Buy New for First Boat - Good Idea or Not?

[hillbilly321]

I'm looking to buy my first boat and have been looking for ~6 weeks now. I have been looking at craigslist and local dealers at used and new boats.

I feel like the used boat market is overpriced in my area (central Ohio). The couple I have found that have been reasonably priced have sold very quickly. I don't want an old boat (more than 10 years old) or a junker so I'm trying to be cautious, which so far has not paid off and I'm getting tired of dealing with it.

I am seriously thinking about pulling the trigger on a 2012 Sea Ray 185 Sport w/4.6L. My biggest reservation, is that I'm concerned about the learning curve with a 28K boat, however I do have the trade off of having a full warranty so I can just enjoy myself and not worry, however at a cost.

I know lots of folks on here have allot of boating experience and I would like to get some wisdom from the group. Many times I hear people say "your going to pay now or pay later" so thats somewhat weighing into my decision, however do you think its a good or bad idea to buy new for your first boat?

 

[LippCJ7]

Re: Buy New for First Boat - Good Idea or Not?

My personal opinion is buying a first boat new is comparable to clinical insanity, if you would like I can arrange someone to come over and kick you in the junk instead of you driving that new boat off the dealership floor and loosing 15% of the value of the boat, you make the choice.

Its your first boat, get to know some boat people here in your area and ask someone to help you make an educated decision on a quality used boat at a decent price, learn to boat for a season or two and sell your boat for close to what you bought it for and then go buy the boat you want knowing that your now an educated boater that is unlikely to bang your boat up on a dock and have the knowledge needed to properly take care of the boat of your dreams. People rarely get the boat they are truely happy with the first time, this is twofootitis, in this economy you will take too much of a loss in couple years with a new boat and the realization hits you that you would rather have another boat, you will be stuck with a boat you are unhappy with.

 

[Mikeyboy]

Re: Buy New for First Boat - Good Idea or Not?

How much boating experience do you have? One problem with a new boat would be to lay out all that money and than make a "rookie" mistake and damage a expensive new boat. Another problem would be to spend a lot of money and than realize that you bought the wrong type of boat for your needs. I personally like getting something older (and cheaper) but if you are not willing or able to do the work on an older boat that can get quite expensive too if you have to pay someone every time something goes wrong. So in my opinion what you really need to do is some serious thinking about your needs and abilitys. If you really have no desire to work on a boat and you are sure of what kind of boat you want I don't really see a problem with buying new.

 

[hillbilly321]

Re: Buy New for First Boat - Good Idea or Not?

My personal opinion is buying a first boat new is comparable to clinical insanity, if you would like I can arrange someone to come over and kick you in the junk instead of you driving that new boat off the dealership floor and loosing 15% of the value of the boat, you make the choice.

LOL, I'll pass on the b@ll kicking thank you very much!

So far, I have not been able to find a decent used boat or I would certainly go that route. The boat is for skiing / lounging on my local lake (i.e. leisure), and I have enough projects to do and certainly don't want another one.

 

[drrpm]

Re: Buy New for First Boat - Good Idea or Not?

There are advantages in buying a new boat such as the warranty and the fact that nobody has banged it up or abused it but they come at a steep price. As a new boater you're likely to have a variety of minor mishaps before you really get the hang of handling the boat yourself. Even if you have experience on other people's boats it's not the same as being the captain. Then there is the possibility that boating isn't what you thought it would be or the boat or some feature isn't quite optimal for you're actual use. If you buy used, you can probably sell it for close to what you paid. There are lots of boats around and the economy is still soft so an almost new boat can be had at significant savings. I bought a year old boat via a marina from a guy with the dreaded 2 footitis, got a lot more boat for my money and didn't feel as bad when I suffered my first few mishaps.

 

[tpenfield]

Re: Buy New for First Boat - Good Idea or Not?

If it works for you, then you should consider it. Besides buying a new boat is good for the economy.

There are a few disadvantages, but I would not say that they are clinical insanity. It is situational, so you should be advised and make a decision accordingly.

On the Plus side:

- No wear and tear to worry about . . . you get to make all the bumps and bruises in the thing.

-Warranty - you might actually get something fixed for free.

- Latest features and gadgets.

