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Looking to purchase a new Bennington in TX, any advice on discounts?

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Bill Ricks

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I really like the look of Bennington pontoons and have decided to purchase a 22ft. The last pontoon boat I bought was in 1990 and I paid $12,000. So, I was shocked when I started looking to see that they now have tripled in price but so have cars, motorcycles, etc. so why not. Also, they are so much nicer, faster and more comfortable.

At any rate, do dealers discount? I recently purchase a travel trailer and the discount off of MSRP was 30%. I doubt that this is the case for pontoon boats but would like advice from anyone who has recently purchased one, especially in Texas. Please feel free to suggest a dealer that you like.

Thanks for your help.

Bill / Tyler, TX
 
I was always told the rule of thumb on % off MSRP on pontoons was around 20% as an average - range seems pretty steady between 15-25% across the year.

In tracking it this past two years, these numbers seem like a reasonable expectation. Time of year, model type/amnesties, and regional economic circumstances seem to all play big roles.

End of calendar year into winter boat show season seems to get the 20-30% range (stacking manufacturer incentives, dealer discounts, motor manufacturer incentives, and/or boat show discounts), and spring to early fall seems to be more consistent in the 15-20% range due to high demand and the lack of incentives/discounts.
 
I have gotten 30% off on both of my most recent Bennington purchases. It all depends on Dealer overhead and higher end models tend to get more off MSRP.
 
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Bill Ricks said:
Yours is close to what I am looking for, mind telling me how much you paid?
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We were precisely at 32.5% off MSRP on our 2017 Bennington last year. That was the culmination of many months of research, planning, and picking the best time to pull the trigger. We were able to time up and bundle a few different incentive packages, as well as having a series of successful negotiations between two dealerships before putting in our final order with that overall % off msrp.
 
Vikingstaff said:
We were precisely at 32.5% off MSRP on our 2017 Bennington last year. That was the culmination of many months of research, planning, and picking the best time to pull the trigger. We were able to time up and bundle a few different incentive packages, as well as having a series of successful negotiations between two dealerships before putting in our final order with that overall % off msrp.
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What was the actual purchase price? I am going to a boat show next weekend in Fort Worth and will be ready to purchase.
 
Bill Ricks said:
What was the actual purchase price? I am going to a boat show next weekend in Fort Worth and will be ready to purchase.
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Keep in mind MSRP prices have gone up 6 to 8 percent since the fall of 2016 so any price Viking may pass on will not be an apples to apples comparison.
 
Check out their service departments also .
 
Our actual price wont be that useful like Ray said above. Not only what he mentioned, but even the cost of some of my options changed during 2017; my purchase year. You’d need the entire spec sheet and do a line item comparison as we added nearly every option on ours, so those drove $ up significantly, but then came down with the incentives, discounts, and timing.
 
Alicedream said:
I have gotten 30% off on both of my most recent Bennington purchases. It all depends on Dealer overhead and higher end models tend to get more off MSRP.
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Could you tell me what dealer you went through? Doing my research now to purchase hopefully next year. Need to upgrade my dock to make room first.
 
LOTO Boater said:
Could you tell me what dealer you went through? Doing my research now to purchase hopefully next year. Need to upgrade my dock to make room first.
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Sent you private message.
 
I recently worked with Phill Dill Boats in Lewisville, TX on the purchase of a new Bennington. We started the process at the Dallas Boat Show and I finally ordered a boat the end of March. The entire experience has been great so far and I would highly recommend them.
 
My experience: the dealer knocks 20% off MSRP right off the bat. If you get to 25% off, if not in off season, consider it a great deal! If need a trailer, be sure and negotiate that along w/boat.
 
Hi - brand new member here looking to pull the trigger on a brand new 25QSBW with about every option you can pick and a 350 Yamaha engine (currently a Premier owner that will be traded in). Dealer (owned by OneWater Marine Holdings) near Conroe Texas has initial offer of 20% off MSRP, but that is still a big number. Sounds like I could maybe push them to 25%, but would likely need to get another Bennington dealer in to competition.

Another OneWater Marine Holdings Dealer in the area showed me a Barletta Boat. Has anyone looked at those? They seem more motivated on price since it is a new brand and boat and is in stock.
 
Charlie_Lake_Conroe said:
Dealer (owned by OneWater Marine Holdings) near Conroe Texas has initial offer of 20% off MSRP, but that is still a big number. Sounds like I could maybe push them to 25%, but would likely need to get another Bennington dealer in to competition.
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You might contact Phil Dill Boats in the N Texas area for comparison. They are a large Bennington dealer.
 
Being a Bennington forum I doubt you’ll get positive, if any feedback on a competitor (if you want to call it that) brand. Especially a new brand. Also, being the forum is provided and owned by Bennington, we typically don’t get into detailed discussions comparing brands. There’s other sites for that. Hopefully we see you as a new owner and if you do buy one .... PICS are mandatory... ;)
 
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Another thing to consider is how Bennington's hold their value, I sold my G23 with a Yamaha 200hp in July and I was surprised at how little it depreciated. It also helped that my dealer was low on 2018's at the time.
 
Charlie_Lake_Conroe said:
Finally got both brands in the water and Bennington is definitely the better vessel. Now working on finalizing my build.
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I think you will find that Bennington is a much better boat than Premier. My brother-in-law bought a Premier one year before I bought my Bennington and I think he has had buyer remorse. There is no comparison in the quality and craftsmanship between the 2 brands in both his and my opinion.
 
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