How To Sell Used Boats
Alot of people want to know how to sell their used boats. They may wish to sell the boat, because of money issues (like paying school/university fees, mortgage or insurance premiums) or because they never use it and it is draining the family income, because of insurance costs, marina costs and maintenance costs.
Whatever you reasons, don't hang onto your boat in the hope that your money issues may go away very soon. That is gambling and if you don't even use it, because of time issues, you probably didn't plan your purchase very well.
So if you want to sell you boat, make sure you do it as soon as possible. The longer you hang on to your boat the less you will get from it. A boat is like a car: it devalues over time. So first tip is to sell it as soon as possible. The moment you see that you will not be able to use it for more than 6-12 months is the time to sell.
If you sell your boat with in 1 year of purchase the boat may only devalue £500-£1,000 in dinghies and £5,000-£10,000 in yachts. But after this period the price you can sell at will drop substantially like a snowball rolling down a hill. Just 2 years your purchase will only be 3/4 of the value you bought at and 3 or more years it will be below 1/2 the value you bought at.
In a yacht especially, these are significant amounts of money, so when you see the warning signs that you aren't using your yacht for very much, sell as quickly as possible.
But, by saying sell as quickly as possible, it doesn't mean sell it at any price, anywhere, to anyone. You must still make sure you get a good price for it. It is usually a good idea to sell your boat through a dealership or broker who will value your boat and sell it off for a small fee as quickly as possible.
Going it alone is harder, but you still have options, like eBay and boat classifieds. Make sure that you put your boat up on a reputable classifieds sites otherwise your advert will be ignored. Craig's List is a good website to go for, for classifieds.
Do not put up ridiculous prices, because this will mean it will take too long to sell, or it won't. On the other hand, don't put it too low else you will get less than you could have got.
It is a tricky balance, but that is the price of doing it on your own. Check out my Used Boat Price Guide to help you find the correct price to sell your boat at. At the same time check 'boats for sale' websites in order to compare the price you want to sell at and see if it is realistic or idealistic or if you can increase it more.
If all this seems to hard and you feel like you can't be bothered, then think again. The more time you wait, the less you will get out of your investment. Motivate yourself by thinking how much money you will lose if you aren't fast enough.
Don't put it off! Do it now!
Return from Sell Used Boats to Used Boats
Return from Sell Used Boats to Started Sailing
