Florida and Boat Prices - The Hull Truth

Joe · 09-29-2004, 09:29 AM

With all of the storms recently in Florida, and the unimaginable destruction of property..(and I know this is a really odd question)...but how do you think it will affect boat prices there?

I ask because in the southeast, Florida has always been a good gauge of what a boat is worth...as there are so many. I'm not sure what it will do to pices. I think about supply and demand..but then I think that there are probably also folks who won't be replacing their boat anytime in the near future if it was lost, as they probably have more important things to worry about (like having a place to live). And then there are probably some folks who after 4 storms and the destruction oif their house..won't be staying in Florida at all.

I ask because I sold my Scout am in the market for a cruiser in the 24-26 ft range..and didn't know if FLorida would be a viable place to start looking. Any ideas?

pez fuerte · 09-29-2004, 09:39 AM

the storms will have little effect on boat values. Two reasons come to mind. One, the market for boats is national in scope, perhaps one could argue international depending on the type of boat. Second, most people are insured and will repair or replace in relatively short period of time

aceswerling · 09-29-2004, 12:46 PM

The boat dealers have been talking about having a good year in 2005. They figure people will have big insurance checks they'll want to spend. Couple this with overall increases in new boat costs and prices are likely to increase. (As an aside, a local dealer told me Yamaha and Teleflex increased their wholesale prices by 40% in the last four months. We know that costs for resin are increasing too.)

On the other hand, higher fuel costs might motivate people to stay out of boating completely. There's no point in buying a new boat if you can't run it.

Overall, it's hard to tell if there's been any effect from the storms so far. I'm guessing there will be a dip in prices between now and the end of the year. This is always a slow season for boat sales. People will also be looking for cash to tide them over until their homeowners insurance checks come through. After that, I bet we see an increase.

P.S., I know of a couple boats down here that *may* be good choices. Email me if you'd like some pointers.

Joe · 09-29-2004, 09:45 PM

You have a PM!

Glen E · 09-29-2004, 09:57 PM

I predict that 2005 will be a good year for Florida boat dealers - a good guage will be attendance at the Ft Laud show in late Oct. I'll bet there's a ton of people coming with insurance checks in hand...

aceswerling · 09-30-2004, 07:54 AM

I seem to be having trouble with my PM for some reason. I'll just post my response to the public forum.

First we need to know more about what you're looking for. Are you looking for new or used? How much do you want to spend?

There are a lot of boats here in the Keys. In your post you said you wanted a 25' cruiser. Are you looking for something like this? http://www.searay.com/index.asp?disp...&modelid=43710. In my experience, people often try to pack too much stuff into a cruiser boat like this. You'll find more of them around Ft. Lauderdale than in the Keys. There are some here though.

I have a 1999 25' Stamas express boat. It's a lot like this boat http://www.gradywhite.com/258/ but better made than a Grady. It's been a great all around boat. I'm thinking about trading up to a 31' so my boat may be available if you're interested.