Buying in a recession

[john61ct]

Yes, time lost waiting is worth more than any theoretical savings.

Go small, go simple, go now

[PamlicoTraveler]

The answer is certainly yes, the prices decline because a boat is not essential for most boaters. Fewer buyers and more sellers (and more desperate sellers) means a buyer's market.

The difficulty in it is that during a recession you too may feel poorer and less able to afford the luxury of a boat.

If you aren't invested in stocks and you don't lose your job and you have savings or assets that have been preserved as the economy turns down, then you can be the buyer in a buyer's market. But recessions are fueled by psychological fear and consumers withholding spending as they lose money and earning opportunities..

[Gone Gypsy]

Originally Posted by john61ct

Yes, time lost waiting is worth more than any theoretical savings.

Go small, go simple, go now

I agree entirely with John. Go with the minimum price that brings a more simple boat meeting most of your desires - NOW. If your plans are tied to timing global markets perhaps you should not even be considering a boat. You could win the lottery tomorrow and be run over by a bus on the way to cash it out. Who knows the future?

We find ourselves in this exact position exactly today. We had a plan for 4 years from now and we were simply monitoring the used market when we came across a boat that I just commissioned a survey for. My wife has had an epiphany on how we set priorities with this decision. Time to live as life could erase all your careful planning.

Best of luck with your plan. Consider being flexible and be prepared to respond when serendipity happens.

Fair Winds,
Michael

[longjonsilver]

Originally Posted by john61ct

Yes, time lost waiting is worth more than any theoretical savings.

Go small, go simple, go now

i make my living timing the markets. Why should buying a boat be any different than buying stocks? Besides, family life is not always congenial to "go now"

jon

[john61ct]

Then may all your timing factors align One Day to get you out there, ideally complete with Family, Fair Winds and Following Seas

[l2ustyl3ullet]

I would love to quit my job and sail away tomorrow, but yeah, there are some factors which need to be resolved before I can do that. Basically money matters, sell some larger assets into cash to reinvest/use to fund year round sailing life. I am just not wanting to do 6 month on, 6 months off of working to sustain the lifestyle.Nor do I want all my money to completely deplete after 10 years.

I'm 34, I would hope I have some time, and if I get hit by a bus so be it. So it not that I would be waiting for a recession, but it might be 6 month or 2 years before I can actually quit and actively search for my dream boat. And that extra time is extra = extra money = bigger boat or new sails, etc. etc.

[john61ct]

Best IMO to start the search long before you plan to actually set out, it does not need to be an all or nothing transition.

It is usually true that the best deals financially are the boats that require the least work.

But not always.

And even "a little" work relatively speaking, can take many months.

A lot of getting "fully prepped" for setting out can get done while still earning income, and short sails will reveal new things need fixing / improving.

[l2ustyl3ullet]

Originally Posted by john61ct

Best IMO to start the search long before you plan to actually set out, it does not need to be an all or nothing transition.

It is usually true that the best deals financially are the boats that require the least work.

And even "a little" work relatively speaking, can take many months.

A lot of getting "fully prepped" for setting out can get done while still earning income, and short sails will reveal new things need fixing / improving.

Good points, I am keeping my eye out on yachtworld etc. getting an idea of what is available. And, whilst at first I thought that going with a cheaper fixer upper would be potentially fun (a learning experience) and save some money, I'm starting to rethink that. Now that people on youtube are a little more open with their finances, I'm starting to see people that have bought $40k yachts and taken a year or so to fix up back up and the end cost being closer to $100k. A big factor is storing the boat for that long.

I will have to factor in the idea of working remotely whist prepping, I can do that at the moment with a decent internet connection. So I certainly incorporate that into my plans if I can swing it with my boss. I imagine she would likely more than suddenly quitting with 2 weeks notice.

[john61ct]

Yes an already well-maintained boat will almost always be better value, except for people very resource constrained or have skills and enjoy working on boats.

Most prefer actually sailing asap.

[Augi]

Originally Posted by taxwizz

Never mind a yacht.
I can get you a great deal on a Boeing 737 Max.

Are parachutes included

[Cheechako]

During the last recession some smaller boats I was watching were very low price. One free. A 30 footer with new 3 cyl Yanmar diesel engine, new rigging, new main and genny, new roller furling was $5-6k

[letsgetsailing3]

Originally Posted by Cheechako

During the last recession some smaller boats I was watching were very low price. One free. A 30 footer with new 3 cyl Yanmar diesel engine, new rigging, new main and genny, new roller furling was $5-6k

You don't need to wait for a recession to find those. You just need to be watching for them and ready.

Knowing what you're looking for is half the battle. Being ready for it is the other half.

Waiting for the world economic situation to align with your goals/timing may not be the optimal strategy.

[letsgetsailing3]

You don't need to wait for a recession to find good deals. You just need to be watching for them and ready.

Knowing what you're looking for is half the battle. Being ready for it is the other half.

Waiting for the world economic situation to align with your goals/timing may not be the optimal strategy. It's like waiting for a recession to buy a stock. Sure, you can do that, but you'll leave a lot of money on the table in the mean time.

[Wireless1]

This bit of factual evidence will probably get deleted but I am not trying to be political here; just pointing out some economic trends...and/or economic flukes for whatever reason they happen to be, or occur...

Investors should know better than to base their investments on superstitions or trivia, but there’s a curious trend that has persisted for decades that could serve as yet another reason to be cautious about our market today. Since the presidency of Theodore Roosevelt, who left office in 1909, every single republican president has seen a recession take hold in their first term.

While analysts consider this a fluke of timing more than an explicit economic reaction to any parties policies, the odds of this streak continuing are seen as plausible, especially as this is already the second-longest bull market in history.

[Cheechako]

While not a fan of recent Repub trends, I believe administrations have very little effect on the economy actually. Sure there are things they can do to help or hinder. But bottom line is that even experts cant figure out why the economy/stock market crashes. Terrible news you'd think would effect it has little impact, then some little thing does. It's psychological..