Average price a novice should pay for first horse?

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little_mistress13

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Not interested in competing. Just happy hacking daily but at the same time I am having riding lessons as I am a complete novice.

Online horses come in so many different price ranges but I see a lot that is more suited for competing and then a lot of "fordward going not a novice ride"

The ones that state great for learners are over £5000? Is it possible to find a decent horse for a novice £1000 max? When I say novice I am not "oh my god hes huge and scary" novice. I am confident but still learning riding basics.
 
I think you might find a hacking horse for 1k, probably an older one if it's truly safe. But if you wanted to do a bit more you'd have to pay more unless you were very lucky. You might be better loaning, I'd rather do that than worry about the expense and disappointment of getting a cheap horse that might wreck my confidence. When you're more experienced you have more choices of horse for less money!
 
I think you would be lucky to find a decent horse that is problem free for £1k, unless you take on an older one which may be ideal for a novice but it is a commitment to keep one into retirement at the time when your riding should have progressed to wanting to do more, you should not need to spend £5k + that is moving more into the competition horse market and not what you require. I think somewhere between £1500 and £3k should be enough to buy what you want, a sensible, good to handle, good in traffic type that you can enjoy for many years.
 
It all depends on where you're looking, what you're looking for and the horse prices where you live.

I think a price range of around £1000 - £3000 is a lot more likely (depending on your area)
Inquire locally as well - your local saddler and your instructor might know of people selling the sort of horse your after and your instructor would probably be the best person to advise you on what to look for in a new horse.

You might also find some loans and shares around that suit what you're after.
 
be positive said:
I think you would be lucky to find a decent horse that is problem free for £1k, unless you take on an older one which may be ideal for a novice but it is a commitment to keep one into retirement at the time when your riding should have progressed to wanting to do more, you should not need to spend £5k + that is moving more into the competition horse market and not what you require. I think somewhere between £1500 and £3k should be enough to buy what you want, a sensible, good to handle, good in traffic type that you can enjoy for many years.
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Excellent advice, I went to 3,500 for a sensible 15.1 6yr old cob but that was with a Jefferies bridle and saddle and a few rugs.

Have a look on the ex polo pony sites, it will have age to it but many people take ponies on and find them to be good in traffic and easy to handle.
 
Bought my first horse three weeks ago: 11 year old TB x Arab. Been there, done that, still gets excited. He's not what I'd call a 'novice' ride but depends on the skill of 'novice'. He should have been £2750 (waaay out of my budget) but managed to get him for £2300 inc tack, rugs and transport but ended up having to buy him all new stuff because nothing fit him. Would advise to not be fussed by with/without tack simply because mine didn't fit whatsoever. I've seen some very good novice type cobs for about £1500-2700. It all depends on what you want/age/breed. I didn't have a cob because I'm not a cobby type.
To me, 'foward going not novice ride' means don't touch with 10ft pole unless you're John Whitaker. I tried a 7yr old TB, meant to be suitable for novice, no. I nearly came off. Came out that he was an ex-racer and didn't have much of a canter and very excitable with jumps.
Remember, you'll know when it's the right horse. You'll get on it and never want to get off.
 
equestriansports said:
Bought my first horse three weeks ago: 11 year old TB x Arab. Been there, done that, still gets excited. He's not what I'd call a 'novice' ride but depends on the skill of 'novice'. He should have been £2750 (waaay out of my budget) but managed to get him for £2300 inc tack, rugs and transport but ended up having to buy him all new stuff because nothing fit him. Would advise to not be fussed by with/without tack simply because mine didn't fit whatsoever. I've seen some very good novice type cobs for about £1500-2700. It all depends on what you want/age/breed. I didn't have a cob because I'm not a cobby type.
To me, 'foward going not novice ride' means don't touch with 10ft pole unless you're John Whitaker. I tried a 7yr old TB, meant to be suitable for novice, no. I nearly came off. Came out that he was an ex-racer and didn't have much of a canter and very excitable with jumps.
Remember, you'll know when it's the right horse. You'll get on it and never want to get off.
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I paid 2k for mine, 6 years old section d with tack but as above have replaced it all. She has great breeding but is never going to set the world alight so was perfect as my first purchase ( have had loans before), she is good to hack but her jumping is pretty non existent which put others off, not me as I don't enjoy jumping either.

