MacGregorSailors.com

Has anyone re-couped their mods and options investment upon re-sale?

Ok, yes, I am thinking about selling my beautiful and loaded MacX-2000.
And with all that has gone into it, I calculate just at 25 grand.
That is with the options and mods, NOT counting any labor time, of course. That compares closely to the price of a new but bare Mac and motor.

You gotta be kidding... I would be shocked if anyone recouped even half the dollars spent on mods...

Nobody will pay much for electronics even a year old...

Sure, the other mods have value, but likely more to you that anyone else... I bought new precisely because I didn't want anyone else's mods...

Also, while I love my boat, I have zero illusions about it holding its value significantly... It isn't like a house, which can actualy increase in value. Its more like a car, which looses value continuously. Our boats might not loose value as quickly or drastically as most cars, but they won't ever obtain collector's item/antique status... So, whatever value your mods add, the hull's loss in value will surely offset it...

Besides, the single most expensive thing added was your motor. Surely, you don't think its worth anywhere near what was paid for it...

No, these things are more like cars... If you are focused on not loosing alot on resale, buy a used boat and keep it in tip top shape... Or, buy new, keep it forever, and get your money's worth in use...

Ha. You used investment and boat in the same sentence. I think the best you can hope for is that mods can help your boat stand out and sell faster than a plainer factory Mac.

Although I have never seen your boat and am sure it is Mac Daddy I can't see spending 20K on a 7 year old boat when I can go another 10K or so for a brand new one.

Of course this is without knowing what you have on it.

USN

I had the exact same thoughts as USNretired. Maybe because I'm almost retired USN. I looked at plenty of fine well equipped well maintained Macs and decided to buy a new M last fall. My biggest reason was the anticipated costs for replacement of aging rigging, canvas, cushions and sails.

USNRetired: "I can't see spending 20K on a 7 year old boat when I can go another 10K or so for a brand new one ..."

.... unless, like myself, you are on of those that prefers the older X layout over the M layout .....

I agree, there probably aren't many mods that you'll truly get your back on! As ssichler noted, investment and boat usually aren't used in the same sentence!!!

ssichler wrote:Ha. You used investment and boat in the same sentence. I think the best you can hope for is that mods can help your boat stand out and sell faster than a plainer factory Mac.

I have to agree here, the more mods and extras you have on your boat the more differentiated it is from the competition. There are those who search out used boats just because they have previous experience buying new and they do not wish to lose so big the second time around. I bought my '03 M new and will likely have mine for another dozen years in order to recoup my investment. There are a lot of neglected boats out there for sale and a lot of trash too, if your boat is well kept and option loaded it should fetch top dollar. I read on another forum about a guy who sold three previous boats for more than he paid and to the very first prospect each time just because he kept his boats in pristine condition. You can always strip some of the options off and sell them seperately to other mac owners to eak out a few extra $$.
I personally resent that all my electronics become worthless, if that is the case I would remove them and sell them used to someone else or use them on my next boat if I was upgrading. I can't see autohelm depreciating too much or my depth sounder nor my VHF, but others disagree. The more options you have the more value your boat has to the prospective buyer who previously bought new. He understands the cost associated with adding them and does not wish to buy them himself.
Take your time selling, someone will pay your price, clean the boat up and give it a good wax, tidy the interior and remove personal stuff. Hopefully you don't have gawdy upholstery or curtains, (remove gawdy curtains). Presentation is everything!
PS it is a buyers market these days, but don't dispair, trailerables are still popular and in big demand.

