Boat Financing: Things to Consider

Every year, almost 12.5 million Canadians take part in recreational boating. They do it while on board one of the more than 8.5 million registered boats in the country.

Are you interested in potentially purchasing a boat sometime soon so that you can get in on the action? If so, you might not be in a position to pay for a boat outright with cash. You may need to look into your possible boat financing options instead.

The good news is that you should be able to find plenty of lenders willing to extend boat financing to you. But prior to taking one of them up on their offer, there will be some important things you'll need to consider.

Here are some of the things you should think about when you're in the market for boat financing.

How Much Money You Want to Borrow

There are going to be so many boat financing options for you to choose from when you need to secure a loan to buy one. Your first instinct might be to pick one out before you begin shopping for a boat.

But rather than taking this approach, you might want to look around at boats first to see which ones stand out to you the most. It'll help you get a general idea of how much money you'll need to borrow to buy a boat.

Some boats will only cost you a few thousand dollars. Others will cost $50,000, $100,000, and sometimes even more than that. It'll be a good idea for you to have a number in your head as far as what you would like to borrow. It'll make it easier to narrow down your boat financing options.

How Soon Do You Need Money to Buy a Boat?

Are you interested in buying a boat, like, today? Or are you casually shopping for a boat now and looking to purchase one in a few months or maybe even longer than that?

Each boat loan provider out there is going to have their own loan application process. Some of them will be able to make the process quick and easy and provide you with same-day or next-day loans. Others might have a long, drawn-out loan application process that could take at least a few days, if not longer.

If you're in a huge hurry to buy a boat, a lender that falls into the first category would be ideal. It all depends on how soon you expect to want to purchase a boat and bring it home with you.

Which Boat Loan Provider Do You Trust?

As we alluded to earlier, there isn't going to be any shortage of options when you want to take out a loan from a boat loan provider. There will be more than a few lenders willing to offer you the loan that you're looking for.

To get a glimpse of just how many options you'll have, you can Google "boat loan provider near me." It'll let you take a look at all the boat financing options you'll have.

You should visit each of their websites and see what they're all about before choosing one lender over all the others. On a boat loan provider's site, you'll be able to find out:

• How long they've been providing people with boat financing
• What their loan application process looks like
• What kind of boat loan interest rates they offer
• And so much more

The more you're able to discover about a boat loan provider, the easier it should be for you to narrow down all your different options. It won't be long before one of them is standing out in the crowd.

Which Boat Loan Interest Rates Look Best?

As we just mentioned, you should be able to get an idea of what kind of boat loan interest rates a lender can provide for you on their website. You shouldn't be afraid to shop around for lenders that have the best interest rates in the business.

Because a boat is going to be such a big purchase, the interest rate you're able to get will play a huge part in how much it'll cost you to pay off a boat loan. The higher your interest rate is, the more you'll ultimately pay for a boat.

If you're able to find a lender that can set you up with an interest rate that's even just slightly lower than all the others you see, you could save thousands of dollars over the life of a loan. It's why it's so imperative that you check to see which interest rates are available to you.

How Big Will Your Boat Down Payment Be?

Just about every boat loan provider is going to make you put down a down payment on a boat. But not every lender is going to force you to make the same boat down payment.

If you aren't sitting on a pile of cash in your bank account, you might want to look around for a lender that will let you buy a boat without putting down a gigantic down payment. At the same time, you should keep in mind that you might be able to negotiate a lower interest rate if you put down a bigger down payment.

Try not to overlook the fact that you will need to put down a down payment at some point in most cases. The last thing you want to do is begin applying for boat financing only to realize that a lender is going to ask you to provide a down payment that will be well out of your budget.

When Do You Want to Be Done Repaying?

When you purchase a car or another type of vehicle with a loan, you'll typically only get a few years to pay it off. Some lenders will give you loans that last for up to five, six, seven, or even eight years, but not all of them will do this.

Boat loans are different. While you're welcome to take out a short-term loan for a boat if you'd like, you will also sometimes have the option to take up to 20 years to pay a boat loan off.

You'll need to give some thought to how long you would like to take to repay a boat loan. If you know you'll have the money to pay it off within five or ten years, you're welcome to take out a loan that will make this possible. But if you would like to stretch a loan out longer than that, that should also be a possibility.

You should crunch the numbers to see how long you would like to take to repay a boat loan. It'll help you pick out a boat loan provider that can extend a loan to you with the right repayment terms.

What Can You Afford to Pay for Boat Insurance?

After qualifying for boat loans, some new boat owners are under the impression that they'll be out of the woods as far as spending money on their boats is concerned. But this couldn't be further from the truth.

In addition to paying for the boat itself, you're also going to need to go through the process of insuring a boat. This is going to be one of your larger boat-related expenses when you welcome a boat into your life.

Boat insurance isn't actually mandatory in Canada. But if you're financing a boat, you should pretty much always plan to insure it unless you have enough money to pay your boat loan off if it's ever damaged.

Boat insurance can also protect you and any passengers that you bring on your boat and provide you with peace of mind. For all these reasons, you shouldn't overlook the need for boat insurance. You'll sleep better at night knowing that you have an insurance policy in place for your boat.

Contact Us to Obtain Boat Financing

Buying a boat usually isn't going to be cheap. But you shouldn't let that stop you from thinking about purchasing one.

If you would really like to get your hands on a boat, boat financing can help make this possible. You can shop around for a boat that you love and get approved for a loan so that you can afford it and pay it off over time.

NLP Finance can provide you with the boat financing you need in Newfoundland & Labrador, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Ontario, and Alberta. Contact us today to get more information on the boat loans that we have available.