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Need Advice - Boat Seller screwing me over

Needafunboat

Needafunboat

Active member
Hi Guys,

I posted about a 23' stingray with 454mag a week ago. I talked to the seller who seemed nice. He was asking $9500, we agreed on $8800 and that I'd drive down to pick it up (9hrs) in 3 weeks. I told him to let me know if he wanted a deposit to hold it, he said he would let me know. I sent him an email to summarize our agreement the next day.

3 more emails and a dozen calls later, I get this email:

"Sorry i havent got back to you anthony. I have many people who are willing to give me asking price $9500.00 sight unseen. i never thought i would have gotten this kind of response. I guess it might be worth a little more than i thought. I do have someone coming out tomorrow to look at it. and now that ive researched this i think the boat is worth even more than 9500.00. let me know what you would like to do. I think $9500.00 is a fair price. First $9500.00 cash takes it."

So I call him and email him, telling him that he's breaking our verbal agreement, which is a legal contract and I'm very dissapointed he isn't honoring our agreement. I also tell him that I will pay the $9500, but can't get down for a few weeks. That was a few hours ago - no reply.

I also had my bro-in law call him from cinci to see if he would return his calls (he didn't). I'm debating having my bro-in law offer him like $13k, But ask him to meet half way. Let that a-hole see what it's like to be messed with.

The problem is that it's a great boat for the price and I'd really like to get my hands on it.

What would you guys do? Anyone live in St. Louis and willing to take a look at the boat for me? I'm seeing red at this point!!!

Thanks,
Anthony
 
I'd be cautious even dealing with a POS like that. If he's willing to balk on a verbal agreement, not answer your calls and emails, what other lines has he been feeding you about this boat? I wouldn't trust him and walk away--you don't have anything obligating him to sell you the boat and there is a reason this deal aint working out for you. Just my .02
 
With all the boats for sale out there, I have to agree with xsive. You've every right to be pissed off. But...there are deals all over the place. A bigger and better one will come along soon enough. Forget about that D-bag (I know that's easier said than done) he'll get what he's got coming at some point. You can't treat people that poorly for long and not have it adversely effect you in some way.

In the meantime, more boat shopping!
 
Maybe it really is a good deal at $9500 and his asking price was too low to start with, that's why as a seller you start high because you can always come down but it's hard to go up with the price.

Next thing you know you'll drive 9hrs thinking your getting it for $9500 and he will change his mind and say $10500

It's your call but I would get some kind of legal contract in writing agreeing on the price if you decide to move forward with it.

He sounds hard to trust aswell
 
Anthony, I agree with what all the above poster have said... I wouldn't worry about it, and sure wouldn't trust dealing with somone like that- espically with the distance is involved.

Whats the worst thing that happens... you have to use the Liner for the begging of the season? There are quite a few of those stingray boats out there, its not a one off- so, I'd keep looking and you'll stumble across somthing sooner or later... lots of good deals to be had at the end of the season, also.

Just my .02
 
Hi Anthony, a similar thing happend to me last summer when I was looking for a Pulsare. I received an e-mail the night before I was going to leave informing me that they had to honour an agreement with a local boat dealership.... in all likelyhood they sold it for more money when the seller said he had sold it on his own. In my case I had spoken to the sellers and they were truly upset but they had sold it for more money and I was left holding the bag. I too was upset and thought I'd never find another deal like that again, however, I was reminded that boats are like buses .. there is always another one coming along. Sure enough I found another one that was even a better deal than the one I lost.

All that to say .. don't worry ... there is a very good chance you will find another one.

Hang in There !!!

Bruce
 
I agree with you guys - I'm not going to sweat what this weasel is doing. I may 'uh "help" karma even things up with him in the future though.

My problem is that there are about 3 boats that would make me sell the starliner - a 234 of course, a BB/BR stingray, a BB/BR Cobalt (I realize it doesn't fit in, but they're SO nice!!). Maybe a few others, but not many.

But yeah - if that azbag calls me back, sends me something in writing and is cool, I'll probably try to carefully make it work.

If not, I'm not going to sweat it. I can keep looking and run the starliner another year and deal with getting bounced around on the bigger lakes a few times.

It's amazing how just getting some feedback gets you a little perspective on the issue! Thanks Guys - I'm only seeing a pale pink now instead of bright red.
 
If you really want it why don't you give us all his phone # and we'll call him and offer him 5k for it then when you offer 6k he'll jump on it :lol:
 
john lamon said:
If you really want it why don't you give us all his phone # and we'll call him and offer him 5k for it then when you offer 6k he'll jump on it :lol:
Click to expand...

HA!! I like it. Although I'm sure this forum is not the place for such conspiracies. If it were though his number would be 314-761-5787 and his name would be John...

The more I think about it, the more I'm calming down. My original plan (as Nick suggested) was to run the starliner this year and really keep track of how we used it. Comparing towing ease(aka keeping the boat) vs. big water capability (getting a deeper boat).

Seeing that BB mag with an aluminum trailer for that price was what got me going. Heck, now I'm looking at a 4000lb cobalt w/ a 502 which is totally not what I need (so nice though). I'm going to calm down a bit and go back to cherry picking, looking for that perfect boat with a bit more big water capability.
 
justincase said:
Anthony....screw him, i wouldnt trust him i would move on and if he calls you back down the road i would offer 7,000!
Click to expand...


Yeah and at that point tell him to bring the boat to you. It's not worth the trip -- you might get there and not like the boat anymore --anyway. Keep lookin Ant there are tons of boats around.
 
Big Red said:
Tell him you will give him 10,500 and you will be their tuesday at noon. Then stiff him and not show up. Call at 9am tuesday and tell him you are running late because you had a flat. keep draggging it out
Click to expand...
Dude, ruthless and evil.........I LIKE IT! :lol:
 
Yeah, after thinking about it I'd really like to mess with this guy a little.

I had the thought of filing a crappy small cliams court filing over the breech of a verbal contract. A verbal contract (both parties agreeing to terms) is actually legally binding. Now I don't think there's a chance I'd win that, but I think if I file in Michigan, that's where the hearing would be. Not sure if I'd go that far, or if it would actually work that way.

In my first post, I said that I might have my bro-in-law call from cinci and offer like $13K, but say he has to meet him half way. That might be a possibility.

The best would be to buy the boat for $9500 and THEN make a small claims court filing!
 
ndaniels said:
What are you towing with?
Click to expand...

Nick, I have my sequoia. It's rated for 6500 lbs and I think it would be fine towing 5500 lb of boat / trailer / gear. A 5500 lb snowmobile trailer is a different animal all together.

I figure 4000lb boat, 1000 lb of trailer and 500 lb of gear would be OK. Would be a little tough in the mountains (none around here), but I don't think safety or control would be an issue.
 
Anthony,

I would just move on completely.

People without honour are nothing but trouble.

So I wouldn't look to even the score, I wouldn't look to do anything. I would just go look for another boat and enjoy the one you have, until you find one that you like better.

With someone like this, you could pull a little stunt as some-sort of payback and the next thing you know, you could end up with this guy making up some ficticious story, turning the tables and giving you major trouble.

It sounds far fetched, but really it's not. The honest people of the world like us, always think we have the truth on our side as a defence so it won't happen, but unfortunately, the process of finding the truth is often the punishment itself.

So therefore, my advice would be, to just "run to the hills" (as I often like to say) and move on.

-Chris
 
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