Long time lurker, first time poster so I'll get right down to it...
I've been looking around for a good deal on an early 2000's Outlaw 29 when I came across an OL33 with an asking price around the neighborhood of most OL29's I've seen.
At first glance I thought the seller made a typo in the listing (the price is that low) but it turns out the seller is a boat yard with a brick and mortar retail store and service center and the boat is bank owned (read: "repo").

Since this yard is located some 400 miles from where I live, I had to do a little due diligence from afar and it seems they are reputable. I called around some local marine surveyors and was told that they're a well known place and often deal in bank owned boats, some good some bad. Nonetheless, I was still dubious, so to beat the wheat from the chaff I contacted this shop to ask some basic questions about the boat. In our conversation I told them that if I would make an offer on this boat it would be contingent upon the results of a marine survey, compression/leak down test and sea trial -- the guy did not balk.

So here are my questions to the Offshoreonly community...
The boat is a 2002 Outlaw 33 with 496 HO's with less than 500 hours. She's missing a few small things that would be no big deal to replace such as covers, cockpit carpet, etc. She doesn't come with a trailer therefore cost of shipping is a factor (I would keep her dry stacked at my local marina). For the sake of this conversation let's assume the marine survey doesn't turn up anything of concern and compression test and leak down show good cylinder sealing...what would be other areas of concern that I should focus on?
Should I be concerned that the former owner put no electronics on her? Not even a VHF?
Should I be concerned that the engine cowlings on the 496's are missing and the OEM flame arrestors / air filters have been replaced with something aftermarket?
Is there anything specific I can look at in the Bravo 1's that would give me a hint as to their condition? The price is so good that even if the motors needed a little refresh it might still be worth it but I wouldn't want to have to replace a drive.
Is there anything you might add to the basic sea trial check list?
Is there anything else I might want to check on the engine besides compression and leak down?

This would be my first dual engine go fast boat coming from 25 footer with a single 454/B3. I thought moving to a 29 would be a natural step but I just can't seem to ignore this potential deal. Any advice is greatly appreciated.

Most marine surveyors wont do the engine, drive testing, a good marine mechanic is needed for that, definitely check for moisture, transom, stringers, you can also pull the back cap off the drives and check for pitting on the gears....Sea trial is a must, I owned a 33 OL for several years, you'll like it if you buy it. theses have not been built for a long time so finding parts is almost impossible.

My only concern with bank owned assets is if the owner didn't have enough money for the payment, then did they probably weren't spending the money to maintain it. Good news is with a boat, they probably weren't using it anyway unlike a car. I would get a survey and compression check and sea trial and let it ride. If all 3 check out it I would personally buy it. If any/all fail walk away.

Have you looked at the boat personally? In my personal experience, the 33' Baja is incredibly frustrating to work on. The bilge is very, very tight, and quite deep. If you plan on doing your own maintenance, you will need patience. If you plan to have it worked on by a mechanic, he better be a little guy with long arms.

If you need carpet and a cover XT-Innovations in Ohio would be the place to talk to, they could help you locate other Baja parts since they worked for Baja till they moved to Fountian!

No electronics is no big deal. I never bought a boat that had electronics. Lots of people know their lake - why bother.
The MagHo cowling gets replaced all the time. No big deal.
The air filter should be changed back to original but makes no difference.

Was it a boat from one of the storms last year? Flood damaged ?
Check the stringers for moisture. If it was outside it could have some wood rot. They are the only things I would worry about.

Someone could have put the 500 EFI air filter on, which is an oval K&N filter.

Good point Jim. If someone put the K&N flame arrestor on, the factory 496 covers would no longer fit unless you cut them back a little.
However, some testing was done a few years ago that THE BEST flame arrestor for the 496HO was actually the factory metal mesh setup. K&N and several other aftermarket options were tested. It may have been Teague? I can't remember the details, but it was some well documented data. I just remember the factory setup was best; which makes sense since it is just open metal mesh, not cotton or the like.

There was also a 33' Outlaw some time back that had physical hull damage due to an accident and/or bottom strike. It was parted out, and there at least a couple threads about it. There could be some parts floating around.

Yep, the stock is the best for power. I tested it 5 years ago. Its faster, hands down.

What is this boat missing? The only three things that would be a pain in the butt are the anchor locker cover, hatch covers, and engine vents.
Of course you could make your own that would get you bye but its still not a deal killer.
Windscreen you can get from Fountain.

I am pretty sure you can still get aftermarket engine vents. You might be able to get hatch covers.
Anchor locker cover - good luck with that one...

what year did they put an anchor locker in a 33 OL, never seen one