Depreciation of a Beneteau!

[Zagato]

I have spent a while this afternoon reading threads from roughly 10 years ago. I am new to boat market prices but it seems that some marques have hardly depreciated at all in this time e.g. Contessa's, Saddler's etc. They are still selling at 30-40K. I maybe wrong but this seems to be the same rough price bracket as 10 years ago!

Question, how much is a New Beneteau of roughly 32' new and how much will it lose in a 5 year, 10 year and 20 year period if they go back that far?

 

[Twister_Ken]

New Benny Oceanis 31 £83K special offer

Year 2000 Benny Oceanis 311 - £42,000

Also at Ancasta

 

[asteven221]

The older boats you describe will have already depreciated in price then stabilised as inflation has pushed up the new prices of equivalent models. Then quite often the prices slowly increase in market value the older they get - up to a point of course. That is a general trend but it's not an exact science.

I think about 10 years is the tipping point when a boat finishes depreciating and then stabilises, before a slow increase takes place. The increase can often make them more expensive then what they were when they were brand new. To my mind that is one of boatings saving graces, as everything else costs a blooming fortune!

Beneteau yachts don't seem any different to any other mainstream builder in that respect, at least from what I have seen.

If you spend a bit of time on the internet looking for prices of 32 foot Beneteaus from say brand new fully commissioned, and say 2010 (nearly new/demo), then 2005, 2000, 1995 and 1990, you will soon get a feel for how they depreciate. I am sure that with a bit of detective work you will be able to find out the prices of each model when they were new and then make a comparison.

From your question I assume that you are looking to buy a Beneteau and are considering the amount you are likely to lose on the capital cost of the boat when it's resale time. My view is that you won't lose much if anything and might actually gain a profit over a longer period. However you will have to look after it, fix things and upgrade equipment from time to time which can be an expensive affair.

I am sure others will be along soon to offer their valuable advice. I hope what I have said helps.

 

[sailorman]

i bought my boat 13 yrs ago ( second owner ) & paid 20% more than when she was new 18 yrs previous

 

[Otter]

i bought my boat 13 yrs ago ( second owner ) & paid 20% more than when she was new 18 yrs previous

A misleading example because inflation has reduced the value of those punds by 75%. How much did a nice 3 bed semi cost in 1979? How much did a new car cost in 1979?

as for the comparison with Contessa's - how much would a new one be? In fact I think you can still buy a new Con - £96k as I remember. Makes the Benny look just fine by comparison, plus you actually get a loo that's separated from the sleeping cabin by more than a curtain

 

[sailorman]

A misleading example because inflation has reduced the value of those punds by 75%. How much did a nice 3 bed semi cost in 1979? How much did a new car cost in 1979?

as for the comparison with Contessa's - how much would a new one be? In fact I think you can still buy a new Con - £96k as I remember. Makes the Benny look just fine by comparison, plus you actually get a loo that's separated from the sleeping cabin by more than a curtain

Owned a Co32 for 12 yrs too & you can keep the Bathroom & Kitchen in a Bendy Toy

 

[doug748]

........hardly depreciated at all in this time e.g. Contessa's, Saddler's etc. They are still selling at 30-40K. I maybe wrong but this seems to be the same rough price bracket as 10 years ago!

Question, how much is a New Beneteau of roughly 32' new and how much will it lose in a 5 year, 10 year and 20 year period if they go back that far?

That's right.

Prices fall to a certain level and then stick. The price of a secondhand Westerly Centaur has hovered around 10k since the 1970's. Of course this ignores the true value of money and we must discount individual poor examples of any class.
Your Beneteau will depreciate to a certain extent then inflation will come to its aid, and the onward march of new boat costs will tend to sustain it.

So generally speaking your Sadler and Contessa will plod along in their groove and the Beneteau in a furrow of its own.

PS
I must dispute your figures a bit. A sound, medium size, Contessa or Sadler can be had for under £30k, though I admit asking prices are often a bit florid.

and:
Muddy Paws
A new Contessa 32 would be in the region of £150,000, provided you did not overdo it on the extras list.