So yes they're out there but you need to double your budget I would say.
 
Agree with the above, but make sure you have an instructor go with you to try horses. Better still, can your instructor help you look for one? Have you had responsibility with caring for a horse before?
 
You might try a share loan first, its less expensive [you still need lessons after the purchase], and you get benefit of a friend in the yard, just make sure you bond with horse and owner.
When I was a novice owner [not a novice rider] I sold a perfect litle kind pony mare, I should have kept her for myself, long story, but she was a bargain, if I knew then what I know now she would have been advertised at £2750, and I could sell her type ten times over, for maybe £2500.
 
I think you would be extremely lucky to find anything like what you are looking for with a sale price of less than 2-2.5k. Unless you were to look at 18+
 
Really good, sensible, easy to handle horses don't tend to be sold all that often! This pushes their price up, although I agree that over £5k is excessive for a first horse, unless you are looking for something that could ultimately take you on to compete. IMO, even older schoolmasters/mistresses hold their value, and often people don't sell this type of horse when they are old- they tend to be the sort to earn homes for life!

Also, are there other requirements you have which are pushing the price up? Are you being very specific about height/breed/type? This may push the value up, especially if you want something pure bred.

Often, with horses, there has to be some compromise. I wonder if you are looking for a perfect "forever" horse, which may not exist! It might be better to consider loaning or sharing an older school master, and looking for something in a few years time when you have more experience.

However, in my opinion, it is not possible to find a decent "made" horse for less than £1000, never mind one suitable for a novice/beginner. It may be you have underestimated the costs of horse ownership a bit- it is not cheap at all! Perhaps it might be better to wait a bit longer and save up some more money. Also, a horse which costs less than <£1k is likely to not come with anything you will need- buying tacks and rugs is going to easily add £500+ to your initial outlay.
 
I would strongly suggest loaning first. Yes you're confident but if you're learning the basics, buying a horse now and chances are you may well outgrow it in ability. You could find a great horse that is fantastic for a novice and will go up a gear for an experienced rider, perhaps a schoolmaster type, but I would expect you to be paying at least £3,500 for something like that, and they won't come up often. At this stage of your riding I think it's probably more important to get used to riding lots of different horses. I loaned plenty of horses, including a dressage school mistress, strong ISH x that had hunted and also a Clydesdale x! Loaning such a variety of horses has definitely helped with my riding, and I still got stuck in with the stable management. Having been everywhere to find my horse, and that was with a budget of £3k and I ended up with a youngster because I couldn't find what I wanted, I would say you would really struggle to find anything that suits what you want for £1k.
 
Thing is with horses, and I think what you don't realise as a first time horse owner (speaking from experience), is that there's always 'something' with a horse. Like people, none of them are perfect. My friend got a 15 year old all rounder for ~£2000. He's very easy, would never bog off with you, spin, rear or buck etc etc. So on paper he's the ideal first horse for a novice & in most ways he is an angel. HOWEVER, even he is a) strong and joggy in an excitable environment & b)like a bull to fences. Now, I hate strong horses & I hate not feeling in control, so I wouldn't jump him or take him on a fun ride. BUT I wouldn't have known that 3 years ago before I got my first horse. So I second what others have said on here that you might want to loan a horse first, get out doing some shows, XC schooling, fun rides, whatever it is you might be interested in, and see what suits you and what doesn't. I also agree that £2000 is probably fair budget, but you have to know what you are looking for, and what you can accept issue wise and what you can't. This is the hardest thing I think about buying a horse as a novice.
 
Friend of mine is selling a 15.2hh 8 yr old which is bombproof to hack, works pleasantly in an outline and happily jumps 80-90cm courses. He would suit a first time owner and she's asking about 2k for him

They are out there and reasonably priced -it's hard to sort the genuine ones out though - word of mouth is probably the best way, from people who know you and your capabilities
 
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