There is nothing wrong with buying new. Warranty is just one advantage. Certain people want and can afford new and someone that doesn't understand that should not criticize them for that./QUOTE]
I'm a newbie boater and I decided that since I could afford it, I wanted to buy new just because I didn't want the hassle of trying to fix someone else's problem(s). Not looking forward to birthday next month. Will be 60.
I actually did look into buying a slightly used boat, but the boats my wife and I were interested in are very popular models and rarely come up for sale. I could find really old versions (not interested at all), or models a few years old (but owners could not verify maintenance), but nothing only a year or two old.
You know, though, there's really more to it than what others have said so far. The reason I waited so many years to buy a boat is that new boats these days are finally where they need to be to make me really interested. We ordered a new Lund 1750 Fisherman with a Merc 115 4-stroker. The boat quality these days is pretty good. I toured the Lund factory in New York Mills, MN last fall. Quite impressed with the I-beam construction and how the transom is knee-braced to said beams. Also impressed with the newer Integrated Power Strake (IPS2) hull design. And I was really impressed with the size of the boat. The tinnies have a much broader beam than they did when I first looked at them 20 years ago. This one is almost 8 feet wide.
The seats are more comfortable, you can get air-ride pedestals, the electronics are much improved, and well, the new boats these days just look better.
Motors have come a long way, too. They're more efficient, more economical, more friendly to the environment, and much more reliable (that is, if they are properly maintained).
And, finally, trailers are better, or at least that's my opinion. Nowadays you can get them delivered with swing-away tongues, disc brakes with electric lock-out, LED lights and Bearing Buddies.
The boat we ordered comes with a lifetime warranty on certain parts of the hull and on all of the decking material. And that lifetime warranty is transferable, which says a lot about current boat quality. There's a 3-year bow-to-stern warranty for everything else. On top of that, Merc has a promotion that includes a 5-year warranty.
One thing I didn't mention about the new boats made these days, of course, is that they are much more expensive than new boats of years ago. One can only imagine what they will cost 10 years from now...
