Very well put.

I, like Scott, conduct a luxury item business (custom pool construction). There' no differences in the comparisons here on the performance boats or any boat and a custom pool builder or a motorhome dealership. Except that I didn't have to pay for a bunch of inventory losing value annually. I construct on a per contract basis.

I've told buyers exactly this same thing I quoted Scott on since the end of 2008. My costs on building materials (rebar, concrete, bullnosed brick and pool tiles, etc...) has raised several times since then and my margin since then has tanked.

I looked for almost a year before offering a contract on a performance sport cruiser. It wasn't truly the most favored boat I wanted but I had to be practical, a cash purchase was a must. If I couldn't get a 700+ score financed on a new pool contruction loan at least a half dozen times last year why would it be different on a boat. And, equally, I was totally unwilling to take on any note for the boat purchase.

Selling pools has been the same, target the higher end neighborhoods, cut your markup to the bone, and perform your services for the love of the sport and not for addtional profitability. All business owners know pretty much what it takes to keep the company in the game without risking going under.
Pool buyers also know that the pool loses value bigtime and only helps for a quicker resell when they relocate.
Once we business owners and our customer base realize these things it's somewhat easier to close our deals.

See ya,
Kelly

perform your services for the love of the sport and not for addtional profitability


try telling that one to the Bank when the mortgage payment is due ,or the gal at the cash register when you got 6 bags of groceries .....

well said even though business men are keeping there bottom line closer to profit now doesnt mean they are working for free dont let them fool you. Alot of people still making good money out there. You obviously have to have some money to get a boat or custom pool, or you are a fool and taking out 15 year plus loans on these things.

Case in point my uncle who will remain unamed works for a business and made 400k a year well two years ago he had to tak a a 75k pay cut to keep his job. He would whine and cry but still be out buying crap. It's always funny to see different perspectives, i mean his pay cut is as much as lot of us make.

Everything is relative in boat buying. I mean you have to factor in age, interest, money, family, job, etc. Ive seen guys with beautiful boat and do a ton of other things and live nicely. But more often than not I see people with nice boat that have a less than average home junk cars, and do or have nothing else. Plus the way credit is handed out like candy lately people these days can live way above their pay check.

I have a different view than most on this subject. I'm on my 5th boat and have sold my previous 4 for more than what I paid for them. All between 1999 and 2010. I make sure when I purchase a boat it's one I can afford and like if I cannot sell. That could be another reason you see a lot for sale for a long time. Some people honestly don't care if it never sells, like me. But if you have a good boat at a good price it will. Basic maintenance and elbow grease can go a long way.

I don't necessarily make a lot of money doing this when you add up the expenses involved in boating. But it makes this hobby a lot more affordable in the $40-60K niche I'm comfortable playing in.

$hit is always going to happen for some; divorce, job loss, etc. There have and will be plenty of people that NEED to get out of a boat. There has always been a buyer's market out there. My take on selling is have a boat priced towards the lower end of the spectrum and make sure it out shines all other competition.

That's just good sense. I do it the same way. I have NEVER bought a new boat. But I know some fine service people, one of them myself!

I've always done this with my stuff I always buy the best toy for the cheapest price I do a lot of shopping for my toys before i buy and am willing to drive a little. I have never lost money on a toy and sometime have gained a little money on every toy I have had. I never buy something without comparing, is mechanically broken or worth less than the asking price. Some of the things Ive bought cheap were simple wash and wax things or simple cheap cosmetic fixes. Theres a lot of toys out there that people dont wash wax or clean and wont do it even when they do to sell it

Yes, owners that need to sell need to let the price drop a bit more...
However, the "buyers" out there need to offer a bit more... There is still the thought that boats can be had for pennies.. Some can, but many of the good deals are gone...
Remember the crazy frenzy of repos and people scraping up great deals???? I don't want to say that it is over, but I will say that most of the GOOD Boats have all been taken.

If they are handing out credit out like candy...I'm moving to New York! Around here you better have a debt to income ratio of less than 30% with a credit score above 700 for them to even talk to you. Banks are being stingy as hell with the money they loan because of all the people that burn them with foreclosure and bankruptcy. I am one of those "idiots" that finances a boat among other things but i have good enough credit to have low interest rates. Id much rather have the money sitting in the bank to pay my bills in case i got hurt and couldnt work for some reason instead of having it sitting in a boat that i couldnt use or likely sell. I bought my last boat $5k under comparable boats, did some serious detail work on it, used the hell out of it for a summer and sold it for what i payed for it a week after i listed. i put a very attractive price on it because i put an offer on a boat for $10k below market value on another boat with fresh power to boot

+1, Does it suprise me that a dealer is trying to get people to accept lower offers on the premise of "reality" so that he can pad his own pocket, nope. Piss poor article IMO Trulio and very disrespectful, curious how much Shogren had to pay it. I'm sure you guys talk chit about boat owners all day, but no need to write an article about it and publish it on this site.

Not everyone pisses away hours every day looking for bottom prices. When a wealthy buyer finds something they want they will buy it, period. I helped someone last year overpay for a houseboat. Time is money, they didn't feel like shopping for another month and they certainly didn't enjoy dicking with dealers or serveyors or the hour and half driving trips to go see a boat without driving away in it.

I could be wrong, but isn't Scott saying just the opposite in the article and in the quote from above?