Asking Price vs Realistic Value

[jkust]

I would never pay over NADA where I live.

I would agree but I can never say never. If I want a used Chevy Suburban LTZ, there are a hundred of them for sale locally...even the LTZ package, If I want a specific boat with a certain set of options with a particular power package and in the condition I am seeking...it could take months of waiting and watching if it ever shows up on the market at all. I am willing to pay more if the situation calls for it. Being in the market for a used boat can be a real pain.

 

[Scott Danforth]

In 2008 I was looking for a new boat. I wanted a SeaRay 190. After looking at boats in the $18-22k range in WI, I found the exact boat I wanted at Marine Max in St Louis..... For $15k with only 124 hours.

Put a $500 deposit on the boat sight-unseen with a stipulation that a full inspection would be required. Then headed down for a 15 hour round trip

Same boat would have been 22$k down here in FL.

I used it for 3 years putting about 400 hours on it and sold it for $13k back in WI. Could have gotten $15-17 if I wanted to hold out, however had already picked up current boat

Point is, geographic location changes value significantly.

 

[airdvr1227]

Books are for banks and insurance companies.

 

[Old Ironmaker]

Location, location. I say never buy a snow machine from northern Canada and the same goes for a Florida boat. If I can get 5 months of boating here on Lake Erie it is a good season, then within that small window getting on the water without fighting 1 metre waves closes the window even more. My boat south would bring less than 1/2 of what I can get here in Ontario. It would probably have more than 10 times the hours south as well.

 

[frantically relaxing]

Well, unlike most everyone else, I've always found NADA to be relatively close, when adding all the option values... and I mean ALL of them. Never consider anything as 'stardard equipment', If it's in the boat, add it as an option. Do that, and the values always seem to fall around asking values I've seen advertised.

I've found this is true with RV's also...

Another factor with NADA- if your buyer needs to borrow money to buy your boat, their bank will almost certainly use NADA values to determine the max money they'll loan. If you're asking $25k and NADA says it's worth $21k, your buyer will have to out-of-pocket the $4k difference..

 

[tpenfield]

I had an interesting (to me at least) thought about asking prices and selling. . .

If asking prices represent what the boat is worth to the seller, then a sale only happens when a buyer thinks the boat is worth the same or more than the asking price.

 

[airdvr1227]

NADA is an acronym for National Auto Dealers Association. They collect information from multiple sources w/r/t car and truck sales. Hard to believe the info they collect on boat sales make them an expert. When I was selling boats we used ABOS. Much more accurate I think.

 

[H20Rat]

NADA also does not take into account the trailer.

 

[oldjeep]

NADA also does not take into account the trailer.

Sure it does, it is a selection on the screens that you use to select the options. Separate year for trailer, number of axles and some optional equipment

 

[jkust]

NADA also does not take into account the trailer.

Yeah...there is a spot where you tell it about the trailer as well. What I do notice though is that used sellers aren't taking into account nearly as much as I would think they should when selling a boat or PWC without a trailer.

 

[tpenfield]

NADA is an acronym for National Auto Dealers Association. They collect information from multiple sources w/r/t car and truck sales. Hard to believe the info they collect on boat sales make them an expert. When I was selling boats we used ABOS. .

I think so too . . .

In the research that I did quite a few years ago regarding NADA (for boats) versus other resources (BUC & ABOS) it did look like NADA does not get much actual sales feedback to adjust their numbers. I also tracked the estimated value of my current boat on both NADA and BUC as the used boat market re-bounded over the past 3-4 years and noticed only a subtle jump in the NADA prices versus a larger jump in the BUC prices.

I also compared NADA vs. BUC for a boat that I was considering over a series of about 7 or 8 model years. NADA tended to be higher than BUC for the newer model years and lower than BUC for the older model years, which indicated to me that NADA is more of a pre-established depreciation curve (with some slight adjustments based on market conditions, whereas BUC was more reflective of actual selling prices.

Essentially, NADA did not accurately reflect the sharp reduction on value during the early years of ownership (for brand new boats), nor did it reflect the leveling off of value of an older boat that is still in good condition. It seemed like about 10-12 years of boat age is where NADA and BUC were in agreement . . . I would imagine that ABOS is about the same way.

 

[oldjeep]

One thing I will say about the NADA values is that some of the option adders are a little silly. I ran the numbers on my boat a minute ago and the boat/trailer price is pretty close to current market value.

But things like my 2 output 10 amp battery charger option - they give it more value than it cost brand new

 

[WIMUSKY]

I would never pay over NADA where I live.

As I mentioned in the past, a lot of (if not most) well maintained boats sell above NADA up here, fishing boats at least.....

 

[WIMUSKY]

Sure it does, it is a selection on the screens that you use to select the options. Separate year for trailer, number of axles and some optional equipment

Like fender material.......

 

[oldjeep]

Like fender material.......

Them chrome fenders are a pricy option on tow boat trailers

 

[jkust]

One thing I will say about the NADA values is that some of the option adders are a little silly. I ran the numbers on my boat a minute ago and the boat/trailer price is pretty close to current market value.

But things like my 2 output 10 amp battery charger option - they give it more value than it cost brand new

The adjustment that they give for the larger engine and better drive to me isn't a high enough number in some cases. A few hundred bucks for a massively upgraded engine and few more hundred for the drive in some cases that cost many thousands of dollars each.

 

[wrvond]

The adjustment that they give for the larger engine and better drive to me isn't a high enough number in some cases. A few hundred bucks for a massively upgraded engine and few more hundred for the drive in some cases that cost many thousands of dollars each.

I think part of the problem is that what is an option one year is standard equipment another. It's hard enough to keep up with stuff like that for one model line. Imagine the confusion surrounding several manufacturers and their various models.

 

[bruceb58]

NADA is a guide. That's all it is...hence the name Nada Guide!!!!!

Depends on location a lot.

 

[oldjeep]

I think part of the problem is that what is an option one year is standard equipment another. It's hard enough to keep up with stuff like that for one model line. Imagine the confusion surrounding several manufacturers and their various models.

That and an upgraded engine isn't always going to result in higher resale price. There was an L96 upgrade for about 3K and an LS3 engine upgrade in my boat for about $9K new, the boat already has so much power that it isn't really much of an adder in the resale market except to a select few. Might make the boat sell faster and you might get some more money for it but nothing near the original upgrade cost.

 

[tpenfield]

Think of asking price as the bait . . . buyers are the fish.