1st time buyer advice

Justcynn

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made an offer and have a contract on a condo with boat slip on lake Hamilton in Arkansas. First time boat owner and the condo was a big leap for us. I work for the trucking company that hauls the majority of the Bennington’s and am sold on their quality. My max budget is $40k. My friends have bought 150 hp Benningtons around that price point the last 3 years but sounds like prices have gone up

I am down to 20 SLV with a 90 hp Vmax. I know full well this isn’t really what I want but also thinking I could get 3 years use out of it and not get hurt too much till we figure out what we really want/need

tbe next step up for us would be 21 SLX150 HP tritoon.

I realize you can finance these things forever, but I am reluctant to take a loan longer than about 5 years. The monthly cost is important to me and being on the lake with no boat in the corona summer isn’t an option either

i could also buy an off brand and get more options but trying to stay disciplined to Benny as I know they are the Leader.

any thoughts on the value line? Could I sell it for $18k in three years?
My state requires tax at 6.5% for all new boats and No tax on used boats. That’s a small deterrent from under buying. Used boat inventory is non existent right now.

What would be the next logical upgrade after the 21 SLX with 150 hp and a people
Capacity of 11 min? 11 is the most I would have on my boat and the two options above have limits of 10

I do have kids, they would like to tube. I know tbe 150 would be a lot more fun- but will the 90 pull them around the lake?

thanks in advance. Other than the condo, this is the second biggest discretionary purchase of our lives. I don’t want to make a big mistake. But I also knowI can do the for a $1000 more game and get into the 50’s quick. That’s not an option.
Thanks!
 
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Congrats on the new lake home. I’ll share my experience a little. I originally bout a 22’ with two toons and a 115 and after 3 months of use we sold it as it didn’t fit our needs aside from being the cheaper option. We looked at it this way, keep the boat and not be happy with it every time we go out, or upgrade and get what we need and not be happy with a little more cost. In the end you don’t really worry about the cost when it’s the right fit for the family. Those kids of yours are not going to have as much fun behind the 90 horse. I know it isn’t always feasible to spend more but you can always cut a dinner out here and there and make up the difference.
Good luck
 
You are experiencing the same choices that many of us did. My best advice to you is “buy your last boat first.” Even if you have to stretch the budget (as I did) you and the family will be happier in the long run. My first boat had two toons and a 90 the grands always wanted me to pull the tubes faster. Tritoon with 150 never hear that anymore. Also consider resale. Whatever your decision you are going to have a great summer in your new lake house with a Bennington.
 
Get the most HP that is within you budget . No one has even said " I wish I had less HP "
 
thank you for the quick replies.

I know you are right - we have rented enough boats over the years the 150 is the right choice. The 115 isn't a consideration, either budget move with the 20 value series/90 for 3 seasons or step up to a tritoon - 150. Maybe the better question is what is the best series in a tritoon with 150 with the skinniest budget. $40k is my threshold, but wouldn't want to make a huge mistake and regret not paying $44 as an example. For us, its more about space, tritoon and and getting the 150. I think all of the Bennington finishes are nice and I definitely want a Benny

thanks again!
 
Congrats on the new lake home and boat! I’ll share my experience as well, for what its worth.

I have a 22 SLX 90 HP Evinrude Pontoon Series Engine i love the boat. It is our first boat as well and i purchased it about 3 years ago. I can say i faced all of the same questions you are.

The best advice i can give is seriously consider how your going to use it as buying a boat that fits the primary purpose best, IMO, is the most important aspect, when we were buying our dealer gave the following example:
if your just going out to cruise, site see and lounge/party/eat/drink then a lounger/bar setup is ideal with a high person capacity as speed is not the most important aspect because you will cruise to your spot drop anchor and enjoy the day.
if your looking to do water sports skiing tubing etc. the more horses the better
if your looking to fish then a fishing setup is ideal and again speed is not the issue since you spend most time trolling or drifting.

Getting a boat that meets your needs best is the most important thing, and your budget is an important need to consider as the purchase price is not the only cost you will face, you have storage and winterization, maintenance, fuel, oil and of course the gizmos, gadgets and toys.

we choose the 90 HP over the 115 because there is no noticeable difference in speed between the 2 less than 3-5 MPH difference but going with the 115 we would lose a person in capacity and the capacity became more important than the extra 3 MPH.

We cruise a coastal bay so i deal with winds, strong currents, tides and waves and i have never had an issue with the 90 HP not being enough power. on a typical day with 4-6 people on boat and 1 foot waves i can easily do about -18-20 MPH on a flat calm day with 2 people on board i can max out at 25 MPH on a typical day out i will cruise at about 3500-4k RPM and hold about 15-18 MPH.

We occasionally go tubing off the boat as well, and i can pull a 2 person tube with 10 people on board, so max capacity, and i am able to pull that tube at 12-15 MPH without an issue, you could hear the engine work but it did not skip a beat and at 15 MPH the tubers had a hard time holding on.

With that said the old saying no one ever said i wish i had less HP is true, so get what makes you comfortable that meets your needs.

