New vs second hand

[iangrant]

I looked very closely at the deals for a new boat and looked very hard also at second hand one, I'm glad I went for the latter!! With all the extra goodies, heating, nav aids, etc.. it's much more of a saving on a new boat than you would ever consider at first.

Paying £69.00 for sail numbers further centered my mind to the "second hand deal" value!!

OK, new is nice, not a single scratch, no one has been on it, but is that worth the extra money/VAT/devaluation? I don't think so, I'm sure someone else will have a view though!

Ian

 

[alanhanson]

we took delivery of our new boat this season & found the extras expensive as you say. but we got the price we paid for our 2 year old boat as a part ex & no fees for brokerage .
we would not have been in a position to buy without the fall back of a part ex price .we also did not have a period of time without a boat which was good
the difficulty we found was that the money we spent would have got us a 2 years old same model but with approx 5k in extras but some of these we did not want any way
the other main consideration for us was that the exchange rates meen that people were paying more 2/3 years ago for the same boat new so the expectation of used value on any we looked at was far to high also it is good to spec it to your own level
horses for courses i suppose

 

[adrianm]

I had an order in for a new 27' boat. One rainy sunday I went to my local boatyard and found that I could get a very nice three year old 37' boat for the same money with quite afew extras as well. Personally I would go for a second-hand boat with a good history over a new one.

 

[Guest]

Cost of Ownership?

Horses for courses really. I have a new Moody on order. Cost of ownership for a new boat is less for the first couple of years, which makes large sums easier. I looked at a '94 boat from another manufacturer that was very nice, but in about 4/5 years new rigging would be required and 4/5 years after that the teak decks would probably have needed attention, in about the same timeframe the sails would also need looking at. I have had two previous Moody's and always realised close to what I paid for them so the depreciation was a combination of the loss of interest and inflation. I know that the same is true for other brands as well but not all. I went new again this time because the boat I wanted is only just being built but …Also found that looking around that for every good well cared for boats that there were many that were obviously in need of some tlc and who knows what else… I sold the last one very quickly last autumn at a well-known used boat show and invested the proceeds. I have only just gradually started to part with the cash. Will I go second hand or new next time? It will probably depend on what I want and what is on the market….

Pete

 

[Twister_Ken]

In other consumer durables, the usual rule is it'll break in the first few days of use, otherwise it'll go on pretty much for ever.

There was a boaty example the other day when there was a pan-pan in the Solent. A new (so new the boat didn't have a name yet) Wauquiez 40 (?) called for help because it had lost its rudder. Didn't specify how.

I know it'll get fixed under warranty but if it had happened on a dark and misty night in the middle of the shipping lanes that wouldn't be much compensation.

OTOH, I bought a nice shiny 2nd hand boat with a good survey and 3 months later found myself paying for a new engine. I guess you pays your money and if sod's law is looking your way new or used won't make any difference.

 

[cynthia]

We went for new - good exchange rate, good vfm, ability to select own spec etc. Don't think it was a mistake, but like a new house, don't expect perfection - there have been teething problems, but once sorted we'll have a good boat we're happy to keep for a long time. (We hope!)