Good Price for a 2004 225 Tournament?

[thinkingGrady]

Hello all, great site. I am considering a 2004 Grady 225 Tournament out hear on the Left Coast. Has a 250 HP Yamaha Four Stroke with 190 hrs, no trailer, in great condition. Kept in the water, with fresh bottom paint, which is good for me, because I would keep in the water as well.

Question for you experts out there. What do you think is a fair price for this boat? Seller has it listed for 53.5k but I think that's way over priced.
Perhaps I am wrong. NADA Guide (which I know is on the low side) puts the high retail for the boat under $30k.

Let me hear from you,
Thanks

 

[capt chris]

I'm no expert on used boat prices, but I know what I just paid for a brand new 2008 225 and @ $53.5K your guy must be smoking something from a Cheech and Chong movie! I would look at some internet sites like Boat Trader, Boat US, etc and try to get a feel for what the 2004s are bringing. Good luck with your search. You will absolutely love the boat!

 

[Parthery]

I just passed on an '04 225 w/F225 that failed the sea trial...and I can tell you that our agreed upon price was comfortably under $40K.

For what its worth, I priced a new '08 and with a trailer, its mid $60s.... I know things cost more on the Left Coast, but my guess is that boat probably ends up selling for mid $40s.....

 

[thinkingGrady]

thanks

thanks for the info. that's what I suspected. I think in this market, there is no way he's going to get the premium he is looking for, even if it is a GW.

surprised to hear that an 04 with a yamaha would fail sea trial. what the heck was wrong with it? curious.

 

[Parthery]

Re: thanks

thanks for the info. that's what I suspected. I think in this market, there is no way he's going to get the premium he is looking for, even if it is a GW.

surprised to hear that an 04 with a yamaha would fail sea trial. what the heck was wrong with it? curious.

Water in the fuel. While we were on the sea trial, we had to be towed in. Turned out that someone had siphoned about 1/2 the tank out, and dumped water in to make it appear on the gauge that the tank was still full.

The seller wound up with a $1400 bill to drain and flush the tank, lines, replace the filters, as well as a couple sensors on the engine. He attempted to raise our agreed upon price to cover his loss...I offered to split it with him and go up $700 on my offer, but he refused.

 

[nwboater]

Hi - new member, long time lurker. I am in the same boat, or want to be(!) Looking for a new or used 225, preferably with a 250 but at least a 225 -- later model, 2004 plus. I have looked (online) at what i think is your "left coast" boat -- actually has a 225, is in huntington - seems to me the asking price for 2004-2007 225 TNTs all over the US is consistently between low and high 50s. I have looked at every 225 on yachtworld and boattrader for the past couple of months. Now, I don't know what they are actually selling for (and in fact many are not selling), but the one in Huntington has low hours and seems to be right in the sweet spot of asking price. Are these guys really willing to come down 15-20% off asking price?? I was quoted 69 for a new 225 w/ 225 in seattle, full canvas and no other options (just a price sheet, no negotiation involved). Love to hear thoughts on pricing strategy for new and used. Thanks

 

[CJBROWN]

>snip
NADA Guide (which I know is on the low side) puts the high retail for the boat under $30k.

Welcome aboard!!

I'm pretty sure you have to price out the motor seperately. They show retail of $9,640 for a 2004 F225.

Price guides are notoriously off, either high or low, however people still go by them so it's a decent place to start negotiations from. In many cases sellers have a loan they have to pay off, so depending on how much they put down or paid down on the loan, in many cases will dictate an asking price. Also consider whether it's a brokerage with a commission due or a private seller. Selling commissions are usually 10%, so a private seller may be willing to negotiate some of that away.

Online listings are also hard to go by because it doesn't show what boats sell for, only what a seller has it listed for. Listing/asking prices after many months may be considerably higher than an actual selling price.

A decently equipped '04 model with low hours should bring mid to high 40's on the west coast. So it looks like you're not that far off. Seller should be willing to come down 5-10%, that would put you in the mix.

Value depends on electronics and accessories included, and options - all are expensive to add if you need/want them.

I am very pleased to see a lot of recent activity on the board here with new people looking at buying boats. It's a great sign that things aren't completely tanked - at least for smaller outboard boats.

 

[leek]

New 225

nw boater I just bought a new 08 225 Tournament from Jacobsen's.
Great experience so far, I am sure they would be there if something happened. Their delivery process, boat condition, rigging, 10 hr service and attitude were top knotch. They are not the cheapest price you will find but I am very happy with the quality and the overall experience.
I have been on small boats around the Puget Sound for almost 50 years, this is the best smalll boat I have found. It took me two years to decide to spend this type of dough on a small boat. I don't think people that are buying them in the NW are letting them go. I never saw a used 225 in two years of fairly steady looking.
The most outstanding thing is the ride, it is a very good hull design.

 

[thinkingGrady]

t225 or robalo r227

i have also been looking at the robalo r227. pretty sweet set up, 6 in bigger beam, and slightly "sexier" lines than the Grady, and a little cheaper. any thoughts?

