I bought my used bay boat in spring 2018. It was the same thing then, there are always more people thinking to buy a boat because it sounds like a good idea. But not many people actually want a boat or understand the work that goes into it. It can be a pain in the ass. But I wouldn't trade it for the world.

The point on hours is as others mentioned. I've fished a pretty good bit 9 months out of the year and I put about 75 hours in the little over two years I've had it.

Agnerd is pretty spot on. We have one and love it but we avoid the lake on weekends bc of the idiots and crowds. That leaves during the week after work or Fridays when we are both at home. Then kids and life get in the way. And we are def ones that put the boat in cruise a bit then just anchor and swim or the trolling motor holds us in place.

Clearly you and I value our boat time far differently.

Year model change for most boats is July 1 and they will be rolling out 2021's. Lots of folks, ie serious fisherman, buy new boats on an average of every two years.
Right now in the fishing boat market it is hard to find quality good used boats. The fishing boat market, bass and bay was doing exceptionally well and surprisingly most dealers kept selling fishing boats even during the corona scare.
Due to demand dealers have low inventories right now as they have not been able to replenish the inventory from factories.
The market also has a lot of promotional " team and pro boats that get turned this time of year.
As stated by some other guys on this thread lots of fisherman don't necessarily run the engine as much as fishing time unless they are serious tournament guys.
Fishing boat sales typically peak from January to July 4th or so.

Believe me I fish with guys who are the exact same way.

Most boats sit at home or in storage. I wish mine had more hours.

I just sold a 2004 center console last week. It had 181 hours on the engine... Every year I talked myself out of selling it by thinking next year is the year I'll use it more...

Ragoo said:

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A boat is a luxury item and should never be financed.

When your boat isn't financed debt service doesn't become a negative while owning the boat.

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That's my take too. If I can't pay cash I don't need it.

Haha, I've learned my opinion on somethings value is not the same as others/the market. Otherwise I'd agree with your logic right away.

For sale - saltwater skiff, super low hours. Lost my high paying oilfield job. Nice boat with clean 70 Hp Evinrude E-Tec engine. Legendary Evinrude service, repairs and parts!

Want a cheap saltwater boat? Start looking for skiffs with Evinrude!

For sale - saltwater skiff, super low hours. Nice boat with clean 70 Hp Evinrude E-Tec engine. Legendary Evinrude service, repairs and parts!

Want a cheap saltwater boat? Start looking for skiffs with Evinrude!

LRHF said:

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For sale - saltwater skiff, super low hours. Nice boat with clean 70 Hp Evinrude E-Tec engine. Legendary Evinrude service, repairs and parts!

Want a cheap saltwater boat? Start looking for skiffs with Evinrude!

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But can I put a family of 5 on it?

Want a boat big enough for this, but doesn't break the bank.

Always next year.

LRHF said:

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For sale - saltwater skiff, super low hours. Nice boat with clean 70 Hp Evinrude E-Tec engine. Legendary Evinrude service, repairs and parts!

Want a cheap saltwater boat? Start looking for skiffs with Evinrude!

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You actually think nobody will buy them and keep making them?

Besides, there will be tons of demand for what's out there still. The first generation Etec had some issues but I don't know a single person who's had problems with them.

I think we've seen our last "new" Evinrude roll off the lines. No need for panic, though... parts will still be available. Too many of them on the water. Somebody will make parts.

My dad's first boat had a Johnson. A 13' McKee craft imitation of a Boston whaler. Left us stranded in the Laguna Madre.

Second boat had an Evinrude, left us stranded in the Laguna madre and on Lake Dunlap.

Third and fourth boats both had Yamahas and never had a single issue.

Anecdotal but the basis of my framework.

They indicated they would still support the product line and sell parts in their announcement yesterday. I do believe people selling boats with Evinrude engines will take longer to sell and or take a hit on price.

My fishing partner and I discussed his new outboard at length prior to ordering. We picked Yamaha despite the East Cape guys pushing Suzuki. His old boat has a zuki and we were tired with dealing with our local Suzuki mechanics. Decided to try out some new support in the area. More of a people decision that a manufacturer.

LRHF said:

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Strange times, while boats may be flooding the market, RV sales have spiked.

We just bought a small travel trailer for a 4-5 month road trip and the used market was terrible (not many). New stock is dwindling because manufacturing was stopped for a while due to covid.

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And the used market will be flooded with those RVs in a couple of years when all the newbies find out RVing may not be for them.

If you have an RV right now is a great time to sell. People are making offers over asking price.

Ragoo said:

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My dad's first boat had a Johnson. A 13' McKee craft imitation of a Boston whaler. Left us stranded in the Laguna Madre.