On the down side:

- Depreciation - there will be lots of it. You should be prepared to loose a lot of value in the first few years. That is why used boats are attractive to many.

- Some new boats are no more reliable than used boats.

- Smaller boat . . . your buying power is less in the new market, therefore the boat you get will be smaller and perhaps less feature rich.

So those are the basics. If you are a newbie and buying new, you might want to start out small anyway, just as long as you are aware of the financials.

 

[coastalrichard]

Re: Buy New for First Boat - Good Idea or Not?

Tpenfield mentioned one thing that I'll expand on. I have two friends that insisted they wanted new so everything worked. Couldn't have been worse for both of them. The live well on one leaked and it took MANY trips of 250 miles to the dealer to get it worked out. The other had a ghost in the electrical; again lots of down time at the shop.

All boats have their quirks, so why not let the PO work em out while he eats the depreciation?

 

[robert graham]

Re: Buy New for First Boat - Good Idea or Not?

Can you stand that first depreciation as soon as you drive it off the lot?...it's like with buying a new car, only worse! Find some guy who "just had to have a boat", bought it, used it a few times, now has lost interest, no place to store it, his wife hates it, got a divorce, just "wants to get shed of it quickly"....make him an offer, save lots of $$$ over a new boat! Good Luck!

 

[RotaryRacer]

Re: Buy New for First Boat - Good Idea or Not?

Find a used $10k boat and set aside $5000 for repairs. Start a relationship with a local service department and let them go over your boat. Likely they will only find $1000 worth of repairs and you will still have $4000 in your pocket for repairs/maintenance next season.

Once you get all your learning out of the way (3 seasons minimum) sell that $10k boat and buy a $15k boat that is bigger/newer or better fits your needs and do the same thing.

 

[hnt]

Re: Buy New for First Boat - Good Idea or Not?

I am not a fan of buying new.

Boats are different than cars and in many cases the first year of service is full of problems.

In addition, buying a first boat is a guess as far as your mission is concerned. If you buy a used boat you can likely recoup most of your money if you guess wrong. (You might find that 18' is pretty small after a short while and 20' or 22' is what you really want or need.)

I bought a 1996 Pursuit Denali last year that was in very good shape. Most people who see it think it is 4 or 5 years old. I had it compounded and detailed by a pro and put in new cushions and it looks almost new. I have brought it up to my high standards mechanically and I have full confidence in what I have. I knew exactly what I wanted in a boat when I bought this one becasue of years of experience and owning boats but if I wanted to sell her I could get my money back easily.

I have way under $20K into it.

For me, I really enjoy learning, tinkering and improving.
This isnt for everyone but I have been able to afford reliable, really nice boats over the years that I would not have been able to have if I bought new.

Good luck with your decision!!!!

 

[81 Checkmate]

Re: Buy New for First Boat - Good Idea or Not?

Hillbilly,
Just looked at the columbus craigslist - as you were saying not much out there.

Have you tried the cincinnati craigslist yet? there seams to be better choice down here.
I know that you not looking for an older boat, but you may find a sweet deal at $ 7500 to $15000

I dont know how to do the transfer thing, but here is an example

1998 WELLCRAFT BOWRIDER 21 ft. - $7995 (ERLANGER) pic

Good luck!

 

[BRICH1260]

Re: Buy New for First Boat - Good Idea or Not?

Expand your Craigslist search or try an Ebay search. It might be worth a three hour drive to find exactly what you want in your price range.

 

[hillbilly321]

Re: Buy New for First Boat - Good Idea or Not?

- Some new boats are no more reliable than used boats.

Wow, I would have assumed that, generally, a new boat would be much more sound mechanically. I'm quite surprised at the number of comments of people that have issues with a new boat the first year. Who would have known they can be just as bad as a used boat! Go figure....

 

[Maclin]

Re: Buy New for First Boat - Good Idea or Not?

A lot of the quality depends on how good the dealer is, how engaged they are with the customer's experience.

If you insist on a water trial for a couple of hours, including operator instruction and full feature demonstrations.

