What Vessels seem to sell the fastest?

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GuysDigDirt

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Feb 14, 2021
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I am looking mostly into older trawlers as in 70s to mid 90s boats, but any boat is fair game. What boat would you look seriously at, and which trawlers seem to sell the fastest? Ideally it would be in the 35'-45' range, but anything that comes to mind is fair game.
I could add a price factor but that would also affect the quickness of the sale so I will not add one.
If you do not mind adding your thoughts on why the particular trawler you mention seems to be sought after I would appreciate it.
Thank you and happy trails to you.
 
What is your price range? From what I have seen boats that have been priced correctly due to their age, level of Care and size have been moving quickly. You need to refine your search.
 
I really like Californians - the 34s really offer a lot of value in my opinion.

If you can find one with the twin 185hp engines or greater you've got a boat capable of decent speed (18 kts) which is also economical at lower speeds. Interior layout is great with huge windows that allow you to enjoy your surroundings with no feeling of being cramped - double doors open to the stern. Walkaround decks, decent storage and engine room space, mahogany interior, teak details on the exterior - just enough to make it look great, but not too much to where you'll be sanding for the rest of your life. Everything just seems well thought out and well executed.

As far as the market goes, the good ones seem to disappear almost as fast as they are listed. Took me a year to find mine. Covid made everything more complicated in addition to disrupting demand (much higher). That said, if you see one that's been on the market for 45 days or more, there may be an issue and you should do ample diligence.

I see you are in Southern California and there are more of them down here than anywhere else, being California designed and built.

Disclaimer - I have one. I thought I'd like it a lot, had no idea that my wife and daughter would absolutely love it. I expected it would be my go to for fishing etc, but it turns out I'm having just as much fun cooking and playing Monopoly with my family. I don't hear most people say things like this about 34s.

Keeping the crew happy is the real end game.
 
Well...

Just a couple of weeks ago I called on a trawler that looked really interesting in Anacortes Washington.

I was not really all that serious, but I suppose I could have become serious if my wife would have liked trawler better than our current boat a 2001 Bayliner 4788.

The broker, upon figuring out that If the trawler made sense for us that we would sell our 4788 told me...

"if you are serious we could sell your boat in about three minutes as we have a line of people looking for a clean late model 4788"

Those were his words...

Even though the trawler which I really liked but had been for sale for a year was not to my wife's approval we were left with the good feeling that our boat, being a extremely popular model provides a reasonable exit plan.

BTW here is a link to the very capable trawler.

https://www.bananabeltboats.com/boa...g-range-trawler-anacortes-washington-7263138/

My opinion looking over the listing, and talking with the broker is that the boat represents a circumnavigation capable, comfortable, very well maintained boat.
I thought it was really cool, but my wife wants nothing to do with any boat that can cross oceans, and has again, forbidden me from owning one. (there is a reason my boat is named Lisas Way)
 
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Mainship seem to sell reliably fast these days. Several potential buyers have reported missing out on ones that sold very, very quickly.

Peter
 
Depends on your location on what the favorite is. Seams as if the Grand banks, Tollys and tugs all command a good share of the market in pricy boats that sell quickly. Clean 3888-4788 Bayliners sell well if they are properly maintained. A local broker is offering cash if you can find boats for him to list. And I know of at least 3 boats that were sold without even being posted up for sale. Local builders are anywhere from 6 months to a year out on production boats. Its a lot different than it was 2-5 years ago. I would watch boats list and stay listed for almost a year before they were sold, it seamed like the norm. I thought my last boat would take anywhere from 8 months to a year to sell. But it sold in under a week at full price.
 
We bought our Mainship 5 years ago and we had a few get away from us as they sold so fast. We lucked out as our boat failed inspection for another seller who backed out. PO fixed the issue and put it back on market and we were able to jump.
 
There are four points to how fast a boat will sell. Price, condition, equipment and manufacture. Price and condition pretty much out way everything else. How a boat is equipped will also influence timing but only if Price and condition are already correct. If the price is wrong or the condition is poor then how it is equipped wont help speed things up. Manufacture might help one boat sell over another boat if all things are equal. If Price, condition and equipment are not equal they have a bigger influence than manufacture.

Its a bit strange, either the boat market is hot or it is not. Rarely do I see the trawler market up and the sportfisher market down. Its either all up or all down.
 

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