Boat Sellers Advice.
Some things that need to be done are obvious, but it will surprise you how many people don't do the basic's.
Basic Preparation
- Get the boat cleaned up. From top to bottom and don't forget the engine and bilge area. (A clean boat sells and sells for more. A dirty boat sits and smells.)
- Remove the clutter.(All that stuff laying around needs to go...buyers want to see a clean organized boat.)
- Take good digital pictures of each area of the boat, preferably on a sunny day. (A sunny boat picture is better than a rainy cloudy boat picture.)
- Get together all your boats information: Model Number, Hull Number, Manufacturer, Year Built, Length, Width (beam), Engine make and hours, Generator info, Equipment and Features, Size of fuel tanks, water tanks, holding tanks, trailer if you have one, Etc Etc. As you can see its a lot of information.
- Start thinking about how to tell you boats story. A buyer will remember and appreciate knowing the history of your boat told by you.
How to determine your boat's value?
There are many different used boat price guides. Banks use these guides to help determine how much they are willing to loan on a particular boat. While they are a good starting point they don't necessarily reflect what your boat would really sell for in the open marketplace. The best marketplace for boats is the Internet. The truth is where else can you quickly gather so much data. Simply search every site you can find for boats similar to your own. Make adjustments for the year, type of equipment and keep track of the asking prices. Fresh water boats usually go for more than boats exposed to saltwater simply because they are usually in better shape. Most people ask a little more than they really expect to get so they have some negotiation room. My guess is that most boats sell for about 10% to 15% less than the asking price. When I sell a boat I always have an idea what the lowest price I will accept is. Often a buyer will say what's the least you will take. You don't have to reveal what that number is. You just need a good starting point at which to negotiate.
Sometimes selling for less will save you money.
Let's say you price your boat right in the middle of the pricing examples you find and the boat just sits. You get a few inquires but people aren't exactly standing in line to ask about your boat. You figure if you wait long enough the right person will come along and see it's a good value. That may be true but the longer the boat sits the longer you may have to make payments or pay dockage or storage fees, insurance and other expenses associated with the boat.
My point being, it's smart to price the boat very competitively compared to other boats so yours is one of the first sold. The faster it sells the faster you can stop paying all those associated costs of ownership.