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Free Boats: How to Find Free or Cheap Boats for Sale

Are you looking for a boat? We get it, boating is a fun pastime, and there’s nothing like getting out onto the water for some watersports, fishing, or just a relaxing drift across the lake or river.

However, buying a boat is an expensive purchase. Like a car, there are plenty of models available, and you could end up spending anything from $10,000 to millions of dollars for a boat, depending on the model, brand, and length.

Why spend the money buying a new boat when you have options for pre-owned models. Buying pre-owned could save you up to 75% of the costs of buying a new model, sounds great, right?

Well, the only thing better than buying pre-owned is getting a boat for dirt cheap or getting a boat for free!

You read that right. As crazy as it might sound, there are plenty of boats out there in the market where the owner is looking to get rid of it at no cost . If you act quickly, you could score a boat for next to nothing.

We spent hours searching the market looking for free boats. We found that finding a cheap or free boat requires knowing where to look and how to spot a hidden gem. This post unpacks the secrets to finding free or cheap boats. Are you ready? Let’s dive in!

Where Can I Find Cheap Boats for Sale?

Online classifieds and marketplaces like craigslist.

The first place to start your hunt for a cheap or free boat is in the classifieds and online marketplaces. There are several large online marketplaces for boats, and we’ve even seen free boats advertised on Facebook marketplace, eBay, and Craigslist.

However, you’ll need to find a recent listing because there are thousands of people out there looking for free boats, and many of them are pre-owned dealers looking to capitalize on a quick flip. So, you’ll have to compete with these buyers when scouring the marketplaces and classifieds for your boat.

We’ll cover some tactics later to keep you ahead of the pack when searching for a new boat. However, for now, let’s look at places where you can find cheap and free boats.

Industry Magazines

While most publications won’t have any direct listings for free boats, they will have a classified section where people may list cheap boats for sale or free boats. Good Old Boat magazine offers you a listing of “project boats” selling for under $5,000. These boats will require some maintenance and repairs to bring them up to code, but you’re going to make a massive saving even with these costs included.

We like browsing through free-boat.com for special boat projects and outstanding deals, and you might find some free boats available on the site as well. Check the free-boat.com Facebook page, and you’ll also find plenty of listings.

This site has some outstanding deals on used boats. The site donates the proceeds of all sales to charity. So, you get a cheap boat and a chance to help a charity – it’s a win/win.

Boneyard Boats

This Facebook page is another excellent resource for finding cheap and free boats.

Wooden Boat Magazine

This publication features a “ Free Boats ” section in every issue.

Marine Auctions

Attending a marine auction is another great method of finding cheap boats. The boats going up for auction may come from repossessions, written-off or salvaged vessels, or seized vessels.

Many auctions sell the boat for outstanding debt owed to the bank or lender, and you could end up picking up a real steal.

You’ll find boat auctions accompanying car auctions, and some dedicated marine auctions specialize in boats and other watercraft around coastal cities.

Most auction houses post a pre-auction list of their inventory, and you have the option to view the boat before attending the auction, so you don’t waste your time.

Boatyards and Marinas

The best deals never make it to online marketplaces or classifieds in many cases. Sometimes, the best option is to scout local marinas and boatyards for deals. Call around the local marinas and speak to the harbormaster.

They’ll know if anyone is selling a boat in the marina, and they can often point you in the right direction or give you the sellers’ contact details.

In many cases, the harbormaster might be dealing with abandoned boats they need to get out of the marina or boatyard, and you could end up landing an amazing deal.

When Is the Best Time to Buy a Boat?

Hurricane season.

If you live around Florida or the Gulf coast, check the listings in your area after extreme weather events like severe storms and hurricanes.

These weather events often damage boats, and the owners are just looking to get rid of them. You could spend a few thousand dollars in repairs and end up with a great deal.

At the end of the boating season, you’ll start to see more deals flood the classifieds and online marketplaces.

When the colder weather rolls around, many sellers look to get rid of their boats to avoid paying marina or dry storage fees during the winter. Search volumes for boats also nosedive at this time of the year, and you’ll find less competition in the market looking for a good deal.

Divorce Season

The peak season for filing for divorce is between March and August. Keep your eye on the market during this time, and you can find a boat at a great price.

