Merry Fisher 625 Legende - haggling

[adon]

I'm looking to buy my first ever boat. I've got my eye on a Merry Fisher 625. I'm in Scotland and the market seems fairly limited locally. The only one I've found which is in good enough condition is priced at 22k, which is 2k more than any other I can see for sale in the UK and it only has a 90hp outboard, when others have 115hp.

So I'm not just going to go in with a lower price to try and get the usual discount (is it usual with boats?) but I genuinely believe the boat is not worth more than 19k. Any advice on where I should start this negotiation? Or is it obvious that this guy doesn't really want to sell his boat? :S (I almost suspect he is using the broker's showroom as winter storage.)

Jamie

 

[Nautibusiness]

Unless it is immaculate then it is way OTT.
If it was immaculate and had the 115 then possible £21K asking, £20K selling.

We have one that is in nice used condition. It looks great and is well looked after, but it isn't perfect (fender scuff marks on one side - nothing bad). That one is asking £19995, but the owner expects to negotiate and this one has the right engine.

Just because it is local, don't be suckered in to paying far more than you need to.

If it has a trailer that will help, but don't be fooled by the value of a used trailer.

Hunt around as there are better deals out there and I don't only mean the one that we are selling!

Tom
(Parkstone Bay Yachts)

 

[SwanseaBoat]

Hello. I started with a 3 year old MF625 in 2009, most recent cabin shape, Suzuki DF115, cream, no radio/nav, immac, £16250 from Walton Brighton stock boat. £440 to move to Swansea as a return load(cash..)
That was a good deal, because 18mth later I sold via a Broker at 20k. The only profit I will ever make on boats, I suspect, even after commission!

Good little boat. we never really used the full 115HP because of slamming in chop. Swansea bay is choppy.
So 90HP would be fine unless you fish with three large and very friendly mates.

Good luck. Buyers market... real offers are worth gold... Go in low.
I got SWMBO to negotiate( its his 40th etc, don't know much about boats, etc, that's all the cash I got).
I named the boat after her for that.
All the best
D

 

[adon]

It's not immaculate by any measure. It has quite a lot of hairline cracks, like shown in the picture I have tried to attach. Anyone have any experience of these? I've read that they are superficial but also that they show the boat has been worked hard in rough conditions and could be damaged internally. I'm planning to get a survey done at least before buying.

So if I think it's worth 19k maximum then I'd probably have to go in with an offer of 16k if we wanted to end up in the middle and that's just going to look mad. I'm thinking I should just say 'I think it is worth 19k and that's my final offer'. What do you reckon?

I don't really have a problem with buying a boat from down south and getting it transported up here is it works out about the same price. It's more the cost and inconvenience of travelling down to see it first. But if I don't get a good deal on this one, I'll have to look at it because I've totally got my heart set on a 625

Thanks for you feedback, it's great to hear form people with experience!

 

[freddy the frog]

choose a few boats on the south coast brokerage jump on a plane spend a weekend down here looking take some photos fly home and start negotiating easy to get it moved its always nice to compare you may end up with a higher spec

 

[SwanseaBoat]

Hello Adon
That's quite a lot of hairline crack!!
That said, I like a well used boat so long as the engine and controls serviced every year. The DF90 revcounter will tell you the engine hours on start-up. Mine had no shorepower and the 2010 deep freeze (4inch ice in Swansea marina) killed-off the battery £110.
I bought my second boat MF805 in Troon, Easyjet viewing, private sale, £1400 transport south, skipped the survey, shortish seatrial in a F6 easterly-should have run wide-open-throttle for longer.... Mud in heat-exchanger....overheat issues and about £500 fix.
Fun, but risky business. Took ages to get paperwork VAT etc from original brokerage to resell. Would not do that again.
With the MF625, just check the DF90 and controls are tiptop, and as a simple boat she gave us a lot of days out.
Regards
Dan

 

[ontheplane]

Buy the very best you can afford - then try and haggle. DON'T try and haggle on something that you think is already overpriced or in poor condition unless you have a very clear idea what it's worth to you - the owner may not come down any lower than someone who's got a perfect boat but is keen to sell....

And why not go in at 16k? - on a £22k boat I'd be more than happy to offer that - BUT be able to justify your offer. Showing other boats of better spec, in better condition at a lower price is a good way to start - for example:-

"Here are three boats I've seen. They all have the 115 engine - all are priced under £20k, and I've been told by the brokers that each one could be purchased with an offer in the region of 18k.

On that basis, given yours has the smaller engine and has some stress cracking evident, I wouldn't want to pay much more than £15k for yours, but I'm open to discussion."

He can do one of two things...

1) Tell you to p155 off.... no loss really as the boat is overpriced anyhow...

2) Come back with a counter offer - and hey presto you're away.

When we were looking a couple of years ago, I was positively encouraged by the broker to go in with an offer somewhere in the region of 60% of the asking because the owner had already turned down some good offers of about 70% of the asking (which is probably what the boat was worth) and he wanted the owner to be more realistic. It worked. I put in an offer of 55% of asking - and we agreed a price at about 65% of asking price - it was only that some issues came up in the survey that made me pull out - in fact we could probably have agreed something but I got cold feet....

Fact is most offers of 60% of asking price would be rejected, however you won't know till you try...

 

[Spi D]

It is hard to calculate true market value based on asking prices. You'll see huge numbers of ads on the web because

-many owners put up their boat for sale at dream prices, thinking "if anybody would pay this, I'd sell". They don't really want or need to sell, just play with the idea of making money.
-a mint boat will make owners of same model believe they can get the same price regardless of actual condition, hence asking way over any realistic level. No used boat is worth more than the TLC it received.
-more search engines and brokers list the same vessels
-ads remain long after boats being sold

From personal experience I know that asking price for same make/model/equipment/condition boats can vary 30+ %. As also mentioned by others, the value of a boat (or anything) is exactly the amount a seller and buyer can agree on and if moving to another boat, the cost to change is what really matters. If you can get your next boat by adding your planned amount, is doesn't matter what the prices are.

I'd go viewing as many as possible to get a baseline for assessing prices/value. The size in question is trailerable so transport isn't a big issue.

When comparing remember to factor in the whole package. Electronics etc. totals to a lot if you need to aquire it afterwards.

Check
http://www.theyachtmarket.com/boats...hunit=metres&currency=gbp&saleorcharter=sale#

 

[adon]

Well, I put in an offer of £18,500, which is the maximum I think it is worth and I told them that. After a few days the broker advised me that they hadn't had a definitive response but they had advised the seller that they believed my bid to be very close to what they would value the boat.

So I waited over the weekend and the seller has apparently said the lowest he is willing to accept is £19,750. So that made it a very simple decision. South coast here I come

Thanks for the advice guys.

 

[Spi D]

Not a huge amount between you but OK that you stick to your budget and walk. Time for both to reconsider and come back if contact is still good.

On your side considerations might even bring other makes and models into play.

Finnmaster 6400 Royal Cruiser, build in Finland for all season use, seems inspiring:
http://www.theyachtmarket.com/boats_for_sale/408559/?searchid=7059093&page=3

Different driveline with sterndrive & diesel...

Good luck & enjoy the south!