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Tips for selling your boat fast after valuation


After having valued your boat, there are lots of things that you can do so that you will come into the money quickly. Now if you are really interested in selling your water craft and need some proven ideas to guide you, then I have good news for you. Here are a couple of tips.

1) Consider the best timing to sell your boat. Having a clear idea of the right seasons to sell your boat will boost your bottom line. As an example, most boat buyers hardly open their wallet for boat during or middle of winter season.

Avoid selling at very cold seasons unless you want to sell at a low price. On the other hand, you can get the best price for your boat just when the boating season begins. This is a smart marketing move because lots of people will be looking to buy a boat at that point. Apart from the fact you will likely sell your boat for good price, you will avoid a lot of the marketing cost that you would spend during the winter months.

1) What is the market willing to pay? The next point is to find the best possible price an average buyer is willing to pay for your boat. How can you accomplish this?

Most of this site is dedicated to boat values, so read through the articles! And besides researching the boat’s worth, getting advice and appraisals from a competent boat sales professional would be another useful step.

If you don’t want to pay a professional, then check you should check the marine blue book value. Simply modify the listed price based on the extra accessories on the boat plus depreciation due to different age of your boat. To get to the right end value for the boat, you need to add any new accessories or some resurfacing such as carpeting, make sure to compute that and all of the boating accessories that you are going to provide with the boat.

3) Study your competitors. Always remember you’re not alone selling a watercraft - there are many sellers, just as some boat buyers may opt for buying a new boat instead of buying yours. Have the other sellers researched the boat value well, or are they off the mark?

To sell fast, you must set a very competitive price based on features that potential buyers may want. For example, if you find out that many similar boats (both old and new models) lack certain features such as radio, GPS, fish finders, make sure that you emphasize this in your sales ad.

4) Use smart advertising techniques. Displaying a small add in an obscure corner of a daily newspaper may not get you many good inquiries, if any at all. Most boaters now use the Internet to search for their preferred boats. As a result, to sell fast, advertise your boat on Internet boards and display both the profile and photographs of different angles of the interiors and exteriors. Don't forget trade magazines and your local boating club, either.

Make sure your pictures are good-looking quality pictures, studies have proven that a profile with professional pictures commands more attention and helps to sell property faster.

5) If you are really in a hurry, work with a broker. Not everyone has the time to show a boat to potential customers and to answer their questions. Why don’t you contact a broker to do the work for you? You will get less as you will have to take into account the 10% or 15% commission that the broker will take – but he will get the job done very fast and without any hassles to you.

However, insist to know the methods that the broker will use to advertise your boat. Make sure that he will also advertise your craft on the Internet so as to attract a large percentage of buyers as fast as possible.

6) Be patient. Even if you are in a hurry, you may have to wait for three to six months to sell your boat, regardless of how well you valued it. So if you want to advertise it yourself, start early and display on sites where listing are allowed for several months. However, with some luck you will sell your boat sooner.

7) Boaters love clean boats and therefore tidying markedly increases value. Apart from adding new features, make sure you clean your boat very well. Using soapy water and a sponge, start cleaning the boat inside out. Clean off mold, mildew and rusty stains. Everything must be thoroughly cleaned and replaced back properly after they’re completely dried up. I strongly urge you do this before you add new features and advertise you boat for sale.

Also, make sure that storage areas are cleaned and kept organized, and make sure that you get rid of any odour from the interior. This should be accomplished at the time of cleaning the boat. However, many people miss out on this vital aspect. Apart from cleaning and replacing rusty and leaking clamps and hoses, ensure the stove, cushions and refrigerators are all in working order. Also, remove every item from the storage lockers to avoid giving buyers the wrong impression that your boat storage is inadequate - empty storage areas look larger than they are.

8) Do not be rigid on pricing. When you do your boat evaluation, be sure to aim at a min-max range rather than a t a fixed price. It’s good to sell at the best price, but let your potential buyer's interest be your priority to sell quickly. Put yourself in his shoes and ask yourself this question, “If I’m buying this boat, what is unique about it and will easily sway my interests to buy this boat rather than other boats that are similar?”