nada guides and negotiating

[whirledPeas]

Hello,
I have been watching our local craigslist and boattrader for some time and have seen sellers with asking prices that are way over the nadaguides.

We are looking for a 2005-2007 21-22ft "couch boat." Monterey, Chaparral, Larson, Sea Ray, Maxum, Four winns would all fit this. They all have the engine and drive we'd like. On the nada guides the most expensive we find is about $25K but most are around $18K to $20K. Some CL adds are asking $33K! I can buy a new boat with the same features for almost that price.

Is Nada that far off? Am I being unrealistic to expect to pay the NADA price? Should we show them the NADA sheet detail and say we will pay a certain percentage over?

Thanks for looking. I know this is a repeated topic but I didn't quite get the answers exactly.

 

[CAVU V]

Re: nada guides and negotiating

They can ask any price, doesn't mean they are going to get it. Make an offer, you can always walk away.

 

[Rwebber77]

Re: nada guides and negotiating

Agreed, the most they can say is no to an offer. The problem with NADA is that its purely subjective to so many unknown variables (region, condition, hours, etc) so the price can fluctuate a considerable amount in either direction. When I purchased my boat I was lucky enough to find an unlucky seller going through financial hardship and he was selling quite a bit lower than it's NADA book value.

Now I've heard through the grapevine (and I hope someone with more knowledge either confirms or rejects this) that ABOS marine pricing is much more accurate than NADA, but it comes with a hefty subscription fee.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: nada guides and negotiating

a lot of those people are trying to get you to pay off their loans. little to no down payment, now they are upside down in their boat.

 

[RickJ6956]

Re: nada guides and negotiating

a lot of those people are trying to get you to pay off their loans. little to no down payment, now they are upside down in their boat.

That and trading up over the years.

The NADA value is used by quite a few financing institutions to determine how much they will lend. (This held true with my purchases even though the professional surveys valued the boats quite a bit higher.)

Sellers also tend to include the new purchase prices of electronics and other accessories in their calculations -- stuff that is pretty much worthless after a couple of years.

The price of a boat is rarely determined by book value. It is determined by a seller agreeing to a buyer's offer.

 

[GeneH]

Re: nada guides and negotiating

I seem to find the NAPA prices very low for all the things I am interested in. Check out what they think clean Johnsons and Evinrudes twenty years old are worth then try to buy one for that price. I like the 80's aluminum Starcrafts and the prices they list will only buy really tired stuff needing complete refurbishing, not nice clean stuff ready to go. I think the previous comment about these being bank loan values are probably accurate. All this said, the used boat market looks pretty depressed to me right now. The unemployed rate, high gas prices, tight loans, all these may make the NADA values closer now than they have been in the past. Who knows?

 

[tawood]

Re: nada guides and negotiating

And remember: the ones on craigslist are the ones that ARE NOT selling....the ad you see on craigslist right after it is written, then when you check back a few hours later and it is gone (because it was quickly sold), was the good deal.
Remember with craigslist, you don't pay a penny for an ad, so why not list it high?

 

[whirledPeas]

Re: nada guides and negotiating

Bubba and others,
This is great information. My husband and I researched and speculated much of what many of you said. Hearing it from a group in-the-know is helpful. Here is AZ, we don't winterize boats and not many can live on a lake so wear and tear and hours are both worth adding to a NADA amount.

Also, I find that boat brokers and dealers selling used boats are much more reasonable when setting prices so we are now tending away from private sellers even though there is a tax premium on a business sold boat.
-Sally

 

[tawood]

Re: nada guides and negotiating

Just my $.02 worth. Unless you are in a real hurry, keep watching CL and local adds, something always comes along.

Bubba hits the nail on the head...the secret to a good deal is TIME! Take your time, and you can find a good deal. Get in a hurry, and you're most likely to get ripped off.
My best friend lives in "the now". When he wants something, he has to get it NOW, RIGHT NOW! I've been friends with him for almost 20 years, and he has literaly never, ever, gotten a good deal.

 

[airdvr1227]

Re: nada guides and negotiating

NADA is for the banks so they can decide how much is too much to loan you. Those figures were used during the conception of the TARP program last year . Go with what's happening at the local level, throw out the high and the low, and go with your gut feeling.

 

[nitsuj]

Re: nada guides and negotiating

Like my dad always told me "I don't care what some Blue Book says, a thing is worth what someone will pay for it."

Funny thing is, now, you're looking at the Blue Book thinking that people are nuts for selling their boats so far above book value. When you go to sell the boat you're buying now, you may start a thread complaining that NADA lists your boat for WAY less than it's actually worth. We can more than book for our trade ins and we want to pay less than book for our used boats. Like everyone else said, time is your friend. You want the hot deal? Wait until the season is almost over. You want a boat for this spring? Guess what, everyone else wants that too. And lots of demand with little supply means you'll pay what they want. Wait until no one is buying boats and lots of people are selling (late in the season) and you'll get to bargain shop. Or, forget about the Blue Book. Forget it exists. Decide what the boat you want is worth to YOU and find a boat with what you want for the price you'll pay. Good luck. ;-)

 

[trendsetter240]

Re: nada guides and negotiating

Like my dad always told me "I don't care what some Blue Book says, a thing is worth what someone will pay for it."

This is very true. I have done a lot of buying and selling on craigslist and ebay. Most people list the boat for the first time way above actual resale value.

It takes time and is a hard lesson to learn that the boat that you put 25k in is only worth 14k to someone else. Nada is a decent benchmark price in most areas. There will always be regional differences, that is up to you as a local to figure out.

In the end, it will come down to what is it worth to you.