Boat finance calculator
How to Use a Boat Finance Calculator
Browsing boat sales websites is great fun, especially if you are serious about buying a boat. Imagining yourself captaining the vessel, friends and family aboard, bluewater cruising in far-off oceans, landing the catch of the day on your own deck, planning the customisation of your new build – it’s what dreams are made of.
But imagine how much better the boat browsing and decision-making process would be if you knew at the browsing stage, how much your monthly repayments on a boat loan might be?
That is possible with a boat finance calculator.
Before proceeding to discuss the construction of your new boat with a marine engineer or boat builder or before negotiating the purchase of an existing vessel with a seller, it can be very helpful to have some idea of your projected finance commitments. A boat finance calculator is useful tool for that purpose.
Functionality
A boat finance calculator is an online resource provided by finance brokers, banks and lenders on their websites which automatically calculate repayments on the data you enter.
- They are set-out in fairly standard online format with boxes or fields where you enter data as indicated.
- Usually the first amount to be entered is how much you want to borrow. This can be the purchase price of your boat, the price less any deposit you may be thinking of contributing or the price plus an allowance for any costs associated with the purchase. Eg transporting the boat to your home port, purchase of safety equipment and insurance.
- Next you need to enter the loan term. This may be shown in years or months and is the amount of time you want to repay the loan. Some lenders have maximum loan terms, so don’t be too optimistic!
- You’ll also need to enter the interest rate. No, you don’t have to be an economic analyst to calculate the current interest rate on boat finance. The website where you are sourcing the calculator will usually display that day’s interest rate for boat loans. Interest rates differ for personal and business loans so ensure you are looking in the right place when finding the rate.
- If you are using the calculator for a business loan, you will be asked how much you want in the balloon. This is usually displayed as a percentage of the total loan amount.
- Once you’ve completed all the fields you simply click on the calculate icon and an estimated monthly repayment figure will appear.
- To compare that boat with another, just enter the costs of the new boat.
- If the estimate is more or less than you anticipated, vary the loan term to see how the amount changes.
Considerations
The most important thing to remember when using an online boat finance calculator is that you are receiving an estimate only. This is a generic calculation device which does not have the capability to know what fees and charges your particular lender might charge, how a lender may view your specific application and what a great job your finance broker may do on getting you a lower interest rate.
The actual monthly repayment you are offered may vary – up or down – from what the calculator estimates.
There are other considerations so you should read the disclaimer and terms and conditions for the specific calculator that you are using.
We can point you to a boat finance calculator which you can start using immediately, for free. Contact us for details.