If the owner’s partner wins the boat in the settlement, they might not know what it’s worth, and they’ll be keen to sell because they don’t want it, and they would rather have cash in hand than a boat.

Tips for Finding Free or Cheap Boats

Look outside sticky price points.

It’s a good idea to search for deals outside certain price thresholds. For instance, some owners might sell their boat for $5,000, $10,000, etc. If you enter a price slightly above this “sticky” threshold, you’ll find you get a lot more inventory appearing in your search.

Don’t worry about going over budget. Research shows that many boat owners are negotiable with pricing, and the average closing price is around 20% to 30% less than the asking price in many cases.

Change Your Search Spelling

While you might know how to spell “Bayliner,” that doesn’t mean that the owner does, it’s a good idea to use incorrect spelling and formats when running your searches. For instance, you could search “Bay Liner” instead of “Bayliner.”

Use Tech to Get a Deal – Set Up Automatic Search Alerts

Fortunately, thanks to the power of the internet, finding a cheap or free boat is a lot easier than it was a few decades ago. Tech can help you find a great deal and move on it before anyone else even realizes the listing is available.

Set up search alerts for specific keywords involving your boat criteria. Whenever a new listing drops on the platform, you’ll receive an instant notification telling you about the listing.

Setup Browser Extensions

Your popup notification scanner runs through the entire Craigslist database every five seconds. The AI will bring any new listings meeting your criteria to your attention. Using “Craigslist Peek” allows you to preview a gallery of each listing to save you time opening all the individual deals.

Use Tracking Apps for Your Searches

The Craigslist mobile app, “CPlus” is available for Android and iOS devices. Download it and set the app up to search for a listing meeting your boat criteria. The app has handy features, such as allowing you to search multiple cities at once.

How to Quality a Pre-Owned Boat Listing

Finding a cheap or free boat on classified listings and websites is just a numbers game. Eventually, if you persist with your hunt, it’s only a matter of time before you stumble across the deal you have in mind.

However, sellers can use tactics to trick you, and it’s challenging to call them out, especially if you’re buying a boat that’s hours away from where you live.

The last thing you want is to spend four hours in a car to view a boat, only to reach the seller and find it’s not what they were advertising. Here are a few tips to help you get the most out of your boat hunting.

Avoid Scammers

You can avoid scams by looking for red flags in the listings. Some warning signs to look for include stock images of boats and sellers that refuse viewing of the boat before the sale. If you don’t get a good feeling from the seller, it’s better just to walk away and continue searching.

Setup a Qualifying List

Write down your boat criteria before you start your hunt for a cheap or free boat. What do you want from a boat? Will you accept anything? Or do you have a specific model in mind or other qualifying criteria like teak, low-hour motors, and such?

Ask the Owner for More Photos

While many listings come with photos, these are often the best images selected by the seller. Ask the seller to send you more photos, including pictures of all sides of the boat, and the hull, if it’s in dry storage or on the trailer. If the boat is in good condition, the owner should have no issue sending you more pictures.

Drop By the Marina

If the boat you’re looking at purchasing is close by, swing by the marina for a look.

Don’t Waste the Sellers Time

Be upfront about your requirements with the seller, and don’t waste their time or yours. If you’re looking at getting a discount on the asking price, ask the owner if the price is negotiable before you go to view the vessel.

Move Fast on Free Boat Listings

If a free boat listing drops on Craigslist or a marketplace, the chances are that it won’t be there for very long. As mentioned, there are thousands of other people and dealers looking for boats.

While the tips so far will provide you with an edge in the market, that edge won’t last long. If you see a great deal, take action immediately, don’t beat around the bush. Some deals can go in minutes after listing, and you need prompt action to capitalize on the deal.

Check the Repair Costs

If you’re buying a cheap boat or taking a free boat off the owner’s hands, make sure you understand what you’re getting yourself into before finalizing the deal.

While many boats only require minor repairs, some models may have structural damage that’s expensive to repair. You could end up buying a lemon that costs you as much as a new boat in repairs. So, it’s a good idea to take a specialist inspector along with you to view the boat.

You might have to pay them for their services, but you’ll have a clear indication of what’s wrong with the boat and how much it will cost to repair. This strategy prevents you from making an expensive mistake.

