‘Still really hot’ demand despite rising prices

At the height of the pandemic, refunded vacations, stimulus checks and the yearning for safe activities outside drove boat sales to a decade high. Yet, as gas prices more than doubled their May 2020 average, supply chain interruptions drive down supply and inflation pinches budgets, people are still racing to marinas for new boats and upgrades.

“The boat market is still really hot,” said Travis Williams, director of sales at Meredith Marina. “Surprisingly, there’s been no impact on demand for us,” despite drastic price increases for new and used boats, gas and services.

Nationally, boat sales numbers in 2022 have slightly cooled after their early pandemic skyrocket, according to data presented by the National Marine Manufacturers Association. Though growth in sales has slowed, boat sale numbers remain far above their pre-pandemic levels.

“We’re seeing sales begin to normalize following unprecedented sales growth in 2020 and 2021 and as competition for consumer spending among goods and services ramp up,” wrote Sarah Salvatori, corporate communications and public relations with NMMA, in an email. “While we expect boat sales to be down this year compared to the last two record sales years, we anticipate 2022 boat sales will still meet or exceed pre-pandemic levels.”

In 2021, national boat sales were down more than 5 percent from 2020, when sales reached their highest peak in 13 years, according to NMMA. The first quarter of 2022 saw 54,000 new powerboat sales — this is down 20 percent from 2021 but remains far above 2019, when there were 45,000 such sales in the first quarter.

This decrease may be on its way to the Lakes Region, but it has not arrived yet. Demand for boats still far outstrips availability, hamstrung by supply interruptions worldwide.

“In June and July 2020, people cleaned us out once the boating season started. They felt boating was a safe thing to do,” said Irwin Marine President Bruce Wright. “Since then we have struggled to get inventory ahead of demand.”

Most new boat purchases since the start of the pandemic take place before marinas have even received boats from manufacturers.

Pontoon boats and wakesurfing boats, some of the boat types that Meredith Marina specializes in, are among the most popular, according to NMMA.

Ron and Deb Skinner are among many customers hoping to get their hands on the ever-popular pontoon boat. ‘We left at nine this morning and went to pretty much every marina that’s selling boats from here to Winnisquam to Alton Bay. They’re few and far between,’ he said. (Photo by Jon Decker/The Laconia Daily Sun)

An ATX 24-foot surf boat, a premium and in-demand model, Williams said, was sold out for 2022 by March. If a buyer in April of this year wanted to buy that specific boat, it would not arrive until 2023.

Supply chain delays do not affect all boats equally, and some boat models are more available than others, Williams noted, but deliveries are low overall.

“I can get maybe 50 percent of the boats I ask for from manufacturers,” he said.

He advised, “If there’s a boat at all close to what you’re looking for at a reasonable price, buy it. Or learn to be patient.”

To smooth the process, Williams offers people trading in their boats for upgrades to continue using their current boat until their purchased one arrives.

Used boat prices have jumped as well, especially when the newest model is on backorder, Williams said.

Though Irwin customers are still buying boats in advance of their arrival, there has been some decrease in the amount of these inquiries, according to Wright.

“We’re seeing some future demand tapering off,” Wright said, adding, “We’re still far above 2019.”

Wright said that the pandemic-related boom may be diminishing, or mounting financial and logistical challenges to boat ownership could be causing potential buyers to reconsider. “We’re looking to see what the new normal is … we recognize that these trends won’t last forever,” he said.

Still, Williams hasn’t observed any signs of declining demand due to costs, but believes that people are changing their boating habits to reduce expenses. Maybe boat owners are turning off their engine instead of idling and seeking destinations closer to where they embark to save gas, he said.

According to the NH Marine Patrol, registrations have steadily risen in the last few years and show no sign of slowing, Statewide, there were about 96,000 registrations in 2019, compared to 101,000 in 2020 and 106,000 in 2021. Year to date, there have been about 79,000, outpacing last year’s number. Marine Patrol Sgt.

Nicholas Haroutunian said he expects this year’s registration total to at least meet, and more likely exceed, last year’s recordsetting number.

NMMA reported that first-time buyers are driving growth in boat sales, with record numbers of first-time buyers entering the market in 2021 and representing 34 percent of overall purchases.

As the number of boats and boat owners swells, docks, slips and other places to house boats remain coveted, and it is unlikely that those who do not already have a boat are able to find on-the-water storage in their budget, if at all.

Meredith Marina and many of its peers offer a valet service, storing boats in a garage and transported into the water for customers who notify the marina when they want to use their boat. Williams said this service is great for first-time owners because, with marina staff on hand, it is easy to have questions answered and hiccups smoothed out. Because of demand and the scarcity of garage space, though, valet prices have increased in kind.

The inability to find a place to store and access boats might be deterring some from buying. “There’s only so much room on the lake,” Wright said. “So maybe it would be a good thing if demand leveled off.”

He added, “It would be nice to have inventory on the ground to show people.”

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