i used to wonder the same thing when i started bass fishing 8 yrs ago out of a 8k boat wishing for a newer one. it all boils down to disposable income. there are a ton of folks in texas that have a ton of money. simple and plain,plain snd simple.

If trading a boat every couple of years is common, whew, you ought to see how quickly some kayakers flip theirs. Over on Facebook, there are kayaks for sale right now in the D/FW area that were purchased just weeks ago, many only taken out a time or two.

I think in this case, it is often that the buyers didn't demo the vessels, found out they weren't really what they wanted. And, something in the 1 to 3 grand price range is mentally and emotionally a lot easier to fix (take a small and quick loss) than it would be with a 20K to 80K bass boat I guess.

It likely reflects that something down in that price range, whip out a credit card, makes it more liable to be an impulsive buy. That is harder to do with a big bass boat.

We see it a lot with kayaks, for sure.

Brad

Pro staff boats are the bulk of those.

Actually one of the biggest contributors to the outrageous used boat prices is the recession we had back in '08. New boat sales virtually tanked for about 4-5 years. This created a shortage of used boats and gave what manufacturers that survived reason to jack up the prices of new boats. Toss in low interest long term loans and we'll be repeating the process in the next few years.

I just wish I could afford a 5yr old boat.....

Whatever happened to buying a new or like new used boat,paying it off and enjoying years of fishing out of a great boat that's paid for and lower insurance cost? And with all of the money you save from not having boat payments and high insurance,if by chance something breaks or wears out just replace that part or upgrade electronics,troll motor,big motor etc. Maybe its just me. Lots of people have more money than sense.

Lots of people still do that. We only see a small part of the people that fish on these websites. I plan on keeping mine for a long time,can't make any promises that will happen, but that's the plan. Really, with prices the way they are I could sell mine and not be to bad off on getting another one. Yea I would lose some money of course but it wouldn't be that bad. That could be what happens though. Maybe guys say, "well for another 40 or 50 a month I can sell mine and go new again". They keep doing that until they're maxed out.

I have my ole 202 Skeeter , don't plan on getting nother one , just pay for parts when it's broke , fish out it every chance I get . Buy tackle when ever I want to . Thought that's how you were supposed to do it .

Friend at the bank say a lot are people trying to unload it so as to not ruin their credit when something happens that they cant pay for it, I asked her how many are successful and she said not many.

[quote=snickers]Trump is making America great again [/quote^

^^^ And your helping right ?

i think one thing that happens is someone buys a 60k bass boat because when they did the math they could afford it. A year down the road this happens,that happens, and the old lady is pissed. better get rid of the boat before they lose the boat,house,401k,and her.

Pretty sure they're making their money back when they sell their basically brand new boat. Boats don't depreciate nearly as much as cars do. If you could just save up cash to buy one brand new boat, you could almost get a free boat every year

Well I think they depreciate more and faster. Again I would tell you 80% of these are pro staff boats, sold at a discount, and pretty much sold for what they purchased it for.

That's actually a very false statement. A boat depreciates way faster than a vehicle. You buy a 60-70k boat, the minute you put her in the water for the first time that boat isn't worth 55. You run it for a year and then decide to trade her in for another, you probably only actually paid maybe 5k of the principal. So now you owe 60-65. No boat that has been previously ran is worth that.

What planet are you from???