Help Selling my Boat

T

tcontic

Member
Feb 27, 2008
76
Smithtown, NY
Boat Info
2001 230 Signature Select BR
Engines
7.4 MPI Bravo III
I'm putting my boat up for sale in two weeks.

It's a 2001 Sea Ray 230 Signature BR with 7.4MPI, 160hrs, B3. Exceptionally clean and well maintained. Unfortunately I've come to realize that this is not the ideal boat for my boating area so it's not going to be an easy local sell.

What forum should I use to sell the boat? I'm considering selling on eBay anyone have any experience with this?

Thanks in advance,
Tom
 
Try listing yourself on Boatcrazy.com, BoatdealersCA and also at marina web sites where you think the boat might move. I sold mine thru boatdealersca but I am in upstate NY.
 
Bill Z,

I'm bringing the boat up to Lake George on the 18th for a week, maybe I'll hang a for sale sign on it, seems to be a good lake boat.

Tom
 
craigslist
 
Your boat would be great for Lake George and or possibly Sacandaga Lake ! If I were you I would call Tom at Bolton Landing Marina he seems to always have people contacting him for good boats. His number is 518-644-3474. Tell him I sent you !
 
I would not list the boat at only one place.

List it at every free place you can like Craigslist and Boatus, the site we are not allowed to link to here, then consider one paid listing like boats dot com or boat trader dot com also the owner of this website has a brokerage service http://www.boemarine.com/support/article.aspx?ArticleID=C23A2661-2E63-46DB-9885-192B658531D7

Also put a for sale sigh on it and place it in a area with traffic. Some people remove a propeller and / or wheel, that is your call.

Tell everyone you know that you are selling your boat. Your buddy may not be in the market but your buddy’s co-worker or neighbor may be. Try to mention it to people in normal conversation at work, mention it to the neighbors, family, friends, etc.

Sales tips include having many photos, list your phone number + email address and keep a sheet with you so when the phone rings you have the information with you.

The selling process is frustrating. If you go the broker route that is why they earn their money, well, some of them. So if you get frustrated consider using a broker.

Also, you missed the sweet spot. In our northern area the sweet spot is Easter to father’s day. After independence day trailer type boat sales take a significant drop off in sales, at least during normal years. Given we are now in the waning half of the season you need to act fast and get the ads out there.

I don’t know how long you have owned your boat but the boat market has pretty much collapsed. If you could have realistically sold your boat for $100 a year ago plan on about $60 today. Many asking prices are over inflated and will not result in a sale.

Please be sitting down or if you anger easily skip the rest of this paragraph. A 2001 230 Signature in very good condition with trailer via a private sale will fetch about 14 to 15 grand today. That’s it. Sorry.

The good news is your loss in boat value over the last year is a fraction of my estimated boat value loss over the same time period.
 
Last edited:
Presentation said:
The good news is your loss in boat value over the last year is a fraction of my estimated boat value loss over the same time period.
Click to expand...

+1 however, the money you get from yours will go further in the market as well. Its all relative.
 
JediJD said:
+1 however, the money you get from yours will go further in the market as well. Its all relative.
Click to expand...

That is a good point.


Tom,

Back on this post you report a gimbal bearing that was going:

http://clubsearay.com/forum/showthread.php?t=9117

You listed a repair estimate for a variety of items at $1,000. Since replacing a gimbal bearing is more then $1,000 in labor alone I assume you did not have this repair done.

If you have your boat on the trailer and grab your drive and shake it how much play does it have?
 
I watched eBay for a couple of years before getting a deal on my 215 EC. Almost all auctions ended in "Reserve not met", including many where I was the high bidder. The advantage of an auction is you are certain to get a market bid. The problem is getting a fair price in a very depressed market at the wrong time of the year. If you are realistic, you will cut your losses before paying another year of maintenance, insurance, and depreciation. If you are not realistic, you may as well enjoy the boat for another couple of years, as it will not sell. Possibly you can minimize the pain by trading for a more suitable boat.
 
Craigslist is a good free tool. Set up an ad and use Photo Bucket or Flicker as a source for loading pics into the ad. This way you aren't limited to the 4: small pics that Craigslist provides space for. The more pics the better.Take plenty of good pics and rotate them in the ad with captions every week...that way the ad doesn't become stale. Set up a free account with Craigslist so you can delete and re-open the ad every few days so it stays near the front of the boat ads.

Place the ad in key boating markets around your region. Don't hesitate to reach out 500 miles or more. I sold my 390 to a man in Louisiana nearly 1000 miles away !!

Know what the bottom is price wise and be prepared to go to it. In this market what will sell your boat are things like "turn key" and "boat needs nothing". The boats that sell in your category are the ones that don't need any repairs.
A buyer doesn't want to hear "it's perfect except for..."

The boat being trailerable is a plus....makes it more mobile and easy to transport. Keep your boat ready to show at all times. This means washed, waxed & detailed.

Have a log prepared of everything you have done to the boat since you have owned it. Do what ever it takes to make your boat stand out at the front of the crowd. Use up-beat descriptions of the boats features. Don't be afraid to use language from the original Sea Ray brochure in describing your boat.

Last but not least...get on it now...your window of opportunity is closing quickly. The boating season is nearing it's end where you are and interest will quickly turn to Fall activities such as "Back to School", Football and winterization of boats.

Good Luck.
 
I had a mobile mechanic replace the gimbal bearing and the other items listed in my post, actual cost was about $1200.00. Seemed like a fair price.

Boat is and has always been on a trailer.

I tried shaking the drive up and down and don't feel any play, side to side it moves smoothly as expected.

Tom

Presentation said:
That is a good point.


Tom,

Back on this post you report a gimbal bearing that was going:

http://clubsearay.com/forum/showthread.php?t=9117

You listed a repair estimate for a variety of items at $1,000. Since replacing a gimbal bearing is more then $1,000 in labor alone I assume you did not have this repair done.

If you have your boat on the trailer and grab your drive and shake it how much play does it have?
Click to expand...
 
I just purchased my 2001 230 BR Signature this summer and found it on Craigs List. I was using that source a lot because none of the local dealers seemed to have much, although as it turned out this boat was at a dealer who put it on Craigs List. You could list it in your target market.
 
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