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Hello to all. Still a new guy around here but have been lurking for a while. Still looking for a Whaler to call mine. I'm considering one but it has a salvage title and State issued numbers. I'm being vague purposely about size and location so as not to offend the owner as he may be a member here but I don't know that for sure. It has had a fair amount of resto work done including a rebuilt outboard. Very nice looking. My question centers around the salvage title. What impact does that have on asking price and how difficult will it be for me if I decide in a year or two that I need a bigger boat and need to sell. Will folks shy away? Am I gonna hear from most potential buyers "well, its a nice boat but I won't give you what you're asking due to the salvege situation....however in light of this I'll offer X." Think I'll get stuck with something like this or should I keep looking. Thanks.

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Do you know why it was issued a salvage title? The current owner should be able to share that information with you and any documentation he had when he purchased it. Here is an article from BoatUS.

http://my.boatus.com/consumer/Pitfalls.asp

If the price is righht, get a compentant surveyor to check it out.

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I just picked a 1978 Montauk that is a salvage boat from hurricane Ike. The only draw back I am aware of is that it can not be insured for much because the insurance company totaled it and paid the owner blue book value or appraised value. It will be reported to the state as salvage. On the up side I got a really nice smirked 17' hull with a console and a trailer for very little money. I will try and transfer the title this week, I will let you know how that goes

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You are asking the same questions that the next guy will ask, don't you think?

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Gigem has it. When you look at all the work some list members have put into their Whalers you wonder if a salvage buyer was that conscientious or just going for a quick turnaround and an equally quick buck. You just don't know unless they have a notebook full of pictures and or receipts.

Without documentation a salvage title is worth less because everyone would buy the equivalent boat with a clean title first. So they have to expect less,paid less when they bought it, is it enough to make you comfortable?

Cy

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Gigem and Cy,

What you 2 say makes sense. Boat looked clean but ultimately I will buy a Whaler with a clean title. I'll just wait..........some more. Can't afford to buy new so a good used clean Montauk is for me and my family. I have a second car that I don't use much so I'll sell that and put the proceeds towards my first Whaler. Thanks for the responses.

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When a boat gets totaled,the insurance company is saying the repair is close to or over the boat's market value. The owner gets a choice of a big check and gives the damaged boat to the insurance company, OR the owner retains the damaged boat and gets a smaller check of market value minus salvage value.

If the insurance company takes the boat it goes through some type of auction process, where they hope to get their salvage estimate value, and someone gets it pretty cheap. If it is winter, and a good boat shop needs some work, you can get a nice repair job for less than mid summer's cost.

Or the owner could be a craftsman and spends several months doing great repair work and would expect to get paid for it.

Or the owner could do a little glass work, some new gel coat, and try to sell for as much as he could get.

We like Whalers for their durability but unknown repair work changes that and lowers the value. It may be a bargain if you can document the repair. No docs then I would assume they paid 10% or so of the market value at auction, put in as little work as they could get away with, and were now trying to maximize the gain.

The bargain is the one you run year after year and never lets you down, not the lowest price.