Boat Loan Question

Youbetcha wrote:

YOLO

I bet the original owner of my boat paid cash, there was no lien. He had a stroke before ever putting it in the water though.

Ripjiggen wrote:

Any Dave Ramsey fans here? No ok just checking.

I was wondering when someone would bring him up. I’ve had loans on a number of toys. Even a few sleds back in the day, which depreciated like crazy. Could I have spent my money more wisely at that time? Without a doubt. One thing I’ve come to realize though is life is short. If you can “afford” it, go for it. To the OP’s question, BW probably had the best answer. All you can do is ask. I’d argue that a good cover is the best accessory you can get for a boat and probably depreciates at a rate similar to the boat itself. When you go to the bank, show them a copy of the boat purchase agreement and the quote for the cover.

30 years ago a friend told me a boat was nothing but a hole in the water you throw money into.
He was 100% right.
But without the hole and the money you don’t have the enjoyment or the memories.

I’ve seen wayyyy too many people make it to retirement and die . Take care of your family – have some back up plans . I pay cash for toys but will never look down st someone who doesn’t . Time on this planet is never garunteed and whose to say when you’re on your death bed at whatever age maybe you’ll wish you had A little more fun while you could.

A boats one of the best investments I’ve made. Countless memories .

Reef W wrote:

He had a stroke before ever putting it in the water though.

That is really too bad! Man!

Full draw wrote:

30 years ago a friend told me a boat was nothing but a hole in the water you throw money into.
He was 100% right.
But without the hole and the money you don’t have the enjoyment or the memories.

Boats are sure awesome and create lots of memories, instead of a 7 or 8 percent interest on electronics through the loan or the cover just put them on a card with no or little interest. Keep the boat load as plain Jane as possible. That would be my goal.

Or do what I do, buy a new boat, leave it in the shed and fish off the dock.

Bearcat89 wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Full draw wrote:</div>
30 years ago a friend told me a boat was nothing but a hole in the water you throw money into.
He was 100% right.
But without the hole and the money you don’t have the enjoyment or the memories.

Boats are sure awesome and create lots of memories, instead of a 7 or 8 percent interest on electronics through the loan or the cover just put them on a card with no or little interest. Keep the boat load as plain Jane as possible. That would be my goal.

When I bought my last boat some of the electronics I bought with cash from a different vendor and some were on the boat already in a package deal.
I just put more money down than what the bank had asked for.
I then took out the longest loan duration I could to get the payment as cheap as possible. I then make double and triple payments. Those months when I get 5 paychecks instead of 4 I make an extra principle payment as well. Goal is to pay the loan off in less than half the duration in the agreement.

This saves some heartache when I was not working for a few months when I had my accident.

Cant get a whiskey ticket sitting on the dock.

JEREMY wrote:

Cant get a whiskey ticket sitting on the dock.

Eelpoutguy wrote:

Or do what I do, buy a new boat, leave it in the shed and fish off the dock.

hahaha

Eelpoutguy wrote:

Or do what I do, buy a new boat, leave it in the shed and fish off the dock.

That’s not the crazy part tho, the crazy part was when you then tried to burn the dock down too!

The ex wanted the dock. He had no choice lol

I can’t believe I’m the first one to ask what rig are you looking to buy?

OP. Yes, you absolutely can do this, and getting it all in bill of sale is the best way to do so. Get what you want, try to set it up to be paid off in a timely manner, you know your finances. Getting a loan for a longer time doesnt mean you have to take it to term, and can give you options if circumstances change. Pay extra, have a plan, and enjoy your boat!

My 2 cents:

If you don’t have money to put a decent chunk down on the new boat, or at least pay for the goodies…you really shouldn’t buy the boat.

I don’t care if it’s a $15,000 or a $150,000 boat…

I wholeheartedly agree that you only live once…but a big ass payment in February if you’re already struggling to save money is truly a terrible idea.

Not trying to knock you down at all dude, seriously just trying to put things in to perspective. I’m also assuming you were born in 1989 and have a head on your shoulders.

My advice, buy something used that will fill your needs and not wants, and borrow the money if needed.

When that one is paid off, sell it and put the money towards the next one.

And PLEASE don’t get caught up with keeping up with the Jones’s.

Both of my boats were bought used and are over 20 years old now, they catch me as many fish as one off the showroom floor.

Trust me, you don’t “need” that new boat.

Full draw wrote:

30 years ago a friend told me a boat was nothing but a hole in the water you throw money into.
He was 100% right.
But without the hole and the money you don’t have the enjoyment or the memories.

I think it all depends on how much time a person spends on the water and how much they spent or continue to spend on the boat. For people that buy a $20,000 and fish 4 times a year, definitely a waste.

I store my boat on my property, do all routine maintenance and upgrades, and I consider my boat a bargain. I also toe the line between hours on the water and divorce, so that helps things pencil out.

B-man wrote:

My 2 cents:

If you don’t have money to put a decent chunk down on the new boat, or at least pay for the goodies…you really shouldn’t buy the boat.

I don’t care if it’s a $15,000 or a $150,000 boat…

I wholeheartedly agree that you only live once…but a big ass payment in February if you’re already struggling to save money is truly a terrible idea.

Not trying to knock you down at all dude, seriously just trying to put things in to perspective. I’m also assuming you were born in 1989 and have a head on your shoulders.

My advice, buy something used that will fill your needs and not wants.

When that one is paid off, sell it and put the money towards the next one.

And don’t get caught up with keeping up with the Jones’s.

Both of my boats were bought used and are over 20 years old, they catch me as many fish as one off the showroom floor.

I agree with this 100 percent. And even though I spend alot of time on the water, I still love old ugly boats. No payment plans for me. But as for loans on accessories, I still find that to be a odd want, if anything you’d do those on a credit card if you really can’t wing the cash. But for me its cash for accessories or I don’t need them

B-man wrote:

I wholeheartedly agree that you only live once…but a big ass payment in February if you’re already struggling to save money is truly a terrible idea.

The yolo was more of a joke im a big cash guy but whatever gets people in a boat im all for

Dutchboy wrote:

All you need is basic depth anyway.

This is very true.

In fact, OP, I have this sweet, slightly used groundbreaking depth finder called the FL-8 SE that I’d be willing to part with. I’ll even include a super slick transom mount transducer pole.

With this unit you can actually almost distinguish a fish from a weed down to about 23 fow, believe it or not!!!

If you have your heart set on financing the whole thing, no clue why anyone would ever do something like that, skeeters come from the factory with everything and might be easier to finance. They make a hell of a boat too, depending on what you’re looking at.

Buy the boat. lots of advice here.
With personal recent happenings the “YOLO” comment rings true.
I financed mine, bought the first one used w cash and upgraded the next year. Paid it off early and kept the “old” electronics from the first boat ( still have em after 4 years – Gen 1 side imaging and down imaging on the bow – use em mostly for Depth and seeing the contours and finding the reefs as I ride over the rocks on Rainy)
Memories are priceless – fishing with my kids, their friends, my wife, myself, boat captaining for high school kids, my old boss, neighbors…..
Have fun with it – I’ve got 287 fishing outings in mine going on my fifth summer. Was worth every penny!

Stanley wrote:

April 29, 2025 at 10:11 am#2332970
I’m kind of a numbers guy so I had to look into this more. I saw one dealer advertise 7.79% for 15yrs. I took 7.5% and for every thousand it’s $9.25 a month and $670 in interest for life of loan.

15 yrs, $670 interest on a $1000 – let’s bump that to a $30,000 loan and you would be looking at a bit over $20,000 interest. Personally, I consider a 15 year loan on a boat almost criminal.