Looking into this ski as a project

[spx787]

It looks to be a 95 or 96 GTI? Anyhow, the dude said they were riding it and it capsized and they couldn't get it started again. They took it to a guy to fix it and he ended up getting thrown in jail so they went to go pick it up. The engine is apart right now but "all the parts are there". Says he has the title for it and the trailer (although he needs to find trailer paperwork).

I'm supposed to go see it this evening. I will take photos of what the engine looks like. I know that I'm not offering him much at all for it and I'm definitely not making an offer upon my first visit. People here seem to think these things are worth a lot more than they really are. Anyhow, I will let you guys know what I find tonight and snap some photos.

http://sanantonio.craigslist.org/boa/4704391132.html

 

[96spxpos]

why are you definitely not making an offer on the first visit? Is it to get him ancy and trying to have him call you and accept a lower offer?

 

[spx787]

Yea man. Jet skis just are NOT a hot commodity around here. I still see the same skis on CL that were there back when I was looking before I got my SPX 2 and a half months ago. People want a lot for them until they don't sell. Then the price starts to slowly drop in the ads.

He doesn't even list a price. I think I'll insult him when I offer him $150 but the fact is, the engine is apart so I have no way of knowing what's wrong so I am taking a risk. (Although that trailer is a lot nicer than that homemade POS I got with mine lol)

 

[racerxxx]

Your first visit now to me is your last visit to me. I hate when guys play that crap. I had a guy come out a few years ago when I was selling a 1980 E250 Ford van. It was an original 60K mile van, it spent the majority of it's life in our industrial park and it never sat out over night. The van was right but a little tattered inside the back since it was a delivery van. I was asking $1,000 and it needed NOTHING, even had 3/4 tread left on the tires, oh and I had ALL the service records from day one too. So this guy came out and kicked tires, not once but twice. When he called the third time to tell me he wanted to come look one last time and was 99% sure he was going to take I told him to F off. Guy was bent out of shape pissing an moaning, I said it you want to come up and watch me crush it with my father backhoe come on up. Next truck I sold was my 01 Dodge Cummins 4X4 2500 E-cab. Guy came out looked at it, we took it for a quick spin, I handed him all the service records, he made an offer, I countered and said X dollars and it's yours. The hand went out and we shook on it. 15 minutes-DONE! Took him longer to count the Benjamins.

Moral of the story, don't waste guys time, ask the price. Then go look at it, make an offer and seal the deal in one trip. You have to know what the max you want to pay and when to walk away. Sorry, but this crap rubs me the wrong way anymore.

 

[spx787]

Racerxxx, I see your point. I will text the guy and get an idea of what he is looking to get out of it before I waste anyone's time. I'm guessing he's gonna want $500+ though and that's a lot more than I'm willing to pay for a ski with a disassembled engine.

 

[racerxxx]

Ok, so if he wants $500(hypothetically) you have to figure out what the trailer is worth to YOU and what YOU could sell it for down the road, then subtract that from his asking price. Then go cut the guy off at the knees and ask if he'll take $250, if he counters at $300 and that is what the trailer is worth to you then you got a free ski project. If he doesn't like the offer, just tell him thanks for your time, if you ever want to sell it you know my email and you know my price. Please don't give the "Let me think about it, I'll call you" line. I've told guys not to bother before they even got in their cars.

 

[spx787]

Yea, I guess the trailer will be the deciding factor. He needs to find the paperwork on that trailer though. I bought the SPX with NO paperwork on the homemade trailer only to find out it's gonna be a PITA to get it registered. I learned a lot from my first jet ski purchase lol!

 

[spx787]

Yep. He just texted back. He's looking to get $500.

 

[racerxxx]

OK, hammer out the trailer title. If he IS the legit owner ask if he can file with the DMV for a lost title, fees apply. If he says no, that is the red flag.

 

[Spimothy Leary]

$500 is about right, although i'd prefer less honestly, $500 is about right, no issues with you offering $300 on the spot and maybe drag him down to 400...

