Cost of a 1979 33ft Springer

[SadieF]

Hiya

I'm wondering if anyone could give me a guide price for a Springer. 1979, trad stern, 33ft narrowboat. 

I'm currently renting it but thinking to make an offer. It's just had the shower pump refitted and lots of rotten wood removed, however there is rotten wood under the floorboards that needs doing and it needs drying out - guy who owns it can't afford to do the rest of work i think/and it's falling on me to do this maintenance work.  I've just spent the last couple of Saturdays and evenings, absorbing water out of the floor and de moulding!!

It's not been blacked in ages - since he got it - so at least 7 years, and I don't imagine it's the longer lasting paint!

The engine doesn't work - and takes up loads of space. 

However, it does come with a prime mooring spot. which would be the reason for purchase. also not paying loads of rent so i can save up for my next boat. I have a small amount, an have just been refused a loan for the boat that I really wanted. 

Would it be a silly idea to buy this boat? would it be a pain to sell it on with no engine? 

How would the boat be taken for survey and blacking if it has no engine? 

appreciate your suggestions and opinions on this. many thanks. 

Sadie 

 

 

[Bod]

Who owns the mooring spot?

 

Bod

[SadieF]

I would if i bought it

 

[rusty69]

In that case, it might be worth valueing the mooring,as its probably worth more than the boat.

[RLWP]

In which case, an engineless badly maintained 1979 33' Springer is practically worthless. Depending on the location the mooring could be worth a fortune

Richard

[Bod]

Then the value is in the land, not the boat.

Make sure that the boat owner does actually own the mooring site.

 

Bod

 

 

[SadieF]

He definitely doesn't own the mooring spot. it's quite an informal arrangement down here. 

he lives far away even, and just isn't able to do the maintenance. He keeps putting it back on me to organise it all. 

[rusty69]

 

ETA. Crossed posts.Looks like you wouldn't be purchasing a mooring.

Edited March 24, 2018 by rusty69

[dor]

Why so much water?  Is it leaking? '70s Springers often need overplating or at least patching.  This could cost considerably more than the boat is worth as it sounds as though it is not much better than a hull if it needs loads of the interior pulling out.  Can the engine be repaired easily?

ETA:   following on from the last couple of posts, if you don't own the land then you don't own the mooring.  You could be asked to move with no notice.

Edited March 24, 2018 by dor

[SadieF]

Just now, dor said:

Why so much water?  Is it leaking? '70s Springers often need overplating or at least patching.  This could cost considerably more than the boat is worth as it sounds as though it is not much better than a hull if it needs loads of the interior pulling out.  Can the engine be repaired easily?

I've got no idea about the engine. I'd need to get someone to take a look at it. Just got told it doesn't work and haven't even tried to start it. 

The water was coming from a leaky bit in the shower, which has now been fixed. also there is alot of condensation that runs down as the type of insulation is really crap with air gaps for it to build up. But this leaky bit has been going on for ages and left. some rotten wood removed in bathroom, but not all, at back and under laminate flooring. 

no idea about overplating. i wouldn't be surprised, as it's been left sitting, no annodes replaced, not blacked in 7 years. 

Also i had a look at the survey from 2011 and it's been done by a known crook in the area. hmm

 

according to survey no plating has been done before

 

[RLWP]

10 minutes ago, SadieF said:

He definitely doesn't own the mooring spot.

Then what would you be buying?

[rusty69]

3 minutes ago, RLWP said:

Then what would you be buying?

An old springer that will possibly need loads of money spending on it, but will require money spending on it to find out.

[RLWP]

2 minutes ago, rusty69 said:

An old springer that will possibly need loads of money spending on it, but will require money spending on it to find out.

If so, then somewhere south of £5K for the boat, let the landlord know you are taking over the mooring and then pay rent directly instead of through the ex-owner?

Richard

Edited March 24, 2018 by RLWP

[SadieF]

4 minutes ago, RLWP said:

Then what would you be buying?

apologies. bad wording. what i mean is he rents it, and his name is on the papers. but doesn't have rights to it if the boat isn't there. It's all quite informal down here anyway and is by agreement with the farmer and the rest of community. 

 

[Alan de Enfield]

46 minutes ago, SadieF said:

I'm wondering if anyone could give me a guide price for a Springer. 1979, trad stern, 33ft narrowboat. 