 

[sailorman]

That's right.

Prices fall to a certain level and then stick. The price of a secondhand Westerly Centaur has hovered around 10k since the 1970's. Of course this ignores the true value of money and we must discount individual poor examples of any class.
Your Beneteau will depreciate to a certain extent then inflation will come to its aid, and the onward march of new boat costs will tend to sustain it.

So generally speaking your Sadler and Contessa will plod along in their groove and the Beneteau in a furrow of its own.

PS
I must dispute your figures a bit. A sound, medium size, Contessa or Sadler can be had for under £30k, though I admit asking prices are often a bit florid.

and:
Muddy Paws
A new Contessa 32 would be in the region of £150,000, provided you did not overdo it on the extras list.

they even do a nice shade of Eco Green too

 

[Zagato]

From your question I assume that you are looking to buy a Beneteau and are considering the amount you are likely to lose on the capital cost of the boat when it's resale time.

Thanks for your replies, I am at the other end of the scale window shopping around the 30' mark and just trying to understand how the second hand yacht market works. It seems very similar to the classic car market although I don't think a DB7 would ever be worth 100K again even with years of inflation.

I have to say I can not understand how a boat can cost 100K+ to build. I don't know the process but could you not compare two 15 foot caravans costing 15K each to a boat. I suspect the mark up is massive on boat components all the way through the build process. I bet you would pay more for one mast compared to two trailers (chassis) for the caravans for instance. The mark up on a relatively small boat over 500K must be huge. You could build three 4 bed houses for the same money without land.

The market value tiers for new boats over a certain price bracket and size must be dictated by how much the next person is willing to spend to get a few feet more not how much more they cost to build - it can be tens of thousands as we know

Correct me if I am wrong on all this but......ultimately it is nice to know at the bottom end of the market you will not lose much money if anything at all if the boat is kept in good condition. I will keep my little 26' for years I am sure and probably won't ever move up but it is nice to imagine owning a 32'. I have even thought about storing mine for a few years whilst I had brief ownership of a 32' but selling my classic car for it would be a no no and whats the point if you are going to return to something more manageable and cheaper to keep.

Apologies for rambling but I'm sure you all understand the desire for a bigger boat. I need to get the hang of mine first. Will a Contessa really be 30K in another 10 years 10K perhaps in real terms after inflation sounds better

 

[Alfie168]

I once did a bit of sailing in a Jeanneau Starlight 30 about 23 years ago. Just occasionally when one comes up for sale I am amazed at how much is being asked for them these days. I quite fancied one until i decided I really couldn't afford it for the use I'd get out of it...So i stick with my little 22 foot Dehler. Sailing is after all sailing at whatever price you pay for it.

Tim

 

[FullCircle]

Will a Contessa really be 30K in another 10 years 10K perhaps in real terms after inflation sounds better

Yes it will. But £30k (read £25k selling price) will be a lot less in 10 years time because of inflation.

I bought an Evo25 for£10k in 1989, will still fetch that now, but it was a lot more then, if you see what I mean.

 

[Spyro]

I have to say I can not understand how a boat can cost 100K+ to build. I don't know the process but could you not compare two 15 foot caravans costing 15K each to a boat. I

I don't think you could. Most of the cost will be in the hull and deck, fibreglass
is very expensive and there is much more of it on a 30ft boat than 2X15ft caravans.

 

[Tranona]

I have to say I can not understand how a boat can cost 100K+ to build. I don't know the process but could you not compare two 15 foot caravans costing 15K each to a boat. I suspect the mark up is massive on boat components all the way through the build process. I bet you would pay more for one mast compared to two trailers (chassis) for the caravans for instance. The mark up on a relatively small boat over 500K must be huge. You could build three 4 bed houses for the same money without land.

Correct me if I am wrong on all this but

If that were the case, why do most boat builders go bust at some time in their history? It is actually surprising that a boat can be built and delivered to where it is used for so litttle! Suggest you cost the materials for your little boat, double it and compare with what you paid - then you will understand why so few of that type of boat are available new!