Second boat had an Evinrude, left us stranded in the Laguna madre and on Lake Dunlap.

Third and fourth boats both had Yamahas and never had a single issue.

Anecdotal but the basis of my framework.

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I generally chalk up all the BS debating over outboards to the same sort of generally unfounded biases that exist in Ford vs. Chevy/GMC vs. Dodge and so on. There's the old adage that "buy a Mercury if you want to get there first but buy a Yamaha if you want to get back" implying that a Merc will run fast but is unreliable. Pretty much all the outboards made in the last 10 years or so (occasional lemons aside which are usually caused by some tiny issue getting missed in QC) are exceptionally reliable.

I know tons and tons of people running Etec outboards who have never had a single issue and speak glowingly of them. Particularly in the 30hp to 150hp class. I've had one issue where a hose clip wasn't properly locked down that caused my 90 Etec to run hotter than it should but it was fixed under warranty and never caused a real issue.

I tend to think people who have issues are the dumbasses who abuse their stuff like running their tunnel hull jacked up all the way across a mud flat sucking up mud and not enough water to prevent overheating.

That being said, I think the absolute best outboard on the market in the 25-70hp class is made by Tohatsu.

At least on "yachts," lots of people who buy them - especially as second owners, cannot afford to fuel them.

Outboard - Pony up for a Yamaha
Inboard/IBOB - Chevy

Ragoo said:

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Johnson and Evinrude are two outboards I will never even consider owning.

In fact I would go so far as to say Yamaha is the only outboard I would want to own.

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You just never know. Worst outboard I've ever owned was a Yamaha. But maybe it was just that motor or that the dealer was not the most competent service center around. Needless to say I have not run one since then. I really like my Mercury 250 Pro XS. Went back to the 2 stroke over the 4 stroke.

Going to be interesting to see when the used RV/TT market starts to fill with these.

DayAg! said:

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You guys are all wet.. (pun intended). The best part about a boat is me sittin at the boat ramp with a cooler full of beer watchin idiots trying to load and unload em. Quality entertainment right there.

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you don't even need the boat for that. Unless you want to blend in seamlessly.

My parents had a lake house for a long time and they probably had the most "used" boat of anyone I ever knew. It running it was as easy as lowering the lift into the water and turning the keys. Even then, you'd run it for maybe 10 hours/week max for 20-30 weeks/year so realistically 200 hours.

This is the most accurate comment on this thread. I have observed from so many years in the business that more times than not boat buyers tend to be price driven in making there first boat buying experience or are influenced by a friend or buddy who tells him to go buy what brand he has, even though he owns a poor quality brand himself.
If you look at the big picture there is a proliferation of the numbers of boat brands and manufacturers as compared to other industries. There are like over 20 brands of flats boats manufactured just in Texas alone.
If you purchase a well known, top brand with high quality and longevity in the business you should have a good ownership experience.
In the marine business you often get what you pay for.

I have found a used boat that I am very interested and have gotten quotes for loans from USAA and RBFCU. My credit score is 800+ and both loans were approved at a rate of 6.5% and 6%, respectively. Does anyone know of any other lenders offering better rates?

something about 40M unemployed and the oil industry in the gutter is my instant instinct as to why boats are hitting the used market.

Silky Johnston said:

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I have found a used boat that I am very interested and have gotten quotes for loans from USAA and RBFCU. My credit score is 800+ and both loans were approved at a rate of 6.5% and 6%, respectively. Does anyone know of any other lenders offering better rates?

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This method might be helpful for you if you have equity in your vehicles/house. I bought a new 5th wheel at the end of last year and went to credit union to finance $40K of it. They quoted me something similar to your rates. My wife and I both had paid off our vehicles so I asked the lady what car loan rates were. They were about 3.3% (something close to that). I went and got the title to my 2019 F-250, put a $40K loan on it, and paid cash for my 5th wheel.

Silky Johnston said:

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I have found a used boat that I am very interested and have gotten quotes for loans from USAA and RBFCU. My credit score is 800+ and both loans were approved at a rate of 6.5% and 6%, respectively. Does anyone know of any other lenders offering better rates?

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According to those above you need to pay cash or don't buy. Cause so many people have 10,20,30 or 40k laying around. Don't misunderstand, I have savings but it is just that savings. Now it's a whole different thing if you want to say finance for 36 months to pay for it vs pay it off over 8 years or some such to be able to get a payment you can actually afford

Sailor said:

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When oil is down, all the toys the oilfield trash buy gets dumped on the market. Boats, ATV's, UTV's, RV's, Dodge Duallys, etc.

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Ragoo said:

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In fact I would go so far as to say Yamaha is the only outboard I would want to own.

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I would agree with you if this were 20 years ago but that's not the case anymore.