There are a number of Springers advertised at 'scrap prices' 

This boat is a 37ft Springer cruiser stern with welded steel hull and topsides. This boat should be considered as a project with work needing doing. There is a 2 cylinder air cooled Lister engine. £3500

Better condition ones around £6000, there is a nice looking 47 foot one with a BMC at £8700

 

Edited March 24, 2018 by Alan de Enfield

[RLWP]

Just now, Alan de Enfield said:

There are a number of Springers advertised at 'scrap prices' 

This boat is a 37ft Springer cruiser stern with welded steel hull and topsides. This boat should be considered as a project with work needing doing. There is a 2 cylinder air cooled Lister engine. £3500

 

I overestimated

[artleknock]

3 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

There are a number of Springers advertised at 'scrap prices' 

This boat is a 37ft Springer cruiser stern with welded steel hull and topsides. This boat should be considered as a project with work needing doing. There is a 2 cylinder air cooled Lister engine. £3500

 

So you get a Lister for £3500 if you take the boat away

[rusty69]

Sounds like you are getting a badly maintained boat that you are having to put money into yourself,so am guessing your rent is very very cheap.

The question is, how long can you continue to live on it before the lack of maintenance becomes a serious problem?

[WotEver]

8 minutes ago, artleknock said:

So you get a Lister for £3500 if you take the boat away

Yep.  Then you can rebuild it at your leisure.  No-one said it was working...

[MtB]

12 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

There are a number of Springers advertised at 'scrap prices' 

This boat is a 37ft Springer cruiser stern with welded steel hull and topsides. This boat should be considered as a project with work needing doing. There is a 2 cylinder air cooled Lister engine. £3500

Better condition ones around £6000, there is a nice looking 47 foot one with a BMC at £8700

 

 

Or to give a different perspective, Braunston has a well presented 1980 Springer for sale on brokerage for an eye-watering £18,950.

http://www.braunstonmarina.co.uk/Boat-Details/little-miss

[rusty69]

1 hour ago, SadieF said:

How would the boat be taken for survey and blacking if it has no engine? 

Options.

1.Tow off another boat

2.Fix engine.

3.Fit temporary outboard motor.

4.Pole it.

 

[Alan de Enfield]

12 minutes ago, Mike the Boilerman said:

 

Or to give a different perspective, Braunston has a well presented 1980 Springer for sale on brokerage for an eye-watering £18,950.

http://www.braunstonmarina.co.uk/Boat-Details/little-miss

I think we made a mistake when we visited Braunston looking for boats - maybe we should have gone in the Jaguar rather than the Land Rover - they didn't seem to have 'the time of day' for us, almost to the point of rudeness - and the boats were way overpriced compared to other we had looked at.

3 minutes ago, rusty69 said:

Options.

1.Tow off another boat

2.Fix engine.

3.Fit temporary outboard motor.

4.Pole it.

 

5) Don't' bother with a survey, the cost of the survey, getting it lifted etc will be more than the boat is worth.

[MtB]

2 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

I think we made a mistake when we visited Braunston looking for boats - maybe we should have gone in the Jaguar rather than the Land Rover - they didn't seem to have 'the time of day' for us, almost to the point of rudeness - and the boats were way overpriced compared to other we had looked at.

 

I think they suffer from a high proportion of idle fender kickers given their location. So any one person is vanishingly unlikely to be a serious buyer. 

Anyway not having the time of day for you to the point of rudeness is commonplace in canal businesses in my experience!

[Tumshie]

I think you're on to something.

If it's the rights to the mooring that you really want then being able to buy the poor bedraggled boat that you're on at the moment lets you keep them when you have bought the boat that you prefer.  

So the questions might then be -

1) if the guy who owns your boat is skint enough to take take a small but cash lump sum for its intrinsic value or will he haggle up the value because he knows you really want the mooring rights?

2) will the boat be habitable long enough (without you spending much/anything on it) for you to save for the type of newer boat that you wanted but couldn't get a lone for or do you want to spend time and money doing the boat up? Unless you want to do the work that the boat needs I wouldn't bother with a survey, I'd just work on the worst case scenario and hurrah if it's better than you thought.

3) what is the smallest amount you can offer and the largest the you are willing to?

 

Good luck 

[MtB]

14 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

and the boats were way overpriced compared to other we had looked at.

 

I find their prices are all over the place. NB BATAVIA is priced very reasonably in my opinion given its spectacular looks and pedigree. Worth ten of them Springers and barely twice the price!

http://www.braunstonmarina.co.uk/Boat-Details/batavia

 

 

 

Edited March 24, 2018 by Mike the Boilerman