Market for Center Console boats???

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mvweebles

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Vessel Name
Weebles
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1970 Willard 36 Trawler
Nothing to do with trawlers, but since a good many of you have boating experience that spans many facets, I thought I'd ping the TF Bigger Brain with a question.

A good friend of mine near me in St Pete area of Florida was flooded in Hurricane Helene and is moving out of Florida. I'm thinking of buying his Parker 21-foot Center Console but have no idea what it's worth. I'll keep it for a few years and want to be able to sell fairly quickly without losing too much in the transaction.
  • 2010 Parker 21SE used as a day boat, not much fishing.
  • Original 150hp Yamaha threw a rod at 680 hours 2-years ago and was replaced with a 2006 Yamaha 250hp with 375 hours (450 hrs now). He runs at WOT unless in no-wake zone which I guess had something to do with a thrown rod. QUESTION - what is the lifespan (in hours) of a typical outboard?
  • Full Simrad EVO electronics with radar
  • No trailer - always kept on a lift.
  • My friend purchased from his brother 7-years ago. I believe his brother had it for about 5-years.
Boat is in overall good condition - waxed/buffed regularly and professionally maintained motor service.

How are these things typically valued? How do you sell one when the time comes? Craigslist? Broker lot? Is it still a 10% commission for smaller boats like these? Is the market softening like it is for larger boats? I just have no idea what is a fair deal.

Thanks in advance for input -

Peter

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thehulltruth is the place for this question, but I'll take a stab at it...

A 15 yr old CC with no trailer is worth the value of the engine. In this case, $7k?
 
I also posted to THT but I've had such good luck with TF that I thought I'd post here too. Many serial boat buyers here.

Interesting you should mention $7k. When he first asked about my interest, I was thinking $10k. A quick Google search showed that is a ridiculously low number even for a 15-year old boat. My takeaway was I don't know squat about the market so I'm surveying folks who might.

Thanks in advance.

Peter
 
I think 7k is pretty light. 2010 was the first year for that boat, and they were fairly expensive new. Pretty popular fishing boat, nice lines.
I’d expect that outboard to last at least 1000-1500 hours no problem, probably lots more. Pretty rare to throw a rod at 600 unless it’s a particular issue with a certain model.
I’ve no idea what the used market for one of those is, as we don’t see them on the west coast. I’d imagine some where in the 15- 20k range though if it was here.
Craigslist is where I would market it when it came time to sell. In fact, I’d look there for any used ones to see what price might be in your area.
 
Peter, some Yamaha outboards had serious corrosion issues within the exhaust housing (mid portion) of the engine. I would check into if this engine was part of that group of affected models. More of a concern since FL has a high salt content in the water. If it were flushed regularly after usage then I would be less concerned over it, but since this engine was installed used I would be weary. It's a 20 year old engine now, no spring chicken.

As to the price, I would venture a guess of $20-25K if in good condition, perhaps a bit more. I sold my 2000 Shamrock 26 (a very different boat but in the vicinity) for $26K before COVID. As mentioned, the THT guys will have a better answer since most of them live in FL.
 
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I look at outboard boats as if there is no engine on them unless they still have a year or two of warranty and I know the owner well (careful with engine) or the dealer who does all the maintenance on it.

Parker is a well established boat, but nothing really special about them.

Small center consoles are a dime a dozen...without a trailer and a ton of fishing gear plus state of the art electronics.... $7000 does seem too low as the first offer (add if you are getting some good stuff on her) and I might go to $15,000 depending on what gear and just how perfect the hull. The boat might be worth up to $25000 if in near perfect condition...but there is a lot of "if" in there.

The engine could easily go for another 1000 hrs with basic maintenance or could start nickel and diming you right away...may even blow the powerhead too. Unless the power tilt system and the steering area is pristine...that is a troublesome area to have to start repair/replace.
 
Here is what I found on Yachtworld:

1995 2100 Parker: $19,900
2006 2100 Parker: $25,999
2021 2100 Parker: $63,000
 
Because the CC market is flooded in most coastal states.....and many people get in, get out shortly after buying one.... they think they are going get their money back. Problem is, many new CCs are produced every year and a lot of people dump theirs to trade up.

So you have some that sell ridiculously low that are in great shape but are never advertised and the guys who think they are going get their money out of the boat, get tired of it not selling and never get anywhere near their asking price.

Boats of this size and age are pretty much entry level so many really inexperienced buyers do pay too much and it keeps seller's hopes up they snag one of these buyers.

My decision when I bought my skiff was buy an older hull and throwaway motor (get a few $ for parts or a desperate boater).... or a brand new one with great warranty. Everything else in between worried me because too many people just don't take good care of outboards (which have gone from great to terrible back to pretty good again...but still don't tolerate abuse very well).
 
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My friend keeps things well serviced by professionals. He used a small company that does outboard service only - Stack Marine who's owner is Darlene Stack. Very nice woman who I've met a couple times when helping my friend move his boat to a launch ramp so she can pickup with a trailer.

I called her a short time ago - below is a summary (also posted to THT). Note the mention of exhaust issues as described by @lwarden (many thanks).

--------------------------cut/paste follows-------

I called the folks who installed the 2006 OB (375 hrs) 2-years ago (Stack Marine - Largo FL). Reputable company who only works on OBs. Darlene (owner) knows the local market pretty well. While she didn't offer a number for this boat, she did offer some insights - some helped clarify for me, others are a bit more confusing:

+Due to hurricane damage, folks aren't buying boats right now. They're pretty busy fixing their homes.

