Price and age...

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Samantha008

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At what age does the price for a horse for sale start to drop? A friend is selling her boy whos 11- and were struggling to price him because of it! Hes got lots of potential but are worried (especially since previous posts) that he is now considered "past it". Hes not- if anything hes more than full of life.
 
Past it at 11?!!! I wouldn't say so. he's mature, not old. :-)

Sorry, I don't know how age affects price for sure, but when I was looking to buy recently they were still out of my range at his age.
 
11 is certainly not past it, but I would not use the word potential,by that age the horse should be established in what it does, with ability to either go further or suit a less experienced rider to help them go on.

An 11 year old that has done nothing competitively but is a safe hack and nice and easy in every way is also very sought after so should command a decent price.

The ones that are a problem to sell and so worth less are the horses that are unschooled and unsafe to hack.
 
he is very well schooled!!!

I say he has potential as he has all the basics there... he could easily go out and win affiliated dressage- but never has and doesnt have any sort of credentials to his name as his owner is very nervous of him. Hes an ex racer and can be "moody".

We were thinking around 3000, including brand new saddle....but didnt know if that was steep given him not being 7 yrs old!!!! I guess it depends on everything else. Dont want to say though cos of advertising infringement!!!
 
I personally wouldn't pay that much for an ex-racer as if i'd buy one straight from racing it'll cost me about £200 i just have to re-school it myself, so if he hasn't been out competing much i'd put the price a bit lower. BUT thats just me :o
 
From what you've said I'd have a few alarm bells ringing that this was a horse of questionable temperament who has done nowt for x years. 11 isn't old at all, but if 11 means that horse has had extra years of doing not a lot with someone who is a bit scared of it then that might knock its value down a bit.

TB Ex racers do fetch less money unless they've got a bit of a cv behind them. As an 11yo 'project' rather than an established horse you're probably looking at £1500 max.

Even if your friend doesn't have the confidence to do it herself, is there someone who could take the horse to a couple of shows or a dressidge test or a pleasure ride or sommat for her? Take lots of photos of the horse being ridden in different places and doing different things. If you're going to get anything like what you want for it, the horse needs an expanded cv.
 
I agree with most of posts above, but at 11 year old it is hardly to be described as an ex-racer [a description which would deter many buyers] if the horse has potential to go straight in to competition it is worth while to send it to a pro who can do the job for you, get a few points or whatever, the horse is available to be shown for selling and will expand its cv. that should bring it sale price up from rock bottom, and probably it will not be so moody if handled correctly, the pro should tell you when it is ready to sell and - how to describe it, a few good photos of it in action, a video of its flatwork, and forget about the saddle [to me that is indicative of an amateur sale].
I pay the local show jumper £80 per week for livery, £60 for riding 6 days per week, and of course you would add on a hundred or more for a day at a competition, but think of the fun of going to see your own horse competing!
Avoid over-used cliches, people will travel to see something that has done something, if this is recent activity, then that is fine, it is not a push button, needs a bit more work, but has actually show a bit of talent, and you have proof, otherwise just hope someone comes along with £1500 cash.
 
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shiny-ISH said:
I personally wouldn't pay that much for an ex-racer as if i'd buy one straight from racing it'll cost me about £200 i just have to re-school it myself, so if he hasn't been out competing much i'd put the price a bit lower. BUT thats just me :o
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The horse is not just out of racing, it must be pretty good natured if it has a nervous owner, therefore suitable to the average novice as long as they take a few lessons.
 
Unfortunately you cannot use the word potential with an 11yr old, though I perfectly understand your point.

Honestly, price seems a little steep for a horse that has no competition record at that age.

The TB thing will put a lot of people off too.

I'd say around 2k, not including the saddle - offer that separately for sale - but people won't factor "saddle worth x much" when they see a 3k price tag - they just see a 3k price tag.
 
11 is not past it having just brought an 11 year myself however at 3K I think people would be expecting quite a nice easy to do type and if he is a little "moody" and has no previous track record 3K is probably expensive. I wouldn't include tack at any price sell that separately.
 
Samantha008 said:
he is very well schooled!!!

I say he has potential as he has all the basics there... he could easily go out and win affiliated dressage- but never has and doesnt have any sort of credentials to his name as his owner is very nervous of him. Hes an ex racer and can be "moody".

We were thinking around 3000, including brand new saddle....but didnt know if that was steep given him not being 7 yrs old!!!! I guess it depends on everything else. Dont want to say though cos of advertising infringement!!!
Click to expand...

I think the fact he's an ex racer and has no competition experience is far more relevant to his price than his age.

11 is not old, it's in their prime. I bought my first horse the week before she turned 11. That was 14+ years ago and we only lost her last month.
 
I wouldn’t pay 3k for an exracer who hasn’t done anything. He maybe well schooled but unless he has a competition record to prove it isn’t much cop in my eyes (sorry!!) he could be VERY well schooled at home and a COMPLETE nightmare at a show! With full tack etc i would pay around 1-1.5k max!
 
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