First bass boat

As you can imagine, there are different schools of thought on this one. Personally, I've had 3 used boats, and would never be able to bring myself to buy a new rig unless I was fishing at the very top level. It takes a while and some shopping around, but you can get a nice, competitive rig for a good deal, if you're patient. Of course, things won't be under warranty, if you can find one that was garage kept, you will save yourself a load of headache on corroded wiring, etc. My current boat is a 1997 Stratos, which I bought in 2006. I've further saved money by learning to change the lower unit oil (Youtube videos) and doing some of the routine maintenance (steering cables, livewell valves, installing new electronics, replace oil pump, etc.). All this stuff will need to be done, eventually. As any boat owner will tell you, ignitions switches go bad, cables corrode, pumps go out, seals go bad...a new boat usually won't have these issues for a few years, and I stress, usually, but they are also under warranty. With a used boat, you usually pay a guy but you can do it yourself (which is usually sacrificing a day of fishing to work on the boat). Around here, a good marine tech is going to be $100+/hr. For me, I also save a little by buying what I "need", not what I "want". When I bought my boat, most new boats had 200s on the back and people wanted the big 20ft+ boats, so the 18.5' with 150 that I bought will do a modest 50-55mph and fishes well, but I got a much better price because that's not what other guys were looking for. Additionally, I already knew I was going to outfit it with new electronics, so I tried to find one that had minimal accessories I was just going to remove anyway. If you take care of a bass boat, they will last a very long time. I have owned mercury, evinrude and now yamaha. I must admit, I am most impressed with Yamaha. Lastly, whatever you buy, keep it stored out of the weather as much as possible.