+Right now, used trailers are tough to come by due many of the boats on lifts now need a trailer due to hurricane.

+The 2006 engine came off a trailered boat that was crushed by a tree (she has a picture) so the provenance isn't entirely murky. She didn't feel the mismatch of engine/boat year was a yellow flag - condition of both are the determining factor.

+This series of Yamaha engine is pretty durable, though has had some issues with exhaust corrosion over the years.

+Well cared for, engine should be good for well over 2000 hours

As a general observation, Darlene/Stack Marine observed that demand for smaller boats like these have softened significantly from Covid highs.....but there are still quite a few sellers who are clinging to frothy expectations. Her gut feel was that boats were selling for a 20% discount to asking in private sales (broker pricing for boats like these is another $5k too high). This is probably my biggest challenge as my friend's expectation is set by what he sees in the advertisements - $30k-$35k. $20k is feeling the right number for me but I'll probably need to let my friend test the market.
 
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A good friend of mine near me in St Pete area of Florida was flooded in Hurricane Helene and is moving out of Florida. I'm thinking of buying his Parker 21-foot Center Console but have no idea what it's worth. I'll keep it for a few years and want to be able to sell fairly quickly without losing too much in the transaction.
Peter

View attachment 160001
let your friend test the market.
Market now is cold but soon coming totally freezing.

 
let your friend test the market.
Market now is cold but soon coming totally freezing.


That may be the right solution. He's a good friend, neither of us know much about this type of boat except they are a helluva lot of fun in a place like the ICW. Tons of places to go and things to do.

We both have incentives to find a happy medium. He'd love to see the boat go to me as we've had some great adventures together. Plus it's a PITA to sell something. For me, I know the boat and how he's maintained it so there's value to me. It's an easy button for us both. The question is a fair price, and for me, whether I want a runabout enough to cough up the cash. Wasn't really on my radar.

Peter
 
@mvweebles I sold a similar boat in Florida 2 years ago, it was postCovid and prices were starting to soften, although the market was not as soft as it is now.

2010 Proline 22 with a rebuilt Merc 250 but was a 2-stroke. With trailer sold for $23k.

Sell yours on MarketPlace or Craigslist or BoatTrader. Now way hire a broker at that price range.
 
Parker is a very solid boat. It is definitely worth more than the value of the engine. They are made in Beaufort, NC and have a large presence here and considered to be super solid hulls. Everyone I know with one has been pleased. They are simple and strong. When you finish with yours in 10 years, I’ll take it!
 
I am not a big fan of the larger Yamahas. They have significant issues with the exhaust corrosion. Yamaha has not recalled them and basically left the owners hanging but they do know they have problems because they came out with parts kits to upgrade them. But the kits were ridiculously priced, very cheap so they know there is a problem. It usually doesn’t show up around 800 hours or so, well beyond the warranty. If left a bit too long it can eat up the block and then you basically replace the engine. Be careful.
 
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I am not a big fan of the larger Yamahas. They have significant issues with the exhaust corrosion. Yamaha has not recalled them and basically left the owners hanging but they do know they have problems because they came out with parts kits to upgrade them. But the kits were ridiculously priced, very cheap so they know there is a problem. It usually doesn’t show up around 800 hours or so, well beyond the warranty. If left a bit too long it can eat up the block and then you basically replace the engine. Be careful.
Thanks - I have spent some quality time on TheHullTruth and arrived at a similar opinion. My preference would be Suzuki but there are so many Yamaha-equipped boats that it may be tough to avoid.



 
Parkers are decent boats. They do have glass over wood for the decks and rails so beware for any water intrusion that has reached any of the wood core. A moisture meter would be a good tool to check. Set up a control by testing a known sample dry core and then a known sample wet core.
 
Here is something I tripped across this morning looking for fishing reports.... seems no matter what you buy these last several decades, some have success, some have lemons.

I know a lot of small boaters and when Evinrude/Johnson got swallowed up.... Yamaha reigned supreme. Quite a few charter guys switched to Suzuki because of higher warranties, but switched back because every day a motor was in the shop under warranty was a day not fishing with customers.

This was an example of my experience for the last 20 years with outboards...but I will admit Merc has come on strong the last decade.

Off The Chain Fishing Charters, Fishing Charters in Stuart Fl shared a memory.​

November 20 at 7:31 AM ·

Memories… This was the last time I came in on one engine. 2004 hpdi’s Only had the boat for about a month and didn’t change the gear oil enough. Since then, our Yamaha outboards have provided us with almost 15,000 hours of trouble free trips, with only basic general maintenance and a trim pump here and there. Our first set lasted over 10 years, 11,000 hours, stayed in the water full time, and we only lost a total of 20 days do to mechanical issues. We had a ring stick at 4700 hours, we had to replace two trim pumps, one lower unit due to running over braid, and the low pressure fuel pump and a check and a check valve. Our new set of engines with over 2000 hours have only had one shift actuator stick (able to push it into neutral and get going again…. )  With over 50,000 hours on the water I can confidently say the F 300 Yamaha is as dependable as any diesel engine, extremely economical, quiet, and fish friendly. I strongly recommend Yamaha Outboards and thank them for keeping us in business for so long.
 

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