The Broken Boat Market: Why Good Boats Aren’t Selling Anymore

You ever walk down a marina and notice the same boats sitting in the same slips month after month? Clean decks, polished hulls, good sails — but no buyers in sight. It’s like a floating graveyard of dreams that once had diesel fumes and salt spray running through their veins.

Something’s changed out there. The boat market isn’t just slow… it’s broken. And if you’re trying to sell, you probably already know it. Prices are sliding, buyers have vanished, and good boats — not just project boats — are sitting for months or even years.

So, what the hell happened? Let’s talk about it.

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A Perfect Storm Hit the Market

A few years ago, if you listed a clean, well-kept cruising sailboat at a fair price, it might’ve sold in a week. Today, that same boat might sit untouched all season. The culprit isn’t one thing — it’s a perfect storm of changing conditions.

Too much inventory. There are simply more boats for sale than serious buyers right now. And when buyers have a hundred boats to choose from, they get picky — real picky.

Economic reality. Interest rates are high, inflation’s still biting, and insurance costs have gone through the roof — especially in hurricane zones. Financing a boat used to be cheap and easy. Now it’s expensive and full of fine print. Even buyers who fall in love with a boat sometimes bail after seeing the true cost to insure and maintain it.

Buyer mindset shift. After years of crazy prices during the pandemic boom, buyers have the upper hand again — and they know it. They’re patient. They’re hunting for desperate sellers, waiting for the price cuts, waiting for that listing that’s been sitting so long it smells like opportunity.

When boats sit for months, they start to feel stale. Even if they’re in great shape, the perception becomes that something must be wrong. And once that perception sets in, it’s hard to shake.

The harsh truth: it’s not that good boats aren’t selling because they’re bad — it’s because the market has moved on without them.

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The Cost of Waiting: Bleeding Money Every Month

Keeping a boat that won’t sell is like standing in a leaky dinghy with your wallet wide open. Every month it sits, you’re throwing money overboard — fast.

Start with slip fees. In popular coastal marinas like the Keys, you’re paying anywhere from $1,700 to $1,800 a month just to tie it up. Add power, water, and taxes, and you’re at two grand a month before even turning a key.

Then there’s maintenance — because a sitting boat still breaks down. Bottom cleanings run $80–$100 a month. A haul-out and bottom job every couple of years? $5,000 to $7,000 depending on the yard. Pumps go bad, hoses crack, mold creeps in, and systems corrode. Nothing on a boat improves with time — especially when it’s idle.

Don’t forget insurance. For a mid-size trawler or cruising sailboat, you’re looking at around $4,000 a year, and that’s if you’re lucky enough to get coverage in a storm-prone region.

And while all this is happening, depreciation keeps ticking. A boat sitting in a slip doesn’t just hold steady — it actually ages faster. Systems degrade, batteries die, and the whole boat starts to feel neglected. A year ago it was a “turnkey cruiser.” Now it’s “needs a little TLC.”

Add it all up, and that “I’ll just wait for the right buyer” mindset can easily cost you $20,000 to $30,000 a year — just for the privilege of not selling.

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Welcome to the Buyer’s Market

For the first time in years, buyers hold all the cards — and they’re playing them like pros.

They’ve got choices. Lots of them. And with every scroll through YachtWorld or Facebook Marketplace, they compare specs, photos, and survey reports like they’re shopping for cars, not dreams.

If your boat isn’t perfectly photographed, clean, and competitively priced, they just move on. No emotion, no hesitation.

Buyers today are also savvy negotiators. They’ve seen listings sitting for months, and they know that long-term sellers are often desperate to offload. Lowball offers aren’t rare anymore — they’re expected. And if you reject one, don’t expect them to come back later. There’s always another boat down the dock that fits the bill.

Meanwhile, too many sellers are still anchored in the past — pricing their boats based on what they paid or what they think it’s worth emotionally. But the market doesn’t care about nostalgia or old receipts.

