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Selling HS Sovereign questions


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I have a 2006 Hot Springs Sovereign. Not original owner, but it's only ever been at my home (bought with house). Prior owner purchased for therapeudic reasons. We have a young, active family and do not utilize the spa much, but would like to regain the space in our limited patio. The spa is cared for weekly and has always been serviced timely by the same company it was purchased from. In the last year, I have replaced entire mother board, worn tubing, and cover. The service agent told me I have replaced all replaceable parts and it's in perfect condition. I live in north eastern Florida. Because I'm not the original owner, how do I figure out what to ask for purchase? And, I want to list it as a "you haul it" situation. Does that leave me liable for anything that can happen in transit? Am I forgetting to ask anything? Thank you in advance for helping me with these questions. I appreciate it!

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To say a ten year old hot tub with a new circuit board has no more parts to break down is incorrect.  You have a heater, circulation pump, ozonator, and at least one jet pump, plus sensors and control panels.   At ten years of age, anything is susceptible to wearing out.  I assume you want to be honest with your buyers, so I just threw that in there.

As far as pricing, it's really what the market will bear.  I'm in New Jersey, so I can only tell you what's going on here.

  1. In most of New Jersey, you can't put a hot tub at the curb and have the municipal trash pickup take it away.  You have to arrange that yourself.
  2. It would cost $600-$800 to have a disposal service remove the hot tub from a ground level deck.  Closer to $1000 for a second or third floor deck. 
  3. Craig's list has quite a few listings for hot tubs saying "Free but you have to come pick it up."
  4. To put a hot tub in a yard that doesn't have electrical wiring in place, it can cost thousands to have the wiring run by a licensed electrician.  Of course, it depends on how far the tub is from the panel.  So, when someone takes your "free" hot tub, they are going to have to pay to transport and install it, and could easily be looking at a bill of $2000.  Versus the cost of a new hot tub with a warranty, a free hot tub may not be such a great deal.

I occasionally get calls where someone says something like "I can get a used hot tub for $500, does that sound fair?"  I doubt if many used hot tubs go for much more than that, although I'm sure there are probably a few exceptions.

It's like this: you can pay $800 to have the hot tub taken away, or you can give it to someone for free and save the $800.   However, the Florida market may be different, I'd definitely look at Craig's list and google local web sites that list garage sales, flea markets and penny-saver ads and see what other's are doing.

As far as being responsible for damage in transit, that's a legal question I don't know how to answer, but if I were buying a used hot tub, I'd insist on seeing it running to establish that it worked, and I'd advise a buyer to look underneath it for signs of leakage.  I don't know if Florida law applies, but if the buyer can see that it was in good condition before he takes possession, I'd guess they would be less likely to accuse you of hiding damage.

One final thought, it sounds like you have a good relationship with the your service company.  Would the service agent who's been taking care of it for you be willing to provide a guarantee that it's in "perfect condition" like he told you? (I doubt that) Or would he be willing to allow the buyer to contact him and tell the buyer "I've been servicing this tub for 10 years and it's in perfect condition?"  As a service company, I couldn't  guarantee a 10 year old tub, but I would let the seller share my phone number with the buyer, and offer to share the tub's service record and let the buyer know what he might or might not have to deal with in the coming years. 

 

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You can ask for whatever $ you want. It just depends how badly you need/want to sell it.

I just saw this ad locally. (no affiliation). I wouldn't pay that much but someone that has sticker shock from looking at new ones might.

https://vermont.craigslist.org/hsh/6046380137.html

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