Shopping for a boat? Congratulations! Boat ownership is extremely rewarding and means that you’ll be able to spend quality time on the water with family and friends, making great memories and learning new skills. However, you’re undoubtedly aware that boats are not cheap; these big-ticket items are complex vehicles and quality just costs more.

If you want to save money on a boat purchase without going for the smallest dinghy you can find, why not look into buying a used boat? Used boats have a great many benefits that you may not have considered and as your British Columbia boat dealer in Prince George, Cycle North is more than happy to let you know what some of those benefits are.

1. You’ll Save Money

Obviously, the biggest benefit of purchasing a used boat is the amount of money you’ll save, but why is that? The process of depreciation is why: every time an expensive vehicle is purchased and removed from the sales floor, it undergoes an immediate drop in value to the tune of hundreds or even thousands of dollars. The value evens out after the first year or so of ownership and boats tend to hold their value well because they’re designed to last for many years.

What that means for you as the buyer is that you can take advantage of the money that someone else spent on an initial purchase a few years ago to get yourself a great boat that costs so much less than what they paid for it. You can put that savings towards accessories for your boat or save it for your future adventures; it’s up to you! Not only will the sticker price be lower, but the insurance costs should be less, too.

2. You’ll Get More Options

People who only shop new models are relegated to whatever has been released over the past year or so. When you buy used, you can get models that were released a year ago or decades ago. As we noted above, boats hold their value well and they’re built to last, so vintage models still have many years left in them. If you really like the simplicity of an older model or you want a boat with a vintage look that reminds you of your dad’s boat when you were a kid, you’ll be able to find something like it on the used market.

3. You Can Learn The Ropes

If you’re brand-new to the mariner lifestyle, buying a used boat is a smart way to go because it’s very likely to have a little cosmetic damage to it already. This means that when you’re learning to dock and you bang up against the pier, your heart won’t instantly break because you’ve marred a perfect hull with a scuff. You can also use a used boat to figure out what features you’re looking for in your ideal boat and then pay it off more quickly before trading it in for something more suitable. 

Maybe you discover that you really love fishing and the boat you want doesn’t have the features you need for that hobby, or maybe you find that many more of your friends want to accompany you than you’ve got room for, so you need a bigger boat. Whatever the reason, a used boat lets you figure these things out before you take the plunge on an expensive new model.

As you can see, used boats have so much to offer the potential buyer. When you’re ready to check out some models, browse our website to see the wide selection of used boats for sale at our dealership in Prince George, BC. Cycle North proudly serves all of our customers throughout the province of British Columbia.