I see 6 S&S34s on yachthub. 4 good ones at $75,000 or above.
Misty II is still advertised for $29,000 but is actually already in new hands and is currently undergoing a major refit costing tens of thousands. Another one is advertised sold on an as is where is basis for $25,000, probably a rebuild prospect.
Are prices recovering?
Spring is sprung? Irrational optimism? There is one born every day? In general I dont think the advertised price reflects the actual sale price. Most these days include "or near/best offer".
Prices will increase as the Aust $ falls, it makes new and over seas boats dearer to the aust $
I see a 36 S&S on boatsales which is a great buy :)
If you have a good yacht, you still love it, you have not over capitalised on it, is not breaking your bank by keeping it, from a market perspective I think it is a good idea to hang on to the good thing you have.
Other personal circumstances may dictate otherwise and a not too major financial loss may be offset by other gains in life such as freed up time to use messing about in boats.
Why is life always such a conundrum??
Select to expand quoteMorningBird said..
I see 6 S&S34s on yachthub. 4 good ones at $75,000 or above.
Misty II is still advertised for $29,000 but is actually already in new hands and is currently undergoing a major refit costing tens of thousands. Another one is advertised sold on an as is where is basis for $25,000, probably a rebuild prospect.
Are prices recovering?
No.
There will always be somebody willing to pay silly money for boats that don't need any work. Same as classic cars. The only real method of valuing boats is what people are actually paying for them and the only real way the average person gets to know this is eBay or word of mouth.
When that Cavalier 32 that's been advertised in the Afloat magazine for the past 5 years sells I will re consider! Hate to think of the fees he has racked up.
Well, I for one am willing and happy to pay a premium for a boat that needs no or little work. Being on the wrong side of 65, I count each day sailing as very precious. I'm damned if I am going to waste 3 years out of whatever I have left covered in resin and sawdust instead of sailing.
Hi
Hi Cisco, all too true, BUT it is better to have owned a boat and have Sailed, than never to have sailed at all !!
MB I noticed the same thing. 14 months ago, when I was looking, most S and S 34s were less than $45K and some were very rough. There are some very nice ones on the market now, it seems people are more prepared to spend the dollars needed on the older boats now. But again it would be interesting to know what these boats sell for as opposed to their asking price.
I would expect that a advertised price of $75,000 will result in a sale price between $55,000 and $65,000. That is a marked change on 12-24 months ago. It could also be that there is a coincidental run of good quality S&S34s for sale which hasn't happened for some time, maybe because they have held off selling when prices were way down.
Ramona, only rubbish boats end up on eBay and they don't represent the market for decent useable boats. I would also say you are an exception to the rule of boat buyers an owners as you have exceptional skills to do nearly all the jobs on a boat. Your wind vane is a work of art, there are very few like you.
A good friend has just listed his boat for $40K, he would let it go for $35K, so say 10% off asking? It is listed sensibly, so that seems pretty reasonable to both parties I think.
To me it stands to reason that if new boats are more expensive, because of the low Aus $, then good used boats will become more expensive
Select to expand quoteLexmark said..
To me it stands to reason that if new boats are more expensive, because of the low Aus $, then good used boats will become more expensive
The problem is that we are in two completely different markets. The new boats satisfy the high income upwardly mobile types, and the older boats for the older, lower income people, who are more into cruising. Hence the people looking at an S&S 34 would not be considering a 40ft floating caravan at a quarter of a milion dollars.
And, BTW, those new boats will lose their value rapidly as they are not built to last.
Select to expand quoteYara said..Lexmark said..
To me it stands to reason that if new boats are more expensive, because of the low Aus $, then good used boats will become more expensive
The problem is that we are in two completely different markets. The new boats satisfy the high income upwardly mobile types, and the older boats for the older, lower income people, who are more into cruising. Hence the people looking at an S&S 34 would not be considering a 40ft floating caravan at a quarter of a milion dollars.
And, BTW, those new boats will lose their value rapidly as they are not built to last.
Lets not let sensible logic get in the way of a good discussion. The problem as I see it is that it's such a small market. We have a market full of fibreglass yachts that just wont die. Small market and lots of yachts is not a good thing if your trying to manufacture new boats as Steber has found. Trying to buy all the secondhand boats so you can build new ones just means you end up with a lot of old boats you can not move. The yacht side of things is just the same. There is only a small market for new yachts and all those Bavs etc that are starting to hit the second hand market will only acerbate the problem. Those Rolls Royces of the yachting market like Halberg Rassy and Ohlson 35's etc are now at sensible prices and this is just going to continue to force down the prices of local quality older 'glass boats. Until we can find a way to recycle 'glass boats nothing will change.
It's interesting how in the small power boat scene people are resurrecting older quality 'glass hulls into first class boats. As for places like Gumtree and eBay, while we have people that keep dying from old age and their boats keep going, we will have families not into boating dumping their boats onto an already crowded market.
I was looking around the $200k mark, yet I couldn't find what I wanted. Everything that I liked always seemed to be over my budget, (that always seems to happen to me regardless of what the budget is :)
My wish list was pretty simple:
- a boat I could take out most times with say two, regardless of time or weather.
- shorthanded easy sailing.
- safe boat for extreme conditions
- power
My reality became:
- I couldn't find anything new in my result budget,
- older boats that I liked needed crew to go out.
- The economy is really tough and it was not a good time to be buying a new boat.
- The vendor I wanted doesn't discount. At all.
- I spent a lot more in the end.
- Horrible exchange rates.
So the price I paid was......top dollar in a depressed economy!
Why...it increased my sailing window, and I just love sailing. I think the point I am trying to make (probably badly) is that there are some buyers, that even when it is not a good time for it, still let desire rule over the wallet.
My two cents.
Select to expand quoteShaggybaxter said..
I think the point I am trying to make (probably badly) is that there are some buyers, that even when it is not a good time for it, still let desire rule over the wallet.
My two cents.
Everybody does that no matter which end of the market they are in. 
My supposedly wise uncle, 50 years ago, pointed out to me that the first line in the NRMA book on boating said "Nobody has a logical reason to own a boat."