Wrapping Up

One of the issues with finding great deals is that it might be too good to be true. There are tens of thousands of boats stolen every year, especially around the Florida area. The authorities never recover more than 60% of all stolen boats.

As a result, many of these stolen boats end up on the secondary market. If you’re purchasing a boat on the pre-owned market and the deal seems too good to be true, you might be looking at a stolen boat.

If the cops catch you with a stolen boat, they’ll arrest you on-site, and you’ll have to face the court system, even if you’re innocent. If the deal sounds too good to be true, ask the seller to send you a photo of the HIN plate.

Check with your local authorities to see if there is any outstanding theft docket open for the boat . However, some thieves may even swap out HIN plates, so make sure you get them to take photos of all the identifying serial numbers on the boat.

If the seller refuses, walk away from the deal, it’s not worth the hassle of winding up in trouble with the law.

John is an experienced journalist and veteran boater. He heads up the content team at BoatingBeast and aims to share his many years experience of the marine world with our readers.

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Home » Blog » Buy a boat » How to find free or cheap boats for sale

How to find free or cheap boats for sale

By Author Fiona McGlynn

Posted on Last updated: July 31, 2023

How to find cheap or free boats

Did you know it’s possible to find free boats for sale ?

Finding cheap boats has been an obsession at various points in our lives. In the last five years, we’ve bought three boats and spent hundreds of hours scoping out good deals.

In all that searching, we’ve come across some great buys, a few free boats (yes, they do exist!), not to mention many fiberglass horrorshows that you literally couldn’t pay us to take on.

Not every cheap or free boat is necessarily a good deal. Often it can cost you more to fix up a boat than it would if you’d just bought one in good condition.

However, if you’re handy, have the time, and enjoy a project, there’s nothing more rewarding than getting a great deal and bringing an old boat back to life. 

There are three things you need to know to find a free or cheap boat:

• Where to look
• When to look
• How to find the hidden gems

In this article, we’ll share the best places to search and our search strategies for uncovering the really sweet deals.

Where to find cheap boats for sale

We’ve written about the best places to buy used boats before , but if you’re looking for bargain basement prices, you can probably skip searching the boat dealer sites and places like Yachtworld and Boattrader, where people pay to list their boats for sale.

After all, someone who is looking to offload a boat for cheap probably doesn’t need to pay for advertising.

1. Online marketplaces

There are several big marketplace sites where sellers can list their boats for free, making them great places to start your search for cheap or free boats:

While we’ve found almost all of our boats on Craigslist, we recommend casting a wide net. It doesn’t take much time to set up search alerts to monitor the various marketplaces (more on that below). 

While these sites have thousands of boat listings they also tend to be very competitive because everyone uses them and wants a great deal!

DIY tip: Online marketplaces are also great for finding deals on used boat parts. If you’re buying a used boat, you’ll almost certainly need to replace or repair a few things.

We found this cheap sailboat on Craigslist and sailed it across the Pacific (after spending a lot of money on retrofits!)

2. Listing sites and magazines

There are a few websites and magazines that have pages devoted to listing free boats or cheap boats for sale. It’s worth checking the following places regularly:

• Boat Angel sells donated boats for cheap with all proceeds going to charity . You can also contact them about making a boat donation and getting a tax write-off.
• Free-boat.com scours the web weekly for free and cheap boats and posts them on their site and Facebook page.
• Good Old Boat magazine has a page listing project boats selling for under $5,000. This is a good place to look if you’re interested in a cheap or free sailboat.
• Wooden Boat Magazine has a “free boats” section in every issue and lists free wooden boats online.
• Boneyard Boats is another great site dedicated to saving old boats where you’ll find free boat listings.

3. Boat Auctions

We know of other boaters who’ve found cheap boats for sale at auctions (though it isn’t something we’ve tried ourselves).

Boats that have been repossessed, written off, salvaged, or seized are often put up for sale at auction.

Many auto auction companies will list boats and some even run dedicated marine auctions.

These days you can find most auction pre-sale inventories posted online.

We found a few free and cheap boats in this Mexican boatyard.

4. Marinas and boatyards

The real hidden gems never make it online.

Call your local harbor master and boatyards to inquire about cheap or free boats. Very often they get stuck with abandoned boats that they need to move.

5. Abandoned vessels

Some states are home to significant numbers of derelict, storm-damaged, and abandoned boats. However, salvage rights vary from place to place.