FWIW, re: coming once or twice... i'm a tough seller, but that comes from experience, people RARELY come back and I won't hold it for anybody unless its a big purchase, like over 4K. When I bought my Yamaha, I knew there were going to be some serious negotiations since it was a distress sale, he was moving and I really didn't want to buy it (at the time) but my rule of thumb as a buyer is "don't get in the car unless you have the cash" so I brought the cash, (brought 3800) negotiated down from 4100 to 3400 and he got all squeamish so I pointed to my truck, say "I have a 1 7/8 ball installed" and pulled a stack of bills out of my pocket you could see his face relax. It was mine 30 seconds later.

Then I paid an extra hundred for life jackets and a couple of tubes. While we did the paperwork it turns out I was the 4th guy that looked at it, but none of them actually brought any money. Had I known I was the 4th guy I might have offered 3K lol.

Had a guy show up to look at my GTX's for sale in a chevy sedan with no hitch... first words out of my mouth is "this is going to be a short conversation, you don't even have a hitch" I got rid of him about 4 minutes later, why go look at a non running ski/trailer combo if you don't even have a tow vehicle ?

The GSX I just bought (engine disassembled) I didn't even look at it, it was priced at $300, no trailer. I had a buddy that was in the area with a flat trailer, asked him to go look at it and if everything was there (missing stator and rear ebox cover) to pay him in full for the ski and txt me a picture after he left. I didn't know it was a done deal until he got home Took a chance that the MPEM was good, but price was right, even if the MPEM was bad it was still a good purchase. Dude is still looking for the title (he texted me last night) which is kind of comical, at this point the ski doesn't even have rubrails any more lol. But if he finds the title i'll take it, you never know, and if anything it will make it easier to sell the empty hull vs driving it to the dump.

 

[spx787]

Texted the guy asking if he found the paperwork on the trailer. No response yet.

 

[Spimothy Leary]

trailers must be a bigger pain up your way's compared to Florida.

We just run it over to the scales at the dump or the recycle center, get a weight slip and take that to the tag office with any old wrinkled up piece of paper that says "bill of sale" $16 later, done deal, new VIN.

 

[96spxpos]

Racer, spx787,
Not sure what other people's schedules look like, but my time is pretty valuable. so, regardless of whether or not I waste the sellers time, whether they list a price or not, most of the things I buy, the people on CL want to be texted, so I'll text and ask if its available, then I'll ask "what are you asking?" lets say the guy wants $800 and I know its only worth $500 to me, or that I wont pay a dime over $500, my response is, "before I even waste each other's time, I've got $500 cash in my pocket. I can be there within the hour to pay for it, CASH" if they say no, then I say "Ok, well if you have a hard time getting rid of it, you've got my number...but keep in mind I'm ACTIVELY looking elsewhere to spend my $500"...

This way, there's no BS, if the seller is motivated he'll bite, or he may have 1 or 2 people come out, kick tires, waste his time (guys like you make it easier for guys like me to get good deals, lol), and then they realize they could have cash within the hour..
it doesn't always work, but at least this way it's cut and dry, I lay it out there and don't waste anyone's time.

 

[96spxpos]

Yea spim, I bought an almost new trailer down here, and I got a plate on it and registered it, but I don't remember having to go to a weigh station?

 

[spx787]

He's still looking for the paperwork. I told him I'll come see it when he finds it.

 

[soccerdad]

I see a little red flag. The ad says I don't know what it is wrong with it and it just stopped running while using it. But then he tells you it was flipped... Not sure he is being completely straight with you. Also, I hope the guy in jail does not throw a lien on it for work not paid for.

