Jump to content

Welcome to TheMalibuCrew!

As a guest, you are welcome to poke around and view the majority of the content that we have to offer, but in order to post, search, contact members, and get full use out of the website you will need to Register for an Account. It's free and it's easy, so don't hesitate to join the TheMalibuCrew Family today!

For those with a new boat


longbeard

Recommended Posts

Something I have always wondered. How do you afford a new boat? Are payments on it less than what I imagine they would be, or are you just killing it financially? Saw a thread on the surfgate, people saying they would wait for the 2014 model so that the bugs would be worked out. Kinda laughed to myself, thinking, I will wait till 2024 to get my first surfgate boat.

Link to comment

I will put in my 2 cents as we just bought a new boat. The payments on the boat are very manageable. Now mind you a Response TXI is a lot less than a lot of the boats offered by Malibu. I think a lot has to do with your financial situation as well. I would never want to stress over making a boat payment. At the same time, my wife and I view the boat as our form of recreation. We don't go out to dinner a lot. Would rather make a nice dinner at home and sit on the deck with some wine than go out to eat. So we view the money we save from eating at home as helping with the boat payments.

I also have friends who are into other sports that spend a crap load of money on the sport. A friend is into doing Ironman Tri's. Bought a new bike that cost more than his kids first car. But that is what he loves doing.

Just my view.

Link to comment

My assumption on this is that people are going to be all over the board. There will be some that are pulling in over 300K. Others may purchase with a family, friend or club. And others only do watersports for fun so they don't spend money on expensive cars, trips or a huge house. It's all abount money management and where you want to put it.

Link to comment

Yeah, I guess I just get sticker shock when I look at new boats. I would love to have one, but can't swing it. Having said that, I love my sunsetter, and my family loves being on the water. It's funny, my son who is 7 has really taken off wakeboarding and he is constantly on me about what all features we are missing out on with not having a newer boat. I usually point to the shore and say, well you could be over there.

Edited by Wolfgangred
Link to comment

Sticker shock is right. I paid $22,500 for a 1998 LX with monsson, tandem trailer and custom colors....it was a promo boat, but still, I wonder how much that same boat is now. Peter would know....

ANd just look at the options..on my 1998 you could pick out the engine and gel coat colors and that was about it....nowadays, you can add well over 20k in options, probably 30 if ya go with the supercharged engine.

I forgot with the total was on our 2010 LXI with LS3, probably glad I don't remember.

ANd if I could get a few of the mean nastty 1%"ers to fork over some their money, I could buy one of those nice new shiney brand new boats!! Do you (I am sure they don't) realize how disheartening it is to be seen in a 3-4 year old boat??...talk about being disenfranchised!!

Edited by jkendallmsce
Link to comment

There are 4 categories I would put 99% of people in who are paying 80k+ on these boats.

  1. Wealthy folks basically paying cash or mostly cash
  2. Folks that have bought and traded enough boats over the years that they just rock a reasonable payment after trading in their past boat
  3. People rocking reasonable length loans with huge payments
  4. People who can't actually afford the boat, so they have 15 year loans in order to be able to make the payment.

Sadly, I'd bet over half of the above are #4. If you need a 15 year loan to be able to reasonably afford a boat, you can't afford it.

Link to comment

ANd just look at the options..on my 1998 you could pick out the engine and gel coat colors and that was about it....nowadays, you can add well over 20k in options, probably 30 if ya go with the supercharged engine.

There were actually a lot of options you could pick at that time besides those, including heater, shower, docking lights, tower, tower lights, wedge, vinyl colors, pop up nav light, pop up cleats, depth gauge, clock or multi-function gauge, cover, and a few other items.

Link to comment

There were actually a lot of options you could pick at that time besides those, including heater, shower, docking lights, tower, tower lights, wedge, vinyl colors, pop up nav light, pop up cleats, depth gauge, clock or multi-function gauge, cover, and a few other items.

1998 was pre wedge, i installed my shower and heater...just had them install the correct switches and its been long enough ago, but those were pre factory options...they were dealer options to install after delivery...I think, pre tower, pre docking lights , and no docking lights on the LX or the LXI...actually asked to get them on our 2010 LXI and Malibu said they would not install, pre pop up nav light, pre pop up cleats (I thnk), vinyl colors matched the gel coat you could pick from moonbean or white for the base color...don't your curtains match your carpet???, and there may have been a choice of carpet color...greay or black...but pretty much all the options were no cost options...you were simply picking which color (a N/C option)......not sure about the depth guage but pretty sure it was a dealer install....pre about pretty much everything you listed. ANd I am drawing a blank about the stereo...I know I installed mine after picking it up. There may have been a std radio/HU and 4 speakers...but the options for amp and sub were pretty chintzy. I don't have my 1998 catalogue, but am pretty sure about the above. I am sure someone out there will know where to access a 1998 catalogue.

You're probably just tooo young to remember back in the day! ha ha

Edited by jkendallmsce
Link to comment

There are 4 categories I would put 99% of people in who are paying 80k+ on these boats.

  1. Wealthy folks basically paying cash or mostly cash
  2. Folks that have bought and traded enough boats over the years that they just rock a reasonable payment after trading in their past boat
  3. People rocking reasonable length loans with huge payments
  4. People who can't actually afford the boat, so they have 15 year loans in order to be able to make the payment.

Sadly, I'd bet over half of the above are #4. If you need a 15 year loan to be able to reasonably afford a boat, you can't afford it.