As to "depreciation" - it can be heavy with a fully fitted new boat in the early years, although the cost of new boats in the last few years has risen so much that losses have been reduced. History shows that monetary values of popular well maintained boats stay much the same over time. However there are always exceptions. custom built boats often take a big hit partly because they are so expensive to build and partly because they often reflect just one person's ideal and so have a limited resale market. I know of one 40 footer that was state of the art when it was built 10 years ago at a rumoured cost of over £500k that barely made £100k when it sold early this year.

You also find some classes of boat become unpopular because of defects, high running costs or simply unfashionable. So, for example a UFO 34 might sell for half the price of a Contessa 32, or Sigma 33, simply because the latter two have very strong class associations and active racing and social scenes.

BTW it is nothing like the Classic Car market, although there are elements in the restored "Classic" boat end where there are similarities with certain types commanding very high prices - enough to justify high cost restorations. Generally though the "mid" market of popular usable boats is pretty stable in terms of values.

 

[alan_d]

Although the past may be the best guide to the future that we have, it is still not a reliable one. After all, the banks (and the Irish) got into the mess they are in by assuming the near future would continue to resemble the immediate past.

 

[zarathustra]

Yes it will. But £30k (read £25k selling price) will be a lot less in 10 years time because of inflation.

something I was asked today

"Did you know that if you had sold your average British house in late 2004 and bought silver - just regular bars of silver - you could now sell that silver and buy 5.5 average British houses?"

 

[AngusMcDoon]

Did you know that if you had sold your average British house in late 2004 and bought silver - just regular bars of silver - you could now sell that silver and buy 5.5 average British houses?

What explains the rise in the last few months?

 

[AngusMcDoon]

As to "depreciation" - it can be heavy with a fully fitted new boat in the early years, although the cost of new boats in the last few years has risen so much that losses have been reduced.

My trimeringue, a model for which there seems to be a consistent demand for second hand boats, cost 67% of the new price when I bought it at 3 years old.

Equivalent ones to mine, now 10 years old, go for the same price as I paid for it, but this is now only 50% of the new price as the new price has increased so much since then. The market for new and used is in €, so the fall in the £/€ exchange rate has been part of the cause of this. The new price in € has also increased considerably in the last 7 years.

I know of one 40 footer that was state of the art when it was built 10 years ago at a rumoured cost of over £500k that barely made £100k when it sold early this year.

Ouch! Should have got a Dragonfly

 

[Twister_Ken]

I have spent a while this afternoon reading threads from roughly 10 years ago. I am new to boat market prices but it seems that some marques have hardly depreciated at all in this time e.g. Contessa's, Saddler's etc. They are still selling at 30-40K. I maybe wrong but this seems to be the same rough price bracket as 10 years ago!

Question, how much is a New Beneteau of roughly 32' new and how much will it lose in a 5 year, 10 year and 20 year period if they go back that far?

Another point - the 'dealer' price of a new boat is not the cost of the boat as you want it. Options and extra equipment can easily add 10-20% to the dealer price.

Whereas a used boat will come with most of the kit you might want included in the price (although it may be semi-knackered and require eventual replacement, but at least you can spread that cost over a few seasons)

 

[Bosun Higgs]

Correct me if I am wrong on all this

You are wrong so I'm correcting you! The evidence is the financial returns made ( or to be more accurate, not made) by boatbuilders over the years. They all end up in financial trouble, as Bavaria did a year or so ago.

It's a low volume, labour intensive business that requires a high mark up just to break even. Classic luxury goods industry.

 

[robp]

Not 32' I know but - when I bought my Beneteau 36CC new in 1998, a Moody 36CC if I remember correctly, was 35K more expensive. I could have waited a while and got the Moody but decided I was spending enough as it was. It seems now that the Moody is selling (or advertised) for about 35K more than the Beneteau.

Very simplified comparison I know but it does for me Plus, relatively few snags on the Beneteau.