Help on pricing a used boat

[CAVECLOTH]

Hey guys, I'm having trouble deciding if this boat is worth what the guy is asking for it.

Here are the details:

1999 Supreme 20x48

1999 Mariner 45 jet - stick steer

The boat comes with the factory trailer, 2 fixed seats and 2 spider chairs. Everything has been garage kept and looks great.

The boat looks fantastic and he wants me to drive the boat and make sure I'm good with it before I purchase. He tells me it runs like a top so, I'm not too worried about the motor.

He wants $7000 and I don't know if that's too high for a '99 rig. Seems a little high.

What do y'all think?

Thanks in advance for any input!

[CAVECLOTH]

Sorry for the duplicate post. 

I requested one be deleted.

[MickinMO]

I don't know enough about river boats and jets to get specific on the boat you are looking at. Also, there are a lot of guys on here that know a heck of a lot more than I do about boats. That said, here are my two cents on shopping for a used boat. First and foremost you are basically buying a motor. That is a majority of your value. You can never know for sure with a 20 year old motor how well it's been taken care of.  If the test drive goes good that's a plus. I also try to get a sense for pride of ownership and how many owners there has been. Any service records? So, if you think that motor is worth $4-$5,000 to you then $7,000 may be a fair price. I also want to know what all comes with the boat and does everything work. Extra seats, dock ropes, anchor & anchor rope, life vests, electronics, trailer lights, livewell pump, etc. Even the non-electronic basic stuff to be sea worthy/legal can add up fast if he isn't including it or stuff doesn't work.

Another thing to keep in mind is that boats hold their value. I was in the market for a boat the last two years. I did a lot of searching and looking. I was amazed at both private sellers and dealers how the price held up for 15-20 year old boats. After awhile I became convinced that they must be able to command these prices. I shopped several boats hard over several months and wasn't able to get price to drop much.  Each of the boats would be gone the next time I stopped in to check on them and tried to haggle more. Sure, some could have been consignments pulled back, but not all of them.

I would check boattrader and other online sources to see if you can find similar boats listed for sale. That will also be an indicator if this boat is in the right ballpark. 

[CAVECLOTH]

3 hours ago, MickinMO said:

I don't know enough about river boats and jets to get specific on the boat you are looking at. Also, there are a lot of guys on here that know a heck of a lot more than I do about boats. That said, here are my two cents on shopping for a used boat. First and foremost you are basically buying a motor. That is a majority of your value. You can never know for sure with a 20 year old motor how well it's been taken care of.  If the test drive goes good that's a plus. I also try to get a sense for pride of ownership and how many owners there has been. Any service records? So, if you think that motor is worth $4-$5,000 to you then $7,000 may be a fair price. I also want to know what all comes with the boat and does everything work. Extra seats, dock ropes, anchor & anchor rope, life vests, electronics, trailer lights, livewell pump, etc. Even the non-electronic basic stuff to be sea worthy/legal can add up fast if he isn't including it or stuff doesn't work.

Another thing to keep in mind is that boats hold their value. I was in the market for a boat the last two years. I did a lot of searching and looking. I was amazed at both private sellers and dealers how the price held up for 15-20 year old boats. After awhile I became convinced that they must be able to command these prices. I shopped several boats hard over several months and wasn't able to get price to drop much.  Each of the boats would be gone the next time I stopped in to check on them and tried to haggle more. Sure, some could have been consignments pulled back, but not all of them.

I would check boattrader and other online sources to see if you can find similar boats listed for sale. That will also be an indicator if this boat is in the right ballpark. 

Thank you so much for chiming in!

You're right about the boats holding their value. I was blown away when I started looking around and saw prices on 15 - 20 year old boats in the $7,000 range. I thought they should be in the $3,500 range.

I'm just trying to make a good, financial decision.

Thanks again!

[fishinwrench]

The Mariner 45 isn't worth much.  Very few parts still available.

[top_dollar]

Yikes...I just sold my 1998 mariner 40hp for 600 bucks.  Ran like a champ...now I'm thinking I could have got more lol. 

[CAVECLOTH]

Dang! $400! Maybe I should rethink this........

 

[fishinwrench]

3 hours ago, top_dollar said:

Yikes...I just sold my 1998 mariner 40hp for 600 bucks.  Ran like a champ...now I'm thinking I could have got more lol. 

You could have parted it out and got considerably more.  Lots of guys out there needing parts for them.