A trick we did when we bought our boat, because i was on a budget and i wanted the biggest boat i could afford, i went to the deal over the winter and bought one of their last year models off the lot that meet my needs as opposed to doing a custom build and i saved easily over 10K as they were motivated to get rid of it so i was able to get a better engine and a bigger boat with some extras for under my original budget, including a 7 year engine warranty and the 10 year bennington warranty.

I will add since i missed out on the custom build process there are a few things i would have gotten if i custom built:
1. A wash down kit - we boat sanding coastal water and spend a lot of time in the water pulling up anchor from a muddy bottom and getting sanding feet on board a wash down would be really nice. This is easily added after the fact though.
2. An adjustable height and bluster captains chair, it is really hard to see over the guests at cruise with the short cpt chair
3. A Double Bimini as having extra shade is really nice for a long day on the water its tough when only 5/10 of your guests get shade.
4. A live well under the rear L lounger, fishing not my primary goal and i do it only occasionally but not having a live well does make it harder so that is just a nice to have over anything else, pulse it acts as dry storage or a cooler with a drain.

Last thing when your dealer rigs your boat (installs engine battery etc.) make sure they install the battery and external oil tank, if equipped, as FAR BACK in the changing area or under the seat etc as possible. i did not know to tell that to my dealer and they installed it in the middle of my changing area taking up valuable space and leaving a dead space in the back corner of the changing station that i cant use for standing or storage but would have been a great place to put the battery. just something to look out for.

I hope my summary is helpful, enjoy the water, stay safe and congratulations again.
 
thank you for the detailed reply, your post validates that I could make the budget option work. My thinking if I go that route is to do something that will cost the least in a 3 year ownership and then figure out what we really want/need to spec in the forever boat. The value series makes that more realistic. But I agree with others that you can never get too much HP...and we really do want more space/tritoon - just not sure I want to skimp on that tritoon set up. Also want/need a boat for when we close at the end of June. I think the dealer will let me order the Value Series with minimal down to have ready. I definitely dont want to take on a new payment before the bank closes my loan.... thanks again everyone, i appreciate the insight
 
Also, with the way prices are going up and up, waiting another 3 years to buy the tritoon will cost you even more! Plus the loss on the 20.
 
Don't be afraid of the used market even if you have to look outside your area. We bought a 2013 2375 GCW (ESP, Yamaha 150 with 78 hours, Sea Legs) in 2016 for $38k. The boat is very comfortable, rated for 15 people, and will tow a tube at a reasonable clip with 10+ people on board. We maximized our budget by going used as there's no way we could have ever bought the boat new. Good luck with your decision!
 
Just curious if the prices you mention above as quoted by your dealer are what they offered/said, or what you negotiated down to? Also, did you go on the Bennington Boat Builder to build the same set up and see what the MSRP was on those same boats so as to compare to what your dealer is quoting you? A good negotiation can drop some $ off the price.

Based on what you describe, you could probably go either way. The Tritoon with the 150 seems to better fit what you seem to elude to as intended use, and would probably hold its value great for resale if you still went that route in 3-5 years. At the same time, it might provide everything you were looking for, and you might decide to keep it beyond that point whereas the 2 toon with a 90hp is probably going to insure you flip it in a few years based on what you have said for use.

Idea of looking used beyond your market area is also a great idea. Harder to do, but could end up being worth it in the end, particularly with the way these boats are shutting up in price these days. Just the difference in cost on our 2017 to buying the same boat now is a huge mark up.

There have been many other great ideas above to consider as well. Do you have an opportunity to do any water tests of the 2 different boats or their equivelent. If you do, I would go for it! I was able to water test a 115 tritoon (my budget minded thinking) and a 150 tritoon (my performance minded thinking) back when we were looking in the fall of 2016. That eventually helped us decide that it was a 150 or more because we planned a good mix of easy cruising and serious water sports. We ended up with a 200hp, but the water tests really informed my purchase. And if I had it to do over, I’d go SPS+ with a 250 back there.
 
Don't be afraid of the used market even if you have to look outside your area. We bought a 2013 2375 GCW (ESP, Yamaha 150 with 78 hours, Sea Legs) in 2016 for $38k. The boat is very comfortable, rated for 15 people, and will tow a tube at a reasonable clip with 10+ people on board. We maximized our budget by going used as there's no way we could have ever bought the boat new. Good luck with your decision!

The used market is a great option especially since Bennington Warranty is 10 Years and Transferable so it is very possible to buy a lightly used boat and still get a warranty which is nice. i would recommend If buying used to look into a marine survey or have a dealership do a a review of the boat just to cover your bases.
 
Also, a lot of Bennington dealers still have last year's models on the lot, still brand new and with lower list prices, and they are motivated to move them. That's what we did and we got a GREAT deal on more boat and HP than we thought possible.
 
thanks all, I found the Spec Tool - That is helpful, Also got an idea of what the discount from MSRP might be from friends that bought in the last year. Definitely changed our search criteria to Tritoon/150 based on the general advice of this thread and all of our freinds that own boats . If we have to order, good chance I may not have it for this season- going next week after the big rush this week to see what the dealer has and how much they want to deal.
 
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