After having been on this board for three years, I have seen my share of odd mods. So I understand the avoidance of some buyers for the word "mod", thinking of finicky and power hungry air conditioners, soft-water converters, 30-gallon water tanks in the bow instead of flotation, electric anchor winches, dehumidifier systems, total interior gutts with rebuild, etc. I am not talking about stuff like that.
But Stainless steel grab handles where needed, in the companionway, on the hatch slider, hatchboard, front hatch, transom.
And factory options which would cost more when bought new, like cockpit cushions.
Upgraded stainless steel snap shackles and deck fittings. Pelican hoods for lifelines. Stainless steel solar powered vents and closable passive vents with stainless steel clamshells. Maximum capacity removable gas tanks and fittings, anchor roller, sail slides, rigging upgrades, expensive high quality mainsheet and vang blocks and cam cleats, upgraded winches, lines led aft, Genoa blocks and cockpit rail cleats, adjustable height Bimini, etc. Hardware and upgrade stuff that solves problems, which hundreds of board visitors and members ask how to do. And more often give up on because they cost too much time to deal with. New sails. Cabin and motor battery isolators.
If priced at half the original purchase cost, and already installed, with care, saving months of time in research and work. This has value, and is what I mean by "mods"

These are what I call good mods

Anything & most of what you mentioned that makes the boat more a pleasure to sail & handle & anything to do with safety are usually mods that will help your resale value if you ever decide to sell & will sell faster if the mods are done correctly & rigging mods that will make your boat faster & more unique are also in my opion good mods

John

All toys considered, A Mac seems to be about as good as it get's for the re-coup factor. They seem to be holding their own from what I see.
Mods ?? How nice a job did you honestly do? Would you have paid several hundred dollars or more to have the same quality of work done? Plus material cost that is.
Electronics:
IMHO my Lowrance LCX 19 C is at or near the top of the heap for these boats but alas its 3 years old and newer models have more features so its worth??? on the other hand a VHF radio is pretty much a radio . Cheap Middle High End but nothing really New /cutting edge to Die for. You can find them on sale everywhere!
How new is your motor ? How many hours on it ? How many scratches, dents and nicks? How does the prop look and the skeg? What size and what make and does it have the Big Foot Lower End?
Far from last or least , but what does your trailer look like?
Curb appeal? How does she look at the curb and when you go down inside how does she smell?
On Edit: If she smells like cologne I would leave her alone so to speak

There undoubtedly IS or WILL BE at least one buyer who wants a 26X the way you've configured it AND a carbureted two-stroke Mercury, who might even appreciate it enough to pay near the $25,000 you're considering. The question is whether you'll find him or her. How hard are you willing to work to find that person? How many places are you willing to advertise? How long are you willing to work at it?

The thing that turned me off about so many pictures in used boat ads is all the owner's crap piled in the boat. Take ALL your stuff out, and put all the extras you're selling with it out of sight in the boat pictures. Either lay them out for individual pictures away from the boat, or pack them in the bilge. The cockpit and the cabin should look like a new one on the showroom floor... basically empty! People want to imagine their stuff in your boat. Wax and wash the boat and get lots of good pictures of it, inside and out. 800 x 600 is a good resolution for many buyers. Use fill flash in daylight to open up shadows. Bright and cheery sells. So do pictures of YOU out on the boat having fun.

It's a lot cheaper to build a website about the boat with lots of details and pictures, and then buy the cheaper ads, with maybe no or only one picture and put the URL to the website in the ad. You'll need lots of ads on many sites to spread the net widely for that special buyer.

I hope this helps.

--
Moe

Moe wrote:So do pictures of YOU out on the boat having fun.

Moe, I was with you 100%, up until that line above. I've found that seeing someone else on the boat puts me off considerably... particularly if I don't like the look of the individuals. Now, if you're photographing 22-year-old pretty girls on the boat, well, then that's a different story. But who wants to see my fat, moustached face on their potential boat? Also, realtors always say that if you want to sell your house, put away *all* your family pictures... folks can't imagine themselves in the house if your pictures are around... just won't seem like 'their' house.

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Not trying to defy market reality.
Just investigating where the lines are.

We all want to buy low and sell high.

Mint X boats are becoming harder to find.
as well as near mint ones.

Sometimes prices are adjusted to gain a faster sale,
sometimes selling schedules are adjusted to fit the priceing.
often both together.

lotsa stuff to consider.

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