 

[nwboater]

Leek - I got a call from Karl to go look at yours, but you bought it before I could get up there. I too have been looking for a while, and you are right you don't see used ones for sale up here. I am thinking of getting a used one elsewhere, but karl sayss they have an 09 coming in this week. is it permitted by the forum (and do you mind if i ask) what you paid? send me a pm if you are ok with that, no biggie if not. thanks
thinkinggrady - i looked at the robalo (and the proline and the sea hunt escape and hydrasports) nice boats all, but i liked the grady. i think the 'sport is probably the most similar boat. good luck

 

[CJBROWN]

Re: t225 or robalo r227

i have also been looking at the robalo r227. pretty sweet set up, 6 in bigger beam, and slightly "sexier" lines than the Grady, and a little cheaper. any thoughts?

I walked thru the new 30 footer they had at the boat show this year. Very nice layout, luxurious for sure. Seemed like a really nice boat. But I still think I'd rather have a Sailfish or a Marlin.

Grady's get into your blood and it's hard to consider anything else. Seaswirl makes a nice looking boat, so does Proline. But others say they don't ride anything like a Grady. Plus, resale value is a strong consideration, and the fact that Grady's have been built for so long there are lots of them out there. You dont have to worry about buying a white elephant.

Other nice boats out there, Scout, Century, Hyrdrosport, all come to mind. It all gets so confusing so afterwhile you just decide to ignore them all and 'Get the Grady'.

 

[leek]

nw boater

Go to my profile and seek all posts
Go to Considering Boat Purchase and you will find a fair amount of info

 

[nwboater]

leek

thanks leek - i just finished reading about your experience. yikes that's a lot of dough - given grady's rep for high re-sale i am surprised the posters here are talking about mid 40s for a 2004- that's like 40% loss in four years. anyway, i will go look at the 09, continue looking for a used one . . . seems a late model used, well outfitted and maintained, say 50 plus shipping would still be a pretty big savings. if this weather continues, I will have to pull the trigger soon.

 

[CJBROWN]

Re: leek

thanks leek - i just finished reading about your experience. yikes that's a lot of dough - given grady's rep for high re-sale i am surprised the posters here are talking about mid 40s for a 2004- that's like 40% loss in four years. anyway, i will go look at the 09, continue looking for a used one . . . seems a late model used, well outfitted and maintained, say 50 plus shipping would still be a pretty big savings. if this weather continues, I will have to pull the trigger soon.

Remember, four years ago they didn't cost quite that much. So a seller who purchased at that time isn't seeing the full depreciation from new prices today. Every year they go up some more, raw costs keep rising. The first few years are the biggest chunk of depreciation, for sure.

Late model boats that come up for sale while still so young can be a really good buy, especially if you were going to buy a new one anyway. Ask me how I know that.... 8)

I got really lucky. My seller took the boat into the dealer for engine service because it was running kind of rough. It had 75 hours on it, less than a year old boat. They called after a couple of days and asked if they could have it a few more days as Yamaha was putting a new engine on it. We were just making the deal, so when we demo'd the boat the motor hadn't been run yet! So I got a six month old boat with a zero-hour motor on it. And it was substantially less than what the dealer was quoting for a new one. It was a can't-miss deal, but man the dealer was pissed!

The other thing that will make boats depreciate faster is when new technology comes out, like motors, electronics, or an updated model. It makes for more incentive to go new or newer to get the latest and greatest. Used boats with old 2-stroke motors are a tough sell these days, especially with gas now $5 a gallon. Old electronics are almost worthless because a new owner wants current stuff.

 

[nwboater]

depreciation

cjbrown - I need to find a deal like that! . . . I agree generally about the latest and greatest, but the appeal of a 2004-2007 used 225 is that they have not changed in that time (or in 08-09); same hull, same four stroke yamaha options, same set up. In fact the pictures now on the grady site, and in the 08 catalog, are the exact same as they were in 04. Don't get me wrong - that's all the more reason I'd like to get a four or less year old one for far below the price of new . . . I just have not seen those kinds of asking prices for used ones. thanks for the input all . . . I will undoubtedly have more questions.

 

[CJBROWN]

Re: depreciation

cjbrown - I need to find a deal like that! . . . I agree generally about the latest and greatest, but the appeal of a 2004-2007 used 225 is that they have not changed in that time (or in 08-09); same hull, same four stroke yamaha options, same set up. In fact the pictures now on the grady site, and in the 08 catalog, are the exact same as they were in 04. Don't get me wrong - that's all the more reason I'd like to get a four or less year old one for far below the price of new . . . I just have not seen those kinds of asking prices for used ones. thanks for the input all . . . I will undoubtedly have more questions.

You've become an educated buyer. If you're ready to move, then you'll know what to do when the right one comes up for sale. They always do. And you'll know what it's worth. Remember, a buyer is worth two lookers to a seller, you can always make them a standing offer, even if it's less than they want to go. I've seen boats drop 25% over the course of several months if a seller gets really serious, or has to sell. There are all kinds of reasons, and right now the economy is putting some over the edge.

