Needing to sell sail boat. . .

[CoolBeans]

I bought another boat, yay! I need to sell my current boat, boo!

Any advice on how to do it? 1975 Ranger 33. It needed work when I bought it 7 years ago, got a lot of upgrades and fixes, still needs work and finishing now. I am under no illusion that she isn't anything more than an average 40+ year old boat with some newer bits now up for sale against a glut of 40+ year old sailboats people can't seem to give away

Any advice is appreciated. Not sure how to price the boat. I'll post some specs if people want tomorrow. I just wanted to get this out there now since it is bugging me now that I'm thinking about it

I'd like to get something for it, but I don't really want to sit on the boat for a year. . .

Thanks!

[JPA Cate]

Hi, Cool Beans,

Go take a look at some of the other 33 ft., 40 yr. old boats for sale in your area, and see what their asking prices are. Judge your boat compared to them. If she's better, ask slightly above the middle; if worse, lower than the middle, what you think is a fair price.
The only way to get a fast sale is to keep lowering the price, eventually someone will buy it. Each month you keep it, you're paying double berth fees. It gets old real quick. Good luck with it. Next time, sell the previous boat before buying another. Aristotle Onassis got rich as heck with multiple boats, but we sure never did. ;-)

Ann

[forsails]

Hello, I just saw your post from today about trying to sell a boat.
I need to sell a boat also asap, a little 22 foot Seaward ready to sail with trailer, etc. Losing the place that I keep it.
I tried using the boat classifieds, I just joined cruisersforum this evening.
Had trouble with getting the listing going, and then had trouble getting pictures loaded, wish that it was easier.
Thanks.

[FutureStories]

33' Rangers have sold on YachtWorld from 4,500-23,000 since 2014 most sales laying right in the middle based on condition.

Does your boat look like it did in 75 with lots of upgrades? If so list for 20. If it clearly needs some work. List it for 12-15.

If it's a heap donate it to charity. If you want more insight feel free to pm me and I'll share the past and current listings w you

[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, forsails.

[Scot McPherson]

Make a log of the updates you performed so the buyer sees value in the newer and updated equipment. Any documentation you can show, electrical drawings, receipts, a ships maintenance log all help preserve the perceived value of the boat.


Craigslist is a good place to sell if you want to sell quick and aren't looking to get too much money for it. If you want top dollar, you really need a broker.

[Sea Dreaming]

To attract serious interest, clean it! Seriously put a lot of effort into just making sure it sparkles. Get rid of any junk and take off anything that does not go in the sale. If you have spares and tools that will go with the boat, organize them. But the main take away, clean clean clean.

[a64pilot]

Originally Posted by Sea Dreaming

To attract serious interest, clean it! Seriously put a lot of effort into just making sure it sparkles. Get rid of any junk and take off anything that does not go in the sale. If you have spares and tools that will go with the boat, organize them. But the main take away, clean clean clean.

Lord, this is the truth, some boats I looked at I swear had dirty dishes in the sink, and liquor bottles everywhere.
I and everyone else who was looking passed on them. a CLEAN boat will do more for the sale than anything, make sure it doesn't smell either.

[rmesfo]

Contact a broker and ask them to look up your boat in the boats sold database. It is a good way to get the average and then adjust for condition. Good luck.

[FutureStories]

Originally Posted by rmesfo

Contact a broker and ask them to look up your boat in the boats sold database. It is a good way to get the average and then adjust for condition. Good luck.

^^^ look up already did that for him. Offered to get more in depth if he wanted

[akprb]

Good advice so far. I'll add develop your story, the boats story and how it fits into your prospective buyers story.

Boats are an idea as much as an object. They have gone places and done things, they touch our imagination. Include this in your online adverts, web site or blog and in your conversations.

That and keep lowering the price :-) Its only worth what someone's willing to pay for it. (That's my old school crusty broker advice)

[Souzag818]

Originally Posted by Sea Dreaming

To attract serious interest, clean it! Seriously put a lot of effort into just making sure it sparkles. Get rid of any junk and take off anything that does not go in the sale. If you have spares and tools that will go with the boat, organize them. But the main take away, clean clean clean.

Agree completely. Don't post pictures with tools and a can of WD 40 on the dinette table, or a bunch of stuff stacked in the q berth. Show the boat at it's best, not how a lot of us have our boats Take current pictures so when people call you can say truthfully, "that's what it looks like now". Good luck

[Paich]

I once needed to sell a Triton sailboat that I had painted yellow trying to please my wife, and the paint didn't look good. I remember showing the boat to at least a dozen people, and you could feel their footsteps slow down after they had arrived all excited about seeing the boat. After a good many months, my wife and I sanded the yellow paint off, leaving a clean white gelcoat surface, and the next customer who looked at it bought it. I must say I also cleaned the engine spaces really well with engine degreaser which left the fibreglass looking like new in the area around the engine; and put a fresh coat of paint on the engine. The customer commented "You could eat off of that engine." It was the same old Atomic 4, but looks mattered.

[foufou]

Took me 7 months to sell my Catalina 27 when I bought my current boat. Mine was the lowest priced in my area. So I didn't lower the price. Just waited for the right buyer. And also cleaned, painted etc. I used Craigslist. Patience....patience

[hamburking]

Perhaps I'm stating the obvious...but:

1) Post your boat for sale...classic paper posted on the bulletin board of all the marinas and yacht clubs in your town/city. Its easiest to sell to someone local. Tell your friends, tell your marina staff, put a sign on the boat. There are people looking to buy boats...help them find you.

2) Post ONLINE. Kijiji, Craigslist, Cruisers Forum, there are so many online places to post your listing.

3) Pictures. Buyers want to see pictures before they spend any time calling you or coming for an inspection. Take hundreds of pictures and put them on a site like ONEDRIVE or GOOGLEDRIVE where you can share them easily. Post the link in your ads.

4) PRICE. If your boat was $1, I bet it would be sold this week. Most likely you want more. The more $, the more time and effort it will take. My advice (having sold 8 sailboats) is to start with a very low price...so that it sells fast. Save yourself time and ownership costs. Think about the high price you really want...then subtract 1 year of ownership costs. Thats a good starting point...except that after 1 year, you are going to have to drop the price at least that much anyway...boats don't increase in value sitting unused at the dock do they? So do yourself a favour, ask a low asking price, sell the boat quick, and make sure it goes to someone who really values it.

5) CLEAN. Remove everything from the boat that is not included. Then clean, clean, and clean some more. A clean boat is easy to sell.

6) I'm looking for my next boat....looking forward to seeing your ad and info.

https://youtu.be/bDssMt3Eb9Q