first boat question

**bkhallpass** · 09-01-2005, 11:52 AM

Borrow some cash and go get the boat. Leave early so you can
water test. It'll only take up one weekend. :grin:

**SGY** · 09-01-2005, 12:10 PM

I agree with bk. I drove 10 hours to get my boat. It's worth it. If you can borrow the money, that's what I would do. Will the seller hold the boat until January if you pay a modest, nonrefundable deposit? That might be an option if you don't want to borrow the money.

What boat is it?

**GRskinautique** · 09-01-2005, 12:13 PM

I think you should try your best to do it now. You could get a boat loan and pay it off in January. My experience is that the end of summer is a great time to buy a boat as the owner is typically looking at paying for winterizing and storage. I bought my last two boats then (my Nautique a year ago tomorrow) and believe I got great deals on both of them. If you wait until January, the boat may well be gone and the owner may not be as willing to negotiate since they have likely put all the money into it that they need to so they can possible wait until spring. Good luck

**Mikeski** · 09-01-2005, 12:21 PM

For most of 2004 I was obsessed with one "must have" boat or another. There was a beautiful boat in LA that may have been the one that got away. It was the right boat at the right price but the interior was tan/brown and my wife just said no browns period. There was another one in Chicago and another in Utah, both seemed like the "right boat" but after lots of viewing of digital pictures both of those boats turned out to be misrepresented when referred to as "like new" condition.

At the end we decided to riase our boat budget and bought a new 2005 SV211 at the boat show at the end of January this year closing the deal and taking delivery in March.

There will always be another "must have" or "right boat" deal come along so take your time and buy a boat that fits your needs and budget, most often there is one within a few hours from home. In my experience, most 5+ hour drive deals are not worth the extra trouble. I would suggest you take your time in your search until October/November or just take down numbers until then. In October/November when the market is completely flat drive your best deal, take your time through the negotiation phase and close the deal in January when your bonus materializes. Who knows maybe your bonus will be much bigger than expected and you will be able to buy more boat? I guess you cannot test drive a boat in Ohio in the winter and that's a valid concern. Tough call but I say wait, and I just went through this myself so my hindsight may be a little more relevant than some of the others.

I sold my old boat in November to the first guy that came to look at it. I had to reduce the price by almost $2k to get somebody to come look. If I kept the boat for another 5 months I am sure I could have made another $1k but it was not worth it having to deal with 2 boats and not being able to take advantage of the boat show deal. It was the second time in my life when I did not have a boat in my posession, scary feeling...

**ScarletArrow** · 09-01-2005, 04:18 PM

Thank you all for your comments - I'll keep you posted as the drama unfolds!

The boat I'm looking at is a 99 SNOB - GT-40, perfect pass, bimini, heater, shower, etc.

My wife insits on the open bow - but I was able to talk her out of the Sport - re: I wanted to get as new of boat as possible (in our price range), the TSC hull, and the GT-40.

I couldn't do that in a Sport model.

We're primarily skiers so we really don't need a boat that is wakeboard compatible.

**surroundsound64** · 09-01-2005, 04:23 PM

I'd probably say wait. Wait untill the money is in your pocket, wait untill you can view it physically and take it for a test drive. I agree with Mike, there will always be another boat. I've had the same experience with cars and stuff... You find the "perfect" one and you miss it. You get this sickening feeling that you missed the deal of a life time. You'll find another better one.

I had one with a truck last fall... I passed something good up, but then in a few weeks I found a 2004 GMC, the color I wanted, all the bells and whistles on the inside, V8, towing package... I could go on... with only 4K miles on it for HALF the sticker price, origional sales receipt still in the glove box.

I'd wait.

**ScarletArrow** · 09-01-2005, 04:37 PM

I plan on paying cash for about 1/2 the price of the boat and financing the rest.

The distance itself does not bother me...a road trip w/ my wife to pick up the boat of our dreams would be great.

The obstacle is the aggregate of the distance and timing.

I'm inclined to call the owner and ask if he will take a 2k non-refundable deposit to hold it until January - but then I'm looking at 2 trips (one to test, one to pick up).

My wife and I have always said, "we'll know" when the right boat is there (we think it's akin to finding a marraige partner).

We love what we see from this boat - but I we're leaning towards waiting.

**bkhallpass** · 09-01-2005, 05:07 PM

Cooler heads prevail :grin:

**Hollywood** · 09-01-2005, 08:42 PM

Being such a new boat, I think you'll have a good chance of finding another one just like it. If it were a classic, then I'd say pull the trigger. A lot can change from now until January, and you won't be using the boat for much longer this season anyways.

**Rick** · 09-01-2005, 10:31 PM

Your wife says "get the boat"???? Is she for sale. I need one of those :-)

**Jacob** · 09-02-2005, 12:08 AM

I drove 13 hours to get a 96 SN and saved $4000. I bought at the end of summer and the deal was right. I considered the hassle worth a trip to texas and the great thing is the hassle is over and the boat is still mine. Good luck. I did pass up 2 closer deals that I missed out on before closing the deal on this one.

**SGY** · 09-02-2005, 10:25 AM

The 99 SNOB is a great boat. I had one for two years. All I'll say is that if you have kids and plan on using the bow, then you might be disapointed. CC, to accomodate the extra weight of the open bow, moved everything back 4 or 5 inches--windshield back, motor box back, etc. So you end up with less room in the main area. And the SNOB is a walk over as opposed to a walk through. The bow is fairly shallow and not very big. I was always worried with my kids up in the bow so, most of the time I made them sit with me in the main cabin area.

Don't get me wrong. The 99 SNOB with the GT-40 is a great performer but in the end, I found the open bow to be almost useless and the cabin area scrunched. I upgraded to the 206 last year and could not be happier. That thing skis really well--world class wakes and tracking--and has waaaay more room. If I were you, I'd up my budget or save my pennies to get the 206. You'll be happier. If you look around you'll find in the low 30's range. I bet the guy selling the 99 SNOB wants around $23K. So, for a life long investment is $8-10,000 worth it for the 206. You betcha.

Good luck.

pj · 09-02-2005, 11:00 AM

Originally posted by Rick

Your wife says "get the boat"???? Is she for sale. I need one of those :-)

Hey, if he sold the wife, he might have enough money for the boat now. Ok. That might be over the line. Just kidding.

**hsmunoz** · 09-02-2005, 11:26 AM

if it's what you want , get it. why stress yourself out waiting til January? You'll be less productive at work , and that will impact your bonus. If you get the boat now , you'll be happier and even if the bonus isn't what you planned, you won't care, cause you have the boat of your dreams. If you can swing it now do it before the wife changes her mind. I got the nod from my wife, and caught a plane the next morning, and put the boat on a truck three days later, coast to coast. no regrets.

buy it!!!!!

Another first boat question

Another first boat question

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment