Used Boat Prices Falling

[Wakeskate77]

I’ve notice used Malibu prices are dropping. Curious if everyone thinks it’s just the time of year or signs on the recession/gas prices  ?

[Rack]

All of the above

I'm no Economist, but I pay attention to the economy and what I have observed is the drought out west has kept allot of Boat owners off the water.

Low lake levels and unusable launch ramps. 

In my area code some boat owners still have the winter shrink wrap on their boats parked on their RV pads. That indicates to me that the boat was not used this year.

Another thing that I noticed is the lack of boats on the highway. I recently drove the I-15 from SoCal to Idaho and didn't see allot of boats being towed.

 The I-15  passes Lake Mead and lake Powel two of the biggest lakes out west that are at critical low levels.

The price of gas along this route has increased dramatically in the last year.

If I  was  making Payments on a boat sitting unused in my driveway with no hope of the end to this drought I would be seriously thinking of cutting my loses.

This may or may not have an impact on used boat prices but I think you will see allot more boats for sale out here in the west.

This is just based on my own observation and my own experiences.

 

What Have you observed? 

 

 

 

[wakesonthesnake]

I have observed boat prices are still higher out West than most every other region, even with the droughts.  It is surprising, I would think they would lower at least to the levels of the rest of the country.

[TAQ44]

Correct. Zero changes over here in northern CA. Still absolutely insane prices. Oh, AND our fuel is $5.54/Gal. 

[CaptainMorgan]

1 hour ago, wakesonthesnake said:

I have observed boat prices are still higher out West than most every other region, even with the droughts.  It is surprising, I would think they would lower at least to the levels of the rest of the country.

Are you commenting on prices people are asking for? Or prices actually being paid?

I have done zero research but hypothesize that list prices may stay high for a bit however buyers will be able to negotiate down for the first time in a while.

[oldjeep]

Local dealer still sending out emails about new 2022 boats available.  Pretty crazy for MN this time of year.

 

[JeffC]

I believe that during the pandemic people were buying boats at an accelerated rate because going to the lake was one of the few things you could do with your family (and inner circle friends) that had SOME sense of normalcy.   It was clear here in CO that the lake was hitting capacity at ever earlier hours, to the point where weekends (and even Friday evenings) were so crowded as to be unpleasant, if not unsafe.  Last summer, every boat dealer I saw here had NO inventory, used or new.  My dealer (Tommy's Colorado) had only boats that were there for service on the lot.   As late as early this spring, they told me that they had NO new or used unsold inventory, and only 4 new builds  coming in, all of which were sold.   The told me that I could sell my 2017 VLX for what I paid for it or more, but of course, could not get a new one. 

I think now that the recession is setting in, the pandemic is largely irrelevant, gas prices are off the charts, and there are LOTS of things to do (family Baseball games, soccer games, concerts, parks, etc etc etc) that the usage of boats is dropping.   Its wicked expensive, and if you are not lake rats (like my family), choices are being made to do other things... which leaves the boat parked, paying for storage and maybe loans, and cant/dont want to afford the price of gas, especially to watersport.    I see that manifested here in a less crowded lake (YAY), to the point where I went last Sunday (arguably not the best of days, cool, and cloudy) and felt comfortable filling the tanks for a surf session in the mid afternoon.   There was ZERO chance of that happening last year.   I had sworn off weekends for watersports as it was too crowded, too rough, and not safe (I had a surfer with an injury, and not insignificant Gel damage due to those conditions).   Weekends were for coving only, and weekdays were the watersport times.

Now I think people are getting rid of boats they don't use enough, and doubt they will use enough going forward.   I have believed for some time that when the pandemic waned there would be a glut of used boats, and prices would sink like a rock.  Looks to me like that is happening.

For us, it means absolutely nothing, except that my gas bill is high, but I get more enjoyable time on the water (less crowded).  We are such addicts that time on the boat is at the top of our entertainment priority list.  Ill be out three times during this week (weekdays).   Couldn't be happier about that. :-)

 

[Wakeskate77]

100% spot on jeffc. The river at home has been unbelievably dead lately, harbormaster confirmed this too. The combination of Covid buys and waining economy will get prices lower (back to normal).

[skurfer]

Will new prices ever go back down tho?

