Hello Angela and Tom:
I agree with your post 100%. It was not my intent to "arbitrarily disparage the asking price". I sincerely apologize that it may have been perceived that way.
I have some historical knowledge of this particular CD 25D. I did not think it appropriate to post this historical information on the board.
If you would like to know more details I will be pleased to send you a PM. However, I do not wish to burden you further and will only do so if you tell me it is OK to do so.
I do not believe in "low balling" people, regardless of what is being sold or bought. I treat people the way I expect to be treated. When the day comes that I must part with S/V Tadpole (if that day ever comes) I do not want to be low balled by some prospective buyer trying to prey upon some wrongly perceived urgency to sell. Conversely, I do not want to be taken advantage of by someone who thinks a buyer is desperate to buy something and will therefore pay well above FMV to get it. There are buyers out there like that who want something so much they will pay anything. I am not one of them. I cannot afford to be like that.
At least not until I win the Florida Lottery. Then it all changes
The above being said the current economic situation is a relevant factor to consider in pricing for anything - houses, cars, planes, boats, computers. The vast majority of folks (me included
) do not have the kind of discretionary funds we may have enjoyed 3-4 years ago. If a seller wants to sell something today, he or she may have to lower their expectations of what they can reasonably get for it - given the current and foreseeable economics. In my judgment, this is not "low balling". It is a realization and reaction to economics.
For example, if I bought a 1958 Triumph TR3
in excellent condition in January 2007, before the economic turndown, for $20,000 and did nothing to it, never really drove it; did not give it a new paint job; did not redo or upgrade the interior leather, etc., I would think it unreasonable for me to try to sell this same TR3 for
$25,000 in today's economic climate. The $25,000 would be even more unreasonable (in my judgment) if the FMV for the TR3 was really only $17,000 in January 2007 when I bought it for $20,000 but I paid the additional 3 grand because I wanted it so bad and was willing to pay more than FMV.
The same is true of homes. As I am sure you would agree, that is part of the reason for so many houses being "upside down" or "under water" today. People bought their homes at was a FMV when they bought. The economics have changed and their home is now worth less - sometimes below the mortgage price. It is not that the house is different, damaged or deteriorated. It is simply that fewer people can afford to buy it now. Therefore, the fair market value is less.
The same is true of sailboats. There will always be those who can pay any amount for what they want. Most cannot. I cannot. I look for value in everything. I am very cautious. I try very hard to treat people (all people) fairly and honestly and I expect to be treated the same in return.
All of the above being said, this is most probably nothing more than an intellectual conversation. This particular CD 25D is far away, on an island and on the hard. Several surveyors have explained they charge extra for doing a survey on MV - travel time, ferry fees, transport rentals, taxis, etc. It is doubtful I will even be able to travel to Martha's Vineyard to actually look at her, although as you (Angela and Tom) correctly observe, the pictures show her to be nice. In the interest of full disclosure, these pictures were taken more than a year ago. Her current condition is unknown.
The bottom line - I again apologize that my earlier post was perceived by you (and perhaps others) as arbitrarily disparaging the asking price. That was not my intent.
P.S. Joe Myerson's recent post is almost identical to the one he posted about a year ago when I inquired of this board if anyone had any knowledge of this particular CD 25D when it was offered for sale by a prior owner.
) I have been doing a little research to determine if there are any marine surveyors on Martha's Vineyard ("MV"). So far, after searching NAMS, SAMS and AMS, I have not been successful in finding any.
(I thought we were still in a recession).
