Synopses & Reviews
Boating Magazine's Insider's Guide to Buying a Powerboat features tips and traps for the smart boat buyer. If you don't have an uncle in the boat-dealership business, here's the next-best thing: a longtime boat dealer and salesman who lets you in on trade secrets so you can buy a new or used boat without getting burned. J. P. Lamy lays out a step-by-step approach to finding the right small powerboat (under 30 feet) and buying it at a fair price with favorable financing.
You will learn:
- How salesmen are trained
- What their margins and markups are
- The use of the Internet for boat shopping
- What to look for, good and bad, in a new or used boat
- Checklists
- How to negotiate honestly but toughly
- How to shave thousands of dollars from an asking price
Endorsed by Boating magazine, Lamy's guide helps you take control and win in the bargaining process. When it comes to buying a boat, knowledge is power.
Table of Contents
Preface: Why Go Boating?Part 1. First Things
1. Buying New or Used
2. Boatbuilding 101: What You Don't See
3. Boat Types and Their Primary Uses
4. What Are Your Boat Needs? A Questionnaire
Part 2. Buying a Used Boat
5. Shopping by Phone: Individual Ads
6. Shopping by Phone: Dealerships
7. Pricing
8. The Internet
9. Shopping in Person
10. The Boatowner
11. The Salesperson
12. Used-Boat Inspection: Checklist
13. The Negotiation Process
14. The Final Inspection
15. The Purchase
16. Maintenance Tips
Part 3. Buying a New Boat
17. Shopping by Phone
18. Pricing
19. Shopping in Person
20. The Salesperson: Training, Terms, and Tactics
21. The Dealership
22. Shopping Boat Shows
23. New Boat Inspection: Checklist
24. The Negotiation Process
25. Warranties
26. The Buyer's Order
27. The Final Inspection
28. The Purchase
29. Maintenance Tips
Appendix 1. Financing 101
Appendix 2. Author's Picks
Appendix 3. State Boating Authorities
Appendix 4. Coast Guard - Required Safety Gear
Index