For example, in Florida, it’s illegal to take an abandoned boat without first getting the title to it (that would be theft). However, there is a process for having the title for an abandoned vessel transferred to your name.  

If you’ve had your eye on what appears to be an abandoned vessel, your first step should be to report it to the local authorities. Stay clear (for safety reasons) and do not take anything off the boat. 

The best time to look for budget boats

While it’s possible to find cheap boats for sale at any time of year, these are the best times to search .

The best deals will be found at the end of the boating season when owners are looking to avoid marina fees for the winter months. Search volume for boat sales is much lower in the off-season, which means less competition for you!

If you’re going to buy in the spring, start your search before the nice weather hits. Competition for good deals will heat up with the warming temperatures.

Hurricane season

If you’re open to looking further afield you can very often find good deals on storm-damaged boats. A great book on this topic is Sailboat Cowboys Flipping Sail Post-Sandy: The Art of Buying, Repairing and Selling Storm-Damaged Sailboats.  

Divorce season

Many boats don’t survive a separation or divorce. According to some research divorce filings peak in March and August.

We found this cheap aluminum boat on Craigslist. It’s not pretty but it’s been perfect for exploring our local lake.

Strategies and tips for finding cheap or free boats

If there’s one place to find a screamer of a deal, it’s Craigslist (or other marketplace sites like Kijiji). We’ve even come across a few free boats on Craigslist over the years. Most of these search tactics apply to any search platform but some of them are specific to Craigslist.

1. Set the right price range

When people are looking for boats online they usually search for certain “sticky” numbers (prices that everyone searches for) . Common thresholds include $5,000, $10,000, $15,000, $25,000, $50,000.

For example, let’s say I’m looking for boats for sale near me for under $5,000. If I search just above that threshold (say $6,000) I’m more likely to see cheap boats that other buyers won’t.

Set your max price at 30% above your budget. While it depends on the boat and how the owner has priced it, we’ve found that as a general rule of thumb, sellers will come down by about 30%.

2. Search for misspellings and synonyms

Use variants of your search terms.

Craigslist’s listing data is garbage in, garbage out. For example, if a seller lists their 30-foot Hunter as a “Free Sail Boat” incorrectly spelling “sailboat”, it won’t show up in a search for “Free sailboat”.

Very often people use variants of brand names. For example, you’d want to search both “Chris-Craft” and “Chris Craft”.

3. Search for types of boats, lengths, makes, and models

People are random about how they write their listings.

The detail-oriented person will list their boat with the year, make, and model (e.g., “2015 Bennington 2875 QCW”).

Someone else might list the same boat as a 32-foot Bennington.

Some goofball will just list it as a “pontoon boat” or even “boat”.

If you want to find a hidden gem, search for as many variations as you can think of. It’s definitely a good idea to search for a type of boat (e.g., sailboat, fishing boat, powerboat, jon boat, pontoon boat).

4. Use search functions to get really specific

Learn a few of these search tricks and you’ll save tons of time.

Search multiple keywords at the same time by using the “|” key

For example, if you searched “sail boat | sailboat” you’ll get all the search results for both terms.

Exclude keywords from your search by using “-” key .

For example, “sailboats – ferrocement” you’ll get all the search results for sailboats except for those that mention ferrocement (no offence to ferrocement boat owners!).

Get specific by combining search functions using parenthesis

For example, “Home built (sailboat | sail boat) – ferrocement” would search for posts with the terms “home built” and “sailboat” or “sail boat” but not “ferrocement”.

5. Leverage technology to do the work for you

Finding a great deal on a boat is a numbers game, and we’ve looked at hundreds of listings before finding what we were looking for. Technology can help you save time and search more efficiently .

Set up search alerts

You can set up search alerts on Craigslist so that you receive an email or text every time a new listing meets your criteria. It’s a great way to save time!

Use apps to track your searches on the go

Craigslist’s mobile site can be a bit clunky to work with. The Craigslist-approved app, CPlus ( Android , iOS ) streamlines your search process and offers additional features (like allowing you to search multiple cities at once).

So many boats, so little time

6. Save time by qualifying your search results

Finding cheap boats for sale on Craigslist is a volume game more than anything. If you’re not carefully managing your time, it’s easy to burn out .