And you're right, they're all the same boats for the last four or five years. That's one of the reasons I hedge on selling, I've got it all setup just right, no cost, low maintenance, and sips fuel. It's pretty easy to own. Going to twin 200hpdi's on a Sailfish or Express would be quite a step up in purchase and operating costs. A pair of F225/250's even more.

Sometimes you have to figure in shipping costs, or airfare to go see it and make a deal. I wouldn't hesitate to do that for the right buy, ship something out from the east coast for example. There aren't many Grady's out here on the west coast. Mine came from NC. If it was somewhere I could drive to in a couple of weeks I'd consider doing that as well. Would be a fun road trip in the diesel pickup. Expensive, but do-able. Beyond a couple of thousand miles gets kind of ridiculous for a DIY, unless you're retired I guess.

The Tournament is a great boat. We really debated on them, the head is actually useable, it's a great layout for a day tripper. We thought we would see more lake use though, and water sports, but the decision to go walk-around has really paid off for all the ocean running we do. We were pretty hot on a Striper bow-rider as well, but the Grady's are just so much nicer.

 

[nwboater]

thanks Chris - I have tried. I actually am "looking" at one on the east coast, about as far away as I can get from here. Talked to a broker, he is going to look, maybe set up a survey if we get that far.

He did not seem like he was the guy to arrange shipping. So my new series of questions relates to shipping. How did you get your boat out from NC? how much? How long did it take? I don't think the boat I am looking at has a trailer, but I would need one eventually and I guess I could buy one there and pay someone to tow it out - would rather have it in a "box" or at least on a big truck, though. any thoughts on that? thanks again. JT
ps - thinkinggrady - you disappeared, but so did that boat in Huntington - did you buy it?? if so, congrats, and can I ask you what you paid? thanks

 

[CJBROWN]

thanks Chris - I have tried. I actually am "looking" at one on the east coast, about as far away as I can get from here. Talked to a broker, he is going to look, maybe set up a survey if we get that far.

He did not seem like he was the guy to arrange shipping. So my new series of questions relates to shipping. How did you get your boat out from NC? how much? How long did it take? I don't think the boat I am looking at has a trailer, but I would need one eventually and I guess I could buy one there and pay someone to tow it out - would rather have it in a "box" or at least on a big truck, though. any thoughts on that? thanks again. JT

Mine was towed out on it's trailer. Jerry, my seller, drove it himself. I'm not sure if he drove there to get it, or flew in and rented a truck. I'm thinking maybe the latter. He's posted back here recently after disappearing for a year, but he's not very responsive. I think he's hit and miss on the forum. Would love to hear from him, he's a helluva guy, very knowledgable and talented.

You don't have to have a trailer to get one shipped, they'll put it on a low-boy behind a semi, and block it up. From the east coast figure about four grand, give or take. Or like you say, there are guys with dually pickups that pull trailers back and forth across the country for a fee. I've heard it's about a buck a mile (maybe more now with fuel costs up). They do this with custom cars a lot too. The actual drive time isn't all that long, depending on the miles, but you have to get scheduled in with the driver. Seems it's generally 4 to 6 weeks to arrange everything.

If you wanted a trailer and it worked out better that way for shipping, a broker should be able to arrange with a local dealer to setup a trailer and put the boat on it. Don't forget, there are forum members here all over the country, and they're willing to help someone out of the area arrange stuff. I know I would be happy to do that for another Grady owner/buyer. Late last year I prompted one of the members to demo their boat for a newbie in their area so he could get help in deciding what boat to get. They got together and had a nice day of it. Most owners are happy to show of their boat and share their experiences. That's what makes this forum such a great resource. I have heard of others going to preview a for-sale boat for an out of the area prospect. Local knowledge and experience goes a long way!

When/if you get going on one that needs to be shipped, post for a list of leads for haulers. There should be plenty of them from this forum. I may have one in a message from a seller in my personal email at home, I'd have to search. They aren't hard to find, and there are enough people that do it that a good referal is not a problem.

I see boats shipped in all the time at the shipyard where I launch in Huntington Beach. They'll be sitting there on a semi-trailer, all dirty, with Florida numbers on them, waiting to be cleaned up and launched. Big ones too, like a Tiarra 34 or 36 footer. Them things are like 12' wide! Towers are removed, everything has to be under like 14'.

I have not heard of them being shipped in a box trailer, they are generally open as most boats shipped that way are too wide for a box-trailer anyway, or too tall. Yeah, they get dirty, but nothing a good wash-down won't take care of. The factory shrink-wraps them, so you could always pay to have that done if you really wanted to. That process seems to be popular for wintering boats back east, we just don't see it out here, other than new boats coming in.

 

[thinkingGrady]

Huntington Beach

hey chris, I live in HB too. If you ever need a fishing buddy, I've been boatless for about a year, and wouldn't mind covering fuel costs for a day out killing some sandies/calicos or YTs.

let me know,

 

[thinkingGrady]

nwboater, I am still here, and I think the Grady in HB is too. My cell just rang from the broker representing the seller, but I coudn't pick up. SO i assume its still for sale.