Best "Blue Book" Pricing Guideline for Used Boats/Motors

Looking for a used boat this spring.

Q: Wondering what the most reliable blue book source is these days. Seems vehicles have moved from NADA to KBB over the years and wondering what most banks, dealers, buyers & sellers are using for pricing boats.

Thanks
Pete

When I sold my boat, I used Walleye Central, Craigslist, and Dealers that happened to have a comparable boat to come up with my pricing. I was able to sell it relatively quickly. I listed it in April, but soon realized that I never applied for the title. I only had the loan/title release in hand. I had to call the first buyer, who was coming from three states away to purchase it and tell him how dumb I felt and that I would not be able to to close the deal the next day. Which just happened to be a Saturday. Heads up, avoid trying to buy a boat 2-4 weeks before any opener. This is a huge buying frenzy is what I have learned.

FDR

If your buying or selling private party, you need to find comparable boats on CL, walleye central/first, IDO or other sites. There are too many variables to consider for getting an accurate price if you just use KBB or NADA. If you get a boat loan, they’ll use NADA to make sure it’s worth what your asking, but that amount is usually high, in my experience. Just remember, all your accessories that has been added to the boat are outdated, even if one year old, and won’t increase the value of the boat much.

I would also recommend working with a local bank or credit union if you need financing. I tried to go through a large online bank, that I do a lot of business through. Despite me being approved for the purchase price on the boat I wanted, they wouldn’t due it due to their valuation of the used boat. My local bank approved everything, and I had cash in hand right away.

Thanks guys. Pricing really boils down to “what the market will bear.

Do you want to sell it, or are you trying to see how much you can get for it? Its no different than selling a house, price it high and see bow many lookers you get and nobody buying. Price it right and sell it in a week and think you had it listed to low. Its a slippery slope. I used KBB and thought it was a good reference. I didn’t sell the boat, so it must have been a little high. KBB listed my 2003 Lund 2025 prov at $22,500, that was early last June. I think I was asking $25,000 for it. I priced it out, decided what I wanted to sell it for then went on line to see what others were asking. I was right in the mix for comparable boats