In today’s climate, buyers care about value and nothing else. And unless sellers adapt to that reality, their boats are going nowhere fast.

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FSBO: Why “For Sale By Owner” Is Sinking

Selling your own boat — the classic For Sale By Owner route — used to sound smart. Skip the broker, save the commission, and handle it yourself.

But in this market? That plan’s taking on water fast.

The biggest issue is exposure. A reputable broker gets your listing seen by the right audience — through paid platforms, industry networks, and serious buyers. Your solo Facebook Marketplace post just can’t compete.

Then there’s presentation. Most private listings are missing the basics: good photos, detailed descriptions, maintenance logs, and recent surveys. Buyers see that and immediately think, “Red flag.”

And negotiation? Forget it. Today’s buyers are sharp. They know every trick in the book and aren’t shy about walking away over survey notes, cosmetic issues, or a few hundred bucks. Without a broker to buffer the deal, many private sales fall apart in slow motion.

Sure, you’ll save the 8–10% broker fee — but while you wait for a buyer who may never come, you’re burning through months of slip fees, insurance, and upkeep. That “savings” disappears faster than you can say “bilge pump failure.”

The truth: FSBO worked in a hot market. It doesn’t anymore.

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Sell It, Sail It, or Scrap It: The Hard Truth

There comes a point in every boat owner’s story where you hit the wall and have to face a brutal question:
Should I sell it, sail it, or scrap it?

Let’s be honest — boats are emotional. We fall in love with them, name them, pour our time and money into them. But they’re not investments; they’re expenses that float.

Selling:
If you’ve had your boat listed for months and it’s not moving, it’s time for tough love. The longer you hold, the more you lose. Price it where the market is — not where you wish it was. Taking the hit now often saves you thousands later.

Sailing:
If the boat’s in good shape and you still love it, maybe it’s worth keeping and using. Get out there. Sail it hard. Watch sunsets, catch the breeze, make memories. At least you’re getting value in experiences instead of paying storage to stare at it.

Scrapping:
Yeah, it’s the ugly option. But some boats reach the end. When the repairs outweigh the resale value, or the hull’s too tired to save, sometimes the kindest thing you can do — for yourself and the planet — is to let it go. Salvage what’s useful, recycle what you can, and stop the financial bleeding.

Boats aren’t meant to be permanent anchors dragging you down. They’re meant to carry you somewhere — and if yours isn’t doing that anymore, it might be time to cast it off for good.

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Letting Go Without Regret

Selling a boat isn’t just a financial decision — it’s an emotional one. It’s saying goodbye to a chapter of your life, to sunsets at anchor and quiet coffee in the cockpit. But sometimes holding on does more harm than good.

Ask yourself:

• Can I sell it for a price I can live with?
• Can I afford to keep it and enjoy it?
• Or am I holding on because I just don’t want to admit it’s over?

That’s the hardest part of ownership — knowing when to let go.

The current market won’t do you any favors. It’s not personal; it’s just economics. But you still get to choose your ending. Sell it. Sail it. Scrap it. Whatever you do, do it with clear eyes and a steady hand.

Because the one thing worse than losing money on a boat… is losing years waiting for a miracle that never comes.

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The Bottom Line

The boat market right now is a stormy sea — oversupply, high costs, cautious buyers, and sellers who can’t believe what’s happening. But that doesn’t mean it’s hopeless. It just means the rules have changed.

If you’re selling, price it right, present it well, and move fast.
If you’re holding, use it, enjoy it, and make peace with the costs.
And if you’re stuck, don’t be afraid to make the hard call.

The marina doesn’t lie — it’s full of stories of people who waited too long.

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What are you seeing out there?
Are boats sitting in your marina too? Are you trying to sell or thinking about buying?

Drop your thoughts below — and if you’ve been through the struggle, share your advice. Someone out there probably needs to hear it.

Until next time,
Live life with no regrets. Keep your lines loose — and I’ll see you out on the water.