How much is a used boat worth? How to work out a fair price

Every used boat has three prices. The asking price is the seller's hope. The market price is what similar boats actually sell for. And your price is the market price minus everything this particular boat needs. Your offer should come from the third one.

Asking prices aren't selling prices

The prices on listing sites are asking prices, and boats very often sell for less, sometimes a little, sometimes a lot, depending on the season and how long the boat has been listed. Sold prices are harder to find, but they're what matter:

• Brokers can see sold data. The main broker listing systems record sale prices, and a buyer's broker can pull "sold comps" for your model. Many listing brokers will share them if you ask.
• Value guides. Lenders, insurers and tax assessors use published guides such as the BUC Used Boat Price Guide and J.D. Power (formerly NADA) marine values. California's tax board built its vessel depreciation factors from those guides.¹ They're a starting point, but they can't see condition.
• The survey. A pre-purchase survey includes the surveyor's opinion of fair market value, and your lender will usually lend against it. See boat survey cost.
• Owners' associations. Members often share what boats actually sold for.

Build your own comparables

1. Find five to ten comparable boats: the same model or a very close one, within about three model years, with similar engines.
2. Write down for each: year, asking price, engine make and hours, major recent work (repower, rigging, canvas, electronics), location, freshwater or salt, and how long it's been listed.
3. Throw out the oddballs: project boats and fully restored show boats.
4. Look at the middle of the pack. The middle half of the prices tells you more than the cheapest and dearest.
5. Knock something off for asking versus selling, especially on boats that have sat on the market a long time.

The spread between boats of the same model is usually condition, engines and equipment, not the year.

Your price: the defect-adjusted value

Your price = market value in good condition − cost of the survey findings − big items due in the next year or two − a margin for the unknown.

• Survey findings are the safety and recommended items, priced with real quotes, not guesses.
• Big items coming due are things a well-kept comparable boat wouldn't need yet: rigging past its life, worn-out sails, shredded canvas, a high-hour outboard, obsolete electronics.
• The unknown margin covers what the survey couldn't see. Small on a well-documented boat, bigger on an older boat with little history.

An example

Say comparable well-kept 32-foot sailboats are selling for around $30,000. Your surveyor found a few problems and you've gathered quotes. These numbers are an illustration, not prices for your boat:

If the seller is asking $27,500, that gap isn't you being cheap. It's the boat's real condition, documented and priced. Our guide to negotiating a boat price shows how to present it so the seller sees it too.

Sellers price boats by what they've put into them. Buyers should price them by what they'll have to put into them.

What adds value, and what doesn't

These genuinely move the price:

• Engines: a recent repower with receipts, or low-hour engines with full service records
• Structure: dry decks and hull, no blister problem, tanks recently replaced
• Major recent work with receipts: new standing rigging, sails, canvas, a bottom done to bare glass with an epoxy barrier coat
• Where she lived: freshwater, covered storage or a lift
• Paperwork: receipts, manuals and a logbook
• Demand: popular, well-supported models resell faster and closer to asking

Brand reputation shows up in resale. In a BoatUS look at J.D. Power values for 2016 dayboats, a Boston Whaler 170 Montauk had lost only about 11 percent of its original base price, a Grady-White Freedom 255 about 24 percent, and a Key West 170 center console about 47 percent.²

These add much less than owners think:

• Older electronics, which age and go obsolete quickly
• Personal upgrades: custom upholstery, unusual colors, owner-built additions
• Lots of extras a buyer doesn't need
• Cosmetic polish over tired systems

Location and season

The same boat can be worth noticeably different amounts in different regions. Saltwater boats from hot climates often bring less than identical freshwater boats from the north, and late fall and winter in cold climates often bring motivated sellers. See where to buy a used boat.

Common questions

How do I find out what a boat sold for?

Ask a broker for sold comparables, check value guides, and ask the model's owners' association. Your surveyor's report will also include a fair market value.

Is NADA (J.D. Power) value accurate for boats?

It's a useful starting point that lenders and insurers use, but it can't see condition. Two boats with the same guide value can be worth very different amounts once engines, structure and records are counted.

How much below asking should I offer on a used boat?

There's no magic percentage. Start from your defect-adjusted price and make sure every dollar of your offer has a reason you can show. See how to negotiate a boat price.