Am I Crazy? Is it Cheaper to...

[shnean66]

That's just what happened before the other way round.
We are back to the exchange rates before the US housing crash, something like early 2007.

If we can get the Greek debt crisis resolved you can watch the EUR rise again. But if this crisis expands to the other questionable EU states you can watch the EUR fall much further.
So place your chips. Rien ne va plus....

[Tropic Cat]

Originally Posted by Denvermike66

Am I crazy or is it cheaper to buy a Cat in Europe and sail it back to the US? Can I save money buy doing this?
Thanks for any advice!
Cheers!

Well, with the sinking Euro... maybe. But, In reality, probably not. As we all know, you can't buy a boat long distance as you have no idea of what you're buying. Condition of the boat and delamination issues are just a couple of things, and then of course there's the price of repowering a Cat. In addition, you will have to pay to rewire the boat to 110 volts.

Lastly the cost of sailing the southern route home .... 3500 miles. Add it up and you're better off staying close to home.

[mintyspilot]

Originally Posted by goboatingnow

If you buy a new boat in the EU you can get the VAT refunded or in some cases where a scheme exists , not pay the VAT in the first place. This does not applly to secondhand boats.

That's because VAT is (essentially) a sales tax and is only levied on NEW items. Second hand items - even boats - have no VAT liability.

Where it can get confusing is that VAT can be levied on services, as well, so a broker who sells a second hand product can charge VAT on his service charge or fee, but not the product.

[Intentional Drifter]

This Euro situation is starting to look pretty crazy. I have a hard time thinking that the fundamentals in the EU are as "bad" as the Euro's free-fall would indicate. Or, is this also somehow relative to where the USD has been over the last couple of years?

I apologize if this contributes to thread-drift, but I'd love to hear from some of the more financially astute forum members about what they think. (I do not think of myself as financially astute -- far from it!)

But, back on topic for a moment -- if you've been seriously considering an EU boat, this may very well be your time to strike a deal.

ID

[Tropic Cat]

Originally Posted by Intentional Drifter

This Euro situation is starting to look pretty crazy. I have a hard time thinking that the fundamentals in the EU are as "bad" as the Euro's free-fall would indicate.

I think that it's all up to Germany's Parliament. If they vote to bail out Greece, the Euro will rebound. If they vote not to, the EU may be finished as an economic zone and their currency disappears... as Portugal and Spain defaults are right around the corner. There is a ton of political capital being spent on this very issue right now.

If I were a betting man..... I'd bet Greece will get bailed out and the Euro is here to stay.

[osirissail]

As of 18:00 today that 400KEuro boat was US$309K. Roughly half of what it cost last week.

[h20man]

Originally Posted by osirissail

As of 18:00 today that 400KEuro boat was US$309K. Roughly half of what it cost last week.

Unfortunately I believe there is was a small error in your calculations...

The euro is worth (only) 1.2628 dollars. So to convert euro to USD we MULTIPLY by 1.2628, not divide...

So (according to todays WSJ currency close) that 400K euro is 505.12K USD.

[Tropic Cat]

$505K is about right, but there's a rumor this evening published on CNBC that as of 6:00PM EST, there are no European banks making loans of any kind.

[Denvermike66]

Originally Posted by vegasandre

a half hour later now its worth $508000 at this rate it will be free in about a week

Wouldn't that be nice. Ooops better book my flight...ha!

[osirissail]

Ooops, better cancel that order I just put in. Thanks for the heads up.

[Gemini]

While the VAT is not charged to a non-eu citizen or if it is you send in a form and get it back. Most marine title companies can handle the paperwork. Surveyor may be the real challenge. I.e. finding one in EU that your bank and title company will work with. Import is about 1.8% and don't forget your sales/excise tax from the state you are living in or will moore it in. BTW if you forget to pay the sales/excise tax it will double when they catch you!

I would start looking around the States as there are several that the owners are updside down on or may be going into foreclosure.

That is what I did. Found a Lagoon 440 on a short sale and save $100K.

Gemini

[Liam Wald]

Okay armchair economists...
The Euro is dropping. That does not mean that everything gets cheaper. Things like cars, boats, cameras, etc, etc... have "real" or "capitol" value. Simply stated, when currency devaluation occurs inflation kicks in.
So the boat that cost 500 Euro will cost 750 Euro with a 50% currency devalue.
Hotels, restaraunts, shoes, and other commodities will be a bargan but durable goods will index to the economy.

[freetime]

If you have plans to buy a boat in Europe, don´t forget to compare prices in countries without euro. Because right now both the euro and dollar goes up compares with many not euro contries. So dont forget to look at this...

UK
Denmark
Norway (not eu country)
Sweden

etc...

[Denvermike66]

Originally Posted by Gemini

While the VAT is not charged to a non-eu citizen or if it is you send in a form and get it back. Most marine title companies can handle the paperwork. Surveyor may be the real challenge. I.e. finding one in EU that your bank and title company will work with. Import is about 1.8% and don't forget your sales/excise tax from the state you are living in or will moore it in. BTW if you forget to pay the sales/excise tax it will double when they catch you!

I would start looking around the States as there are several that the owners are updside down on or may be going into foreclosure.

That is what I did. Found a Lagoon 440 on a short sale and save $100K.

Gemini

How do you like the Lagoon? Still on my list just concerned on how well it will do on big crossings.

[ty.gregory]

today 494320.00 USD