While you are probably right about #4, I would say that without the 15 year loan as an option, Malibu, MC, CC, etc would all be out of business. This would probably also be true for many boat builders in the fishing, cruising, off shore catagories as well. Ask you're local dealer how many people buy these boats and pay cash and I'll bet he tells you that it's not very many.
  • Like 1
Link to comment

when i bought my first inboard,it was a 5 year old Malibu Tantrum, We rode behind it for 3 years,sold it for $900 less than i paid for it. Bought a 2000 sunsetter lxi, rode behind for 3 years,sold for $1500 less than i paid. Now in a 2007 IRIDE. bought new as a left over, ready to up grade again. work your way up to what you want, small bites.

Link to comment

Foiler, that is kinda what I have done to get into a Malibu. Bought a boat for 1500, fixed it up and made a profit. Bought a cuddy cabin for 3500, fixed it and made a profit. Made a big leap to a 21 foot Ebbtide. Used it for 3 years, sold it at the beginning of summer and got our sunsetter. The good news is that I have paid cash for every boat. That is something that I have been proud of.

Edited by Wolfgangred
  • Like 2
Link to comment

This doesn't just apply to boats. Look at cars and houses too! A 5 year term on a car loan used to be a really long term, but now 6-7 isn't out of the norm. Our housing crisis was caused by this same issue. People taking out 40 year interest only loans so they can afford their dream home when in fact they were dreaming they could afford it! The fact is that prices these days are getting so high that the only way people can afford some things is to finance them for long terms.

  • Like 3
Link to comment

The real question is how did a boat like a wakesetter gone up in price from $45k 10yrs ago to $80k today?

  1. Inflation. Minimum wage increased almost 41% in the last 10 years, that's a lot. Because of that, everything is more expensive across the board, along with other factors that de-value our dollar
  2. More toys...so many more toys on these new boats. Higher end materials are being used. And those things not only add to the cost, but are more expensive now that 10 years ago to add.
  3. Fuel costs have driven the cost of making things up, plain and simple

Those are a few big factors, and I'm sure there are more. Not sure what the margins were on boats then vs. now.

Link to comment

Call me crazy, but supply and demand doesn't exist. Take gas prices for example, a hurricane shuts down a platform in the gulf for a week, prices jump the next day. Is there a disruption I. Supply, sure, a little one, but there is no shortage, and we have the capacity for other refineries to make it up if needed. Now days its all price fixing.

  • Like 1
Link to comment

Call me crazy, but supply and demand doesn't exist. Take gas prices for example, a hurricane shuts down a platform in the gulf for a week, prices jump the next day. Is there a disruption I. Supply, sure, a little one, but there is no shortage, and we have the capacity for other refineries to make it up if needed. Now days its all price fixing.

You are crazy. :) I think financial instruments make supply/demand harder to directly.

While you are probably right about #4, I would say that without the 15 year loan as an option, Malibu, MC, CC, etc would all be out of business. This would probably also be true for many boat builders in the fishing, cruising, off shore catagories as well. Ask you're local dealer how many people buy these boats and pay cash and I'll bet he tells you that it's not very many.

I just got a quote from Malibu. The last two lines of the quote read "Estimated Payment XXX.XX (For 180 months at 7.990% interest, with approved credit.)"

Link to comment

Supply and Demand have a whole lot to do with the drive up in price. If you want to laugh, go look at boattrader and see all the early 70's correct crafts on there, this was basically built as a three man boat. One driver, one spotter, and one on a set of skis in the water. Now they hang a tower on it, ask $8500 bucks for it as a "Great beginner wakeboard boat".

Link to comment

Call me crazy, but supply and demand doesn't exist. Take gas prices for example, a hurricane shuts down a platform in the gulf for a week, prices jump the next day. Is there a disruption I. Supply, sure, a little one, but there is no shortage, and we have the capacity for other refineries to make it up if needed. Now days its all price fixing.

Crazy.

For a luxury product it's all supply and demand. If they flooded the market with boats, prices would be lower.

Edited by teamerickson
Link to comment

There is a difference between market manipulation and supply and demand. I bought an 02 vlx brand new for 42500 out the door, my current one was in the 70's 8 years later? I didn't say I wasn't willing to pay it, but straight supply and demand no. Just look at the commodities markets, all manipulation from hedge fund companies.

Link to comment

It's really hard to manipulate non essential items. Demand has the leverage. If demand goes down prices have to shift. I belive the used boat market was great for buyers in 2009-2010. But now demand is up and so are prices.

Link to comment

It's insane that these boats are $80k plus but I don't care since I got my 3 year old boat with 50 hours for $45k. Still a lot of money but it's well worth it for me.

It costs at least $2k just for plane tickets for family of 4. Vacations total cost with hotel is probably 4 to 5k. And too much work to plan and lasts only a week.

With a boat you have instant pleasure any day you want.

I also surprised how many nice boats that are on the water. Way more expensive boats than cheap boats . You would expect the opposite. I think it's the same thing as what's happened to cars and houses. Everybody wants what the other person has regardless of whether they can afford it. Same with jeans, you know how many girls and women paying $150 plus for a pair of jeans. It's ridiculous.

My first boat only cost me $14k. I loved it

Link to comment

I think a lot of boats are bought with cash, and the ultra rich are buying them. And i would dare say half of the boats are bought that way.

The 15 year loan makes people think they can afford them, who are not ultra rich. This may be the other half.

Americans in general are so used to someone bailing us out, or so into the current moment, that we don't care that we may go bankrupt in a few years, we just want some pleasure now. I think it is reflected in our national monetary policy as well. No sacrifice, all fun...Now. As long as we can make the minimum payment, we are fine.

  • Like 2
Link to comment

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Restore formatting

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...