An in-law had bought a new brand name boat from a large chain like BassPro or Cabela's. They were not close to the place and did not get the boat checked out on the water. The livewell plumbig was not completed and they almost sank the boat as the bilge pump was not keeping up. Had they bought friom a fully engaged dealer and had the boat on the water long enough to find problems then their experience would have been much better. The boat is really good now, but they had to go back to the manufacturer to get the issues addressed.

 

[BTMCB]

Re: Buy New for First Boat - Good Idea or Not?

All great, solid advice above. But, let me give you another perspective. I bought a new boat in 2009 - it was a 2008 left over so I negotiated a great deal on it. I simply wanted new (unlike most) and was very happy with the boat. Enjoyed it very much for 2 years and used the heck out of it - about 190 hours. Kept it spotless and well maintained. Decided I wanted to upgrade, so in August last year I bought another new boat. I got within 1,000.00 of what I bought the first boat for it in trade in and got a decent deal on the cost of the new Chap as well. Have used the heck out of the Chap - up to about 51 hours now. Have not a single serious issue with either new boat and never had to cancel an outing due to a "problem". I have never second guessed myself buying new (boats or cars) and have gotten exactly what I was looking, and hoping, for each time.............peace of mind and problem free boating. Good luck with your search whichever way YOU decide to go.

 

[2ndtry]

Re: Buy New for First Boat - Good Idea or Not?

I'll be the contrarian here.

I bought new, and I'm glad I did. I was in the exact same position you are, I wanted a fairly new (non-project) boat in good condition. I looked all summer for a good used boat (2-5 years old) and just couldn't find any in decent shape that didn't want near full price. Most of the boats that the owner had lost interest in using the owner seemed to have also lost interest in keeping covered!. The boats were trashed. I built a shed specifically to house the boat and had no intention of putting a waterlogged boat in it.

Long story short, by the fall I had grown pretty discouraged. Then the new boat prices started falling. By November I found a new boat advertised for 5K less than the summer price, near what I was seeing for 5 y/o trashed boats. Pulled the trigger, never looked back. That was 2006, and the boat has been sound (its a Hurricane deck boat), no issues. I know its been well maintained, no surprises, and no huge depreciation.

To sum up: Not a kick in the nuts!

 

[tpenfield]

Re: Buy New for First Boat - Good Idea or Not?

If I had the $$$$$$, I'd definitely buy a new boat. . . Probably with the plan of keeping it for a while. Maybe a Formula 292 would be nice

 

[hog88]

Re: Buy New for First Boat - Good Idea or Not?

Myself I prefer buying new (boats) cars can go either way. Bought my first boat in 2000, it was a 1999 21' deck boat, zero major issues and loved that boat. Sold it for 10k less than I paid for it last July, 11 years of heavy use but well taken care of. Upgraded to a 27' bowrider, new, and got a GREAT deal. Figure if I can keep this one in as good of shape as I did my last one I'll be in a cruiser in another 10 to 11 years.

 

[JimS123]

Re: Buy New for First Boat - Good Idea or Not?

Personally, I don't buy anything used unless its an antique. That goes for boats and cars alike. But then again, I know what I want and need and I keep my stuff a long time. Depreciation is just a word that equates to the extra cost of a warranty and an unmolested boat.

If you are a beginner and not sure, go the used route. But only buy from a dealer with a warranty. And remember that the only reason you got it is because it wasn't good enough for somebody else!

 

[TheNoachSHO]

Re: Buy New for First Boat - Good Idea or Not?

Let me give you my 2cents!

I bought my first boat as a 2009 Bayliner 175. Yes not the most expensive but I love it. The piece of mind was well worth. not to mention the killer deal I got on it. To me KNOWING I could use it with on issues for the first few years was worth it and it has worked out well. I'm also very anal about maintence and I simply don't trust anyone else, too many hackers out there. I've done everything by the book and have reciepts from day one to show it, should I ever sell it I look at it as an investment that the next owner can feel secure knowing it's been taken care of and maybe net me a few extra bucks.

Granted I have good mechanical sense and knowledge but this being my first boat I did do a few dumb moves in the first year but nothing big and nothing anyone would ever notice (unless they were on-board). I suggest you read, read, and read again about everyones elses dumb dumb moves. Especially about launching/recovery ediquette.

I say if you can afford it, go for it. It's not like your going to buy it and be upset that you've got really nice, reliable boat.