If you’ve ever shown up to view a boat only to realize that the photos you saw online were 10 years old, then you know what I’m talking about!

Here are a few ways we’ve cut down on time-wasting:

Avoid scams

Avoid scams by looking for classic warning signs: typos, generic images, and sellers who don’t want to meet in person. If an ad looks suspicious try googling the ad text to see if it shows up in multiples. If it does, it’s a good sign that something is up.

Make a “must-have” list

Write up your list of must-haves (e.g., must have an engine with less than 1K hours, must not have a teak deck, etc.) and run through your checklist every time you find a good candidate. Ask the owner to fill in the missing information.

Ask for additional photos

Ask for photos or a video tour before you spend eight hours of your weekend driving to view a boat. Owners should be willing to send you photos because in the long term it saves their time as well as yours.

Take a sneak peek

If the boat is local, swing by the marina and quickly view the boat from the outside . This will give you a sense of how upfront the seller has been in their advertisement.

Pro tip: Craigslist can be a weird place, so remember that sellers are qualifying you too! Most people want to see their boat going to a good home. We’ve both gotten and given great deals simply because we (or the buyer) were honest, upfront, friendly, and didn’t waste time. 

7. Be more persistent than the next guy

That weird listing with spelling errors and no photos? Well, it could be a scam, or it could be a sweet deal on a fishing boat and a seller who doesn’t know how to use the internet! You’ll never know unless you email them.

The same goes for sellers who don’t get back to you, send them a follow-up email.

8. Know how you’ll transport and store your boat

If you’re looking for free boats on Craigslist, know that a seller is going to expect you to take care of all other costs. So, have a plan (especially if it’s a big boat).

For example, if you’re buying a boat and trailer, think about how you’re going to get them home (e.g. does your vehicle have enough towing capacity?) Does the boat need to be pulled out of the water? Where will you store i

Many people sell their boats for cheap or free because they don’t want to pay for another season of moorage. Depending on where you live, it may be very expensive to rent a slip or even impossible to find one. You should always know where you’re going to keep a boat before you buy it. 

Storing your boat in your own backyard is by far the most cost-effective option. Not only will you avoid marina fees, but you’ll also have easier access for projects and repairs. For this reason, any boat that comes with a trailer is a real bonus.

9. When you find a free boat, be prepared to move quick!

Good deals can go in minutes, so be ready to drop everything and get down to the marina for an inspection if you want to score that cheap cuddy cabin.

Be clear in your mind about what you’re looking for, and what you’re not, especially if you plan to negotiate. You can often get lower prices by excluding certain items like dinghies, electronics, and outboard motors from the sale. 

Be sure to have things like your boat inspection checklist , finances, contracts, and paperwork in order. Have cash or another payment method ready so you can close the deal—you can’t just whip out your credit card.

10. Make sure you understand boat values and prices

Buyer beware! A free boat could be the most expensive boat you ever own!

Let’s be real. You’re probably getting a deal for a reason. Any really cheap boat is likely to be project boat (i.e., not in good condition). However, there are certain red flags you’ll want to avoid (like not having a working marine engine!). 

Create a budget, taking into account both time and money, for getting the boat into safe and usable condition. Be mindful of major expenses, like purchasing an outboard motor, or major issues, like a rotten deck, that may take weeks to repair.

So if you’re looking for a truly good deal, you should spend some time learning about boat values and pricing . 

11. Hire a marine surveyor

You may think you’ve found a good deal, but could there be a lurking issue you don’t know about? Best to ask a professional.

Hire a marine surveyor to inspect the boat before you buy. If you’re worried about missing out on a deal, you can see if the seller will accept a deposit to hold the boat while you have it inspected.

A marine surveyor will provide you with a report that lists any deficiencies they find and gives you an estimated valuation. So you can tell if you’re getting a good deal or not!

Good luck and happy boat hunting! 

Fiona McGlynn is an award-winning boating writer who created Waterborne as a place to learn about living aboard and traveling the world by sailboat. She has written for boating magazines including BoatUS, SAIL, Cruising World, and Good Old Boat. She’s also a contributing editor at Good Old Boat and BoatUS Magazine. In 2017, Fiona and her husband completed a 3-year, 13,000-mile voyage from Vancouver to Mexico to Australia on their 35-foot sailboat.

