January, 2019
By any measure boats are a big financial loser. No one buys a boat as an investment — even if you sell it for the same price you paid five years earlier you’re still taking a big hit in maintenance, storage, accessories, insurance and repairs, etc. And then there’s depreciation. Just like cars, trucks, and airplanes boats depreciate starting the day you sign the contract. But how much?
Of the several used boat price guides in existence none is more influential than the NADA Marine Appraisal Guide. Therefore, to look into the subject of new boat depreciation we went online to examine NADA’s average retail values for popular models from five major builders, a total of 15 boats. The results are thought provoking.
We’ll let the numbers below speak for themselves but here are some interesting takeaways. First, NADA’s rate of depreciation is notably brand-specific. That is to say a Pursuit center console, express or sport boat will each have about the same rate of depreciation — it’s the brand that counts, not the model. Another surprise: according to NADA, Grady-White boats depreciate considerably slower than Boston Whalers. (Tell that to a Boston Whaler owner.) And Regal depreciation is less than Sea Ray.
Again, this is a random analysis performed with no pre-conceived outcome in mind. The numbers are based on (a) NADA’s published 2014 base prices for each of the refenced boats, and (b) the NADA average retail value five years later in January of 2019. One conclusion that can safely be drawn from these numbers is this: on average, NADA calculates that boats lose about a third of their value in the first five years.
New Boat Depreciation: NADA’s Take on 15 Popular Models
Boston Whaler Samples
2014 Boston Whaler 370 Outrage
2014 Base Price: $445,700
2019 Avg. Retail: $300,000
5-Year Retained Value: 67%
5-Year Depreciation: 33%
2014 Boston Whaler 345 Conquest
2014 Base Price: $430,200
2019 Avg. Retail: $286,000
5-Year Retained Value: 66%
5-Year Depreciation: 34%
2014 Boston Whaler 320 Outrage
2014 Base Price: $225,000
2019 Avg. Retail: $149,70000
5-Year Retained Value: 66%
5-Year Depreciation: 34%
Grady-White Samples
Grady-White 375 Freedom*
2014 Base Price: $625,300
2019 Avg. Retail: $453,400
5-Year Retained Value: 72%
5-Year Depreciation: 28%
* Triple Engines
2014 Grady-White 377 Canyon*
2014 Base Price: $436,800
2019 Avg. Retail: $317,000
5-Year Retained Value: 72%
5-Year Depreciation: 28%
* Triple Engines
2014 Grady-White 370 Express*
2014 Base Price: $597,000
2019 Avg. Retail: $425,000
Retained Value: 71%
5-Year Depreciation: 29%
* Triple Engines
Pursuit Samples
Pursuit OS 385 Offshore*
2014 Base Price: $545,300
2019 Avg. Retail: $371,100
5-Year Retained Value: 68%
5-Year Depreciation: 32%
* Triple Engines
Pursuit OS 345 Offshore
2014 Base Price: $389,800
2019 Avg. Retail: $267,200
5-Year Retained Value: 68%
5-Year Depreciation: 32%
Pursuit OS 315 Offshore
2014 Base Price: $272,300
2019 Avg. Retail: $188,900
Retained Value: 69%
5-Year Depreciation: 31%
Regal Samples
Regal 35 Sport Coupe
2014 Base Price: $295,800
2019 Avg. Retail: $210,600
Retained Value: 71%
5-Year Depreciation: 29%
Regal 3200 Bowrider
2014 Base Price: $192,800
2019 Avg. Retail: $130,300
Retained Value: 68%
5-Year Depreciation: 32%
Regal 42 Sport Coupe
2014 Base Price: $715,000
2019 Avg. Retail: $449,500
Retained Value: 62%
5-Year Depreciation: 38%
Sea Ray Samples
Sea Ray 370 Sundancer*
2014 Base Price: $434,700
2019 Avg. Retail: $246,900
Retained Value: 57%
5-Year Depreciation: 43%
*Stern Drive
Sea Ray 350 Sundancer*
2014 Base Price: $368,000
2019 Avg. Retail: $227,000
Retained Value: 68%
5-Year Depreciation: 38%
*Stern Drive
Sea Ray 410 Sundancer
2014 Base Price: $785,600
2019 Avg. Retail: $496,100
Retained Value: 63%
5-Year Depreciation: 37%