[Sixer]

I'd guess MSRP's would not go down, but rather go up very little if any in the near future.  I think there will be a lot more room for negotiation with the dealers too.  If people are patient they'll be able to get boats at a % off MSRP instead of the full-price gouging some have been doing lately. 

 

Edit:  Should also be some better used prices on the horizon as well.  A lot of boats have been for sale locally for a big portion of the summer, and they're priced high, and still for sale.  At some point if they really want them gone they'll have to lower prices.

Edited July 31, 2022 by Sixer

[RyanB]

I think prices will come down but not like many expect. Yes, there has been very high demand the last couple of years (and I think demand is still high). But production never went up. If anything, it went down. There wasn’t a glut of new production. That will keep costs higher. 

[Sixer]

[bigskydoc]

If will be interesting to see what I can get for my '22 M220 in a couple of weeks. Haven't decided what my '23 boat will be, but if I can't get what I want out of the M220, I won't be disappointed. Personally, I thanked the market has peaked, and I won't be able to sell it for what I want. 

[rennis]

Boat market is still hot in the PNW.  Used boats -at least the good ones- sell fast and at high prices. We sold our Malibu in June for asking price and it sold in 4 days.  I know the Malibu dealer has a few new boats on the lot for sale but I believe they are well below historical averages for inventory.  I don't think our dealer (NW Inboards) has had a new boat for sale on the lot in ages - all their stuff is sold months in advance.  Heck, Paul (Bakes) hasn't even been on a ride in a T220 yet because there hasn't been any on the lot to try out!  I'm sure there is a slowdown coming but it hasn't hit us yet out here. 

I HAVE heard there has been a significant slow down in sales of gear.  Boards, skis, surf - all of that is now selling slower than it was during 2020 and 2021.  Worldwide.  But those levels were not sustainable either. 

[Five Cent Worth]

On 7/31/2022 at 2:18 PM, wakesonthesnake said:

I have observed boat prices are still higher out West than most every other region, even with the droughts.  It is surprising, I would think they would lower at least to the levels of the rest of the country.

Trying to think of one thing you guys don't pay more for compared to us 'in the center'

[wakesonthesnake]

33 minutes ago, Five Cent Worth said:

Trying to think of one thing you guys don't pay more for compared to us 'in the center'

apples?

[Stevo]

44 minutes ago, Five Cent Worth said:

Trying to think of one thing you guys don't pay more for compared to us 'in the center'

Fresh seafood 

[oldjeep]

14 minutes ago, wakesonthesnake said:

apples?

Seems unlikely since the upper Midwest is full of orchards.

[wakesonthesnake]

Apples are kinda one of our things in central and eastern WA and NE Or.  The West is more than Seattle, Portland, SF and LA.

[carguy79ta]

43 minutes ago, wakesonthesnake said:

Apples are kinda one of our things in central and eastern WA and NE Or.  The West is more than Seattle, Portland, SF and LA.

Kinda like sayin the USA is more than just NY and Cali...right?? MO for me..

Edited August 1, 2022 by carguy79ta

[csleaver]

3 hours ago, Five Cent Worth said:

Trying to think of one thing you guys don't pay more for compared to us 'in the center'

Snow shovels, winter tires, and heating oil?

[wakesonthesnake]

It's all in fun.  There must be some great places to boat in the middle of the country with the amount of posts on here about lake houses, lifts, docks, ski clubs and such.  Wish I had time to spend at each spot.  It's no wonder there are more boats available for sale, thus the lower prices.

[rennis]

17 hours ago, Five Cent Worth said:

Trying to think of one thing you guys don't pay more for compared to us 'in the center'

Electricity.  When Tesla starts making wake boats, the chickens are coming home to roost in the PNW. 

[UWSkier]

18 hours ago, Stevo said:

Fresh seafood 

I bought 4 entrees of fresh seafood in Milwaukee on Sunday for 62 dollars and it was excellent quality and huge portions. I am back in the Midwest for a few weeks and can't believe how much cheaper things are here than AZ. 

[oldjeep]

1 hour ago, rennis said:

Electricity.  When Tesla starts making wake boats, the chickens are coming home to roost in the PNW. 

How much is electricity there? .17 a KWh here after you lump in all the fees and adjustments on the bill.  (Bill says .10 a KWh but then there are a bunch of surcharges on top of that)

I'd be concerned about a lot of the electricity out west if those reservoirs keep drying up.

 

Edited August 2, 2022 by oldjeep