 

[soccerdad]

I picked up two gtx's recently. The first, the guy did not have a clue what it was worth. I knew nothing about it so I told him 4-500 depending on some things. I got there and compression tested it with my battery and it was a good 150+. So I was going to offer him 450, but then just gave him 480 since he had a little girl running around and probably need the money more than I did. The second I got for $275 with good compression but a bad key. He had jumped it with a hot box so I thought the MPEM was fried. (Was just the wrong key!) Both times I pulled up, pulled out my own battery, did a compression test, offered the cash and loaded onto my trailer. I already had the first ski on the trailer when picking up the second so he knew I was serious.

 

[spx787]

Yea it ain't looking too promising anyway.

 

[Spimothy Leary]

Racer, spx787,
Not sure what other people's schedules look like, but my time is pretty valuable. so, regardless of whether or not I waste the sellers time, whether they list a price or not, most of the things I buy, the people on CL want to be texted, so I'll text and ask if its available, then I'll ask "what are you asking?" lets say the guy wants $800 and I know its only worth $500 to me, or that I wont pay a dime over $500, my response is, "before I even waste each other's time, I've got $500 cash in my pocket. I can be there within the hour to pay for it, CASH" if they say no, then I say "Ok, well if you have a hard time getting rid of it, you've got my number...but keep in mind I'm ACTIVELY looking elsewhere to spend my $500"...

This way, there's no BS, if the seller is motivated he'll bite, or he may have 1 or 2 people come out, kick tires, waste his time (guys like you make it easier for guys like me to get good deals, lol), and then they realize they could have cash within the hour..
it doesn't always work, but at least this way it's cut and dry, I lay it out there and don't waste anyone's time.

I understand your point, but just reminding you that you might be the 4th guy that did the exact same thing "I have cash and can be there in an hour" and none of them actually showed up, generally by the 4th guy the seller is fed up with CL people. As a seller I'm used to them. But generally its still good practice, easier to waste 5 minutes via txt then 30 minutes in the car if you both know your not in the right ball park. I just always found it more practical to look at it because the pictures don't always tell the whole story, (lots of nicks and scratches, bad gauges, stuck steering, stuck pump)

Yea spim, I bought an almost new trailer down here, and I got a plate on it and registered it, but I don't remember having to go to a weigh station?

if your paperwork (bill of sale) or the signed registration had a VIN then its not needed. If you have no vin and just a bill of sale that says "single axle trailer" then you have to jump through the additional hoop.

 

[Strizzo]

count on it needing a new motor. trailers are easy here in TX, the trailer registration paperwork is the only proof of ownership you get on a small trailer like that (under 3k lbs). its also super easy to get a home built trailer registered, you just go down to the DMV, say you built a trailer, it weighs x lbs, max weight is XX lbs, you pay the tax and they give you a plate and stickers. easy peasy. if he finds the trailer paperwork it'll just be an old registration receipt, you take that and the bill of sale for the trailer to the DMV and they move it into your name, pay sales tax and you're done.

 

[spx787]

count on it needing a new motor. trailers are easy here in TX, the trailer registration paperwork is the only proof of ownership you get on a small trailer like that (under 3k lbs). its also super easy to get a home built trailer registered, you just go down to the DMV, say you built a trailer, it weighs x lbs, max weight is XX lbs, you pay the tax and they give you a plate and stickers. easy peasy. if he finds the trailer paperwork it'll just be an old registration receipt, you take that and the bill of sale for the trailer to the DMV and they move it into your name, pay sales tax and you're done.

The tax assessors office said I needed a photo of it, a weight cert and a bill of sale.

Should I just go down to the DMV instead? I don't really want or need a title for it. Just need it registered.

 

[Spimothy Leary]

each state is different..... we don't have titles for ours.. (although one one I have the Certificate of Origin, but its kind of useless to me)

we just have registrations,,, weight cert is easy (can be ANY similar trailer with similar weight, the tag people aren't going to double check your figures) (I had the lady print me two slips last time I went to the dump, she and I knew exactly why I was asking but she didn't care)
photo is even easier,,, bill of sale can be done with MS word and a pen in 30 seconds.

I don't think the DMV has anything to do with it.. (again, Florida)