How To Sell Your Boat Faster: It's In The Details

With a very strong boat market currently, it seems like selling a boat is easy but that is not always the case. Some boats are easier to sell than others, depending on the type of boat, your area and the market, which gets hot and cold. I used to think that if your boat doesn't sell in 3 weeks, your price is probably too high. But that isn’t totally accurate, some boats just have a smaller market and take time to sell; add to the fact that used boats are more difficult to price then the very controlled used car market. Considering all that, here are some sure fire ways to sell your boat faster and get the best value for it. 

Preparing the Boat For Sale

The first thing to do when you decide to sell your boat is make sure everything is functioning one hundred percent, from electronics to the engine(s) and controls, monitors and mechanical parts, check everything. If something isn’t working you either have to fix it or determine how much of a drawback that will be for a future owner and price it accordingly. Plus, you must disclose everything. My mind is always to have everything working as it should to negate any pushback or objections from a potential buyer. 

Secondly and related to everything functioning is doing a deep cleaning or detail of the boat. This serves two purposes, you get to inspect parts of the boat that you often overlook and it gets the boat ready for any cosmetic repairs and pictures you will take. A deep cleaning, inside and out, will reveal issues like gouges or scratches, mold, rot, broken hardware and other essential things. Cleaning the cabin and bilge thoroughly for pictures is also important. After you clean it, the boat is ready for a polish and wax, and you might even aware of some other repairs now too. 

Spending the time detailing, fixing and then polishing / waxing your boat can take a boat that is a 6/10 cosmetically to a 7 or 9 potentially. This can mean thousands of dollars in some cases and a much faster sale. Put yourself in the buyers shoes, you wouldn’t want to buy something that looks neglected and dull either. 

Make Sure the Boat is Mechanically Solid

On the mechanical side, having your engine serviced and any issues addressed, with documentation, is a great way to show the buyer you have maintained the vessel and that they can drive away with a truly a turnkey boat. Many people delay this or fail to get an inspection or service done in the hopes of passing it on to the buyer; “it just needs these little things fixed,” is a bad omen for buyers.

Depending on the age and type of power you have, this could mean a full service report, mechanic inspection or it might just be a recent service bill and documentation. Surveys can be a great way to show the condition of your boat overall as well. Mechanically, the buyer will feel better if they can see that you did all the maintenance, serviced the engine and made any repairs in a timely manner. Again, negate objections before they arise. 

Many buyers will want to do an inspection anyway but they will feel more confident when your boat is clearly in great operational condition and you will feel very confident when it goes in for an inspection.

The Trailer

Some sellers overlook their trailer but the trailer is a critical component when selling your boat. Although some trailers can show signs of wear and tear, keeping the bunks in good shape with nice carpet or replacing them when needed is an easy thing. Making sure all the mechanicals work and your hardware is in good shape, not corroded and that the lights are fully functioning are simple issues to address. The axle(s), suspension and bearings are also easy to inspect, although you may want to seek professional help if they need to be serviced or replaced. 

Nothing looks worse than a boat that isn’t well kept and the trailer is also a mess. I would walk away from a boat that was stored and towed on a very poorly maintained trailer. In the worst cases I’ve seen trailers that don't’ even fit the boat and are actually complete hazards they are in such bad shape. If that’s how the owner kept the boat, then that is probably all you need to know about how it was cared for. 

One more thing about trailers; roller trailers were popular in the eighties and nineties for small boats as a “universal” fit and easy to load but roller trailers are awful. You should never use one. The concentrated weight on a few touch points, the instability and the boat being far more susceptible to bouncing on the trailer when underway are just the main reasons to never use one. Be very cautious about buying a used boat with a roller trailer. 

Conclusion

If you want to sell your boat fast and for the most amount of money, have it thoroughly inspected or surveyed, have it serviced and all issues addressed and have it detailed. Once that is done, the buyer will have almost no objections and believe me, most people don’t do this, so your boat will standout. Additionally, since selling online is popular, take really good photos and even a short walk around video. Take video of it running. Those simple steps will make if far easier to sell your boat for the most amount of money.