Tory Salvia

Monday 23rd of September 2019

Sailboats are NOT cars. Years-old is not the most qualifying metric for the value of a boat. In the end, cheap boats are rarely, if ever cheap.

All boat purchasing requires three budgets: find-the-boat-budget - are you going to restrict your search to a one-day drive or are you willing to travel up and the East or West coast?

Buy-the-boat-budget: what price range are you putting aside for the purchase, including survey, sea trials, cost to launch and hull a boat for inspection?

Fix-the-boat-budget: the most mystical of all. What do you estimate in out-of-pocket costs for parts, your free labor, professional labor, and boat storage while in refit?

And of course there's the post purchase maintain-the-boat-budget that goes on for as long as you own the boat. Boat length is a big factor and more length is geometric when it comes to costs like haul-outs, bottom paint, and slip fees.

Yes, you may luck into a perfectly restored good old boat with all systems go, ready to sail off to Tahiti. Good luck. Most likely, that give-away or "cheap" boat will have a very long to-do list required to make her a safe and reliable vessel. Remember, sailing is a dangerous, contact sport where put your life and lives of your love ones and crew on the line every time you go to sea.

Cheap boats are cheap for a reason: in many cases the vessel is approaching or is well past it's bi-decade, 20 year refit, and the present owner doesn't want to deal with it. This means you, the new owner must deal with it, or pay the consequences the ocean will surely throw at you. Take two boats about the same vintage. The amount of refit costs, beyond the basics can vary to the extreme depending on the previous owner's maintenance and proper upgrades, and how often and in what conditions was she sailed? On a freshwater lake in calm waters, hauled each year, covered or stored in barn? OR sailed hard, around the world take a beating from each of the seven seas?

If you are knowledgeable about tools, have DIY experience, a lot of time on your hands, and a reasonable fix-the-boat budget -- you can do a lot of the refit yourself. But there are tasks that you may not be skilled to perform, take a long time to learn, will never do again, or require an investment in tools that you'll never use again - unless you want to become a professional boat restorer. With such tasks, do you really want to experiment on your vessel? And potentially compromise her sea-going integrity and passenger's safety? So you need to pick your refit battles and find qualified, dependable pros to do those tasks.

When looking at any vessel: cheap or not - make a 20 year refit list and start checking off what's been done, what hasn't, what you can do yourself, and what you need to hire a pro to do. Then add up the costs and time involved in restoring the vessel versus buying another not-so-cheap boat with a much shorter, less expensive to-do list that doesn't keep you tied up in boat yard for several years. This strategy will get you a better boat saving you money, time, and often your dream of sailing off on your great adventure.

In sailing as in life, there usually is no free lunch but there are plenty of "cheap" boats that will eat your lunch, and much more.

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Sailboats For Sale

39 listings found.

1946 Snipe, beautifully restored wood dinghy

Lippincott Lightning

Cal-Pearson Sloop 39

Morgan 32 Oswego Ny

2011 Goodall C2 Formula 18 Catamaran

2023 Picnic cat day sailer 14 ft

For sale: Beneteau First 24 SE (2021) – Excellent and immaculate condition

Endeavour 42

• North Carolina

Ultimate 20

• Maine , United States

1973 Soli 26″ Sailboat

• United States

2014 West Wight Potter 19 Coastal Cruiser

2018 Seaclipper Trimaran 20′

Westerly conway 36

1984 Herreshoff Tortola-Trawler Nereia 36′ Sailboat

36 Hunter Vision 1993

1972 Luders 36 by Cheoy Lee

Tartan 10 Snowballs Chance

• Connecticut

1975 Bristol 32 Sloop, Keel/CB by Ted Hood (Am’s Cup)

• Massachusetts

33ft Blue Water Sailboat

Freshwater Only – 1989 Hunter 33.5 Sloop-Rigged Cruiser, Shoal Wing Keel

F&C 44′ Ketch

Melges C Scow

470 sailboat and trailer

• Pennsylvania

1978 Hunter 30 Cheurbini

1981 Pearson Flyer

Catalina 27 for sale

Hunter 44 DS perfect to live aboard!

Westerly 33

2023 BENETEAU First 24

2023 BENETEAU First 27

2023 BENETEAU First 36

2023 BENETEAU First 44

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Boats for sale in Pullman / Moscow

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