Thursday, February 5, 2009

Boat Value Appraisal Can Be Learned!

By John Howard

Appraising a boat's value may look like a daunting task in the beginning, but it is possible to do it yourself. You just should be aware of the risks and of the things that could possibly go wrong if you fail to do your research and then also do not consult a professional.

Even more so if you have not appraised a boat's value before, either as a buyer or as someone who wants to sell, you should be aware that the lack of experience may let you make an error that will cost you a lot. The only workaround to this is that you inform yourself thoroughly before making an assessment.

But researching and boat value appraisal are very important, and they will allow you to avoid buying a boat on the fly, just because it superficially looks like a good deal, to then discover that you should have listened less to what the seller was saying and looked more at the boat features, and finding yourself with a vessel that is not exactly the kind that you wanted.

In fact studying boat evaluation has the great added advantage that it will make the kinds of features that you really need for the way that you are going to use the boat much clearer to your mind. By educating yourself about the options and their prices, you will end up with the vessel that suits you best.

Boat value appraisal research can come in many forms, but a good start is usually achieved by reading about it. Start with trade magazines, available at most well-equipped press shops, and you will find a wealth of information on current boating prices, trends and features at your fingertips.

Besides general trade magazines, there are also lots dedicated to specific kinds of boats, such as catamaran only, or houseboat, or open-topped motorboat only. These are especially useful for boat evaluation as you will find a ton of specific classifieds that you can use for first approximate price comparisons.

Reading and comparing these listings is a great way to find out what's available and to get first rough ideas of the characteristics and values of certain vessels and their accessories. As a next step, you will probably want to check out the main guides, which are called BUC and NADA.

As both these databases only give average boat values, you still have to take the specific condition of a vessel in to the equation. NADA is a data base that specializes in motor boats and accessories (such as trailers and outboard motors), covering all products in trade since 1978. BUC also covers sailing boats, including multi-hulls.

However, while DIY evaluation is perfectly OK for small boats, if the ship or vessel that you are going to trade is expected to fetch more fifty thousand dollars, a professional appraisal will very probably be able to help you fetch you the best prices for your vessel, and the additional expense will well be worth it.

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