the big boat manufacturers are worldwide of course, so as long as there are wealthy people, and there are alot,then new boat purchases will probably not be affected that much. Nearly new is often in demand, because you will probably have to wait 12 months plus for someone to build it (they are not in stock), as there is usually some price support for nearly new, as people want something to play with meantime. Maybe the dealer "assists" here. However, once you are out of that environment, maybe 3 years and older, you are in with the sharks.
Red pricing will be an issue, but then so is the economy,house prices,China etc etc. One question we are all asking ourselves is,even if we can afford to fill 'er up,how much of the fun is going to bleed away.
But many people dont really use the boat that much. OK, maybe on this forum its more mileage than normal, and maybe in the first flush of ownership, people do use it more. Still, the rule of thumb is 100 hours a year.. but you dont see many 5 year old boats even with that many engine hours- and even then that includes messing about the marina etc.
Bear in mind at 25kts, you eat up a few miles in a couple of hours. So, maybe, you really only do 50-70 hours a year.Can you live with that cost?
My suspicion is that while some boats will come under pressure, during 2009 most people will modify their boating habits a bit, and see how they feel at the year end. Its not that unusual fr people to do maybe one "trip" a year, and the rest is going ten miles to lunch or anchor.After all, if you only fill it up once a year.. it wasnt that much really!
One thing you should stick on your bathroom mirror.. if you are new to boating, then it almost certainly isnt quite what you think it is. Starting with something smaller and popular means you can sell it on when you discover quite what it is you really wanted 
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Re: Looking for a Boat but advice needed re the Red Diesel Debacle!
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