Looking for a boat, need recomendations?

ive never owned a boat but ive been on them oplanty of times, i love fishing and i want a boat that will do some coastal and freshwater fishing. i am looking at carolina skiffs now, but the seem to be a little out of my price range, i dont want to spend more than about 6k total, im not made of money. what should i look out for and what kind of boat would you recomend?Looking for a boat, need recomendations?
+ I purchased an aluminum riveted Tracker Deep Vee guide 16 1/2 foot with engine (15HP) and trailer and all the accessories that I needed for under your price range new from the manufacturer this year. The boat fly's of flat water with two people fully loaded with gas and gear and supplies. Here is how I found it by web link below.Looking for a boat, need recomendations?
You aren't going to get a fresh water boat with salt water capability for $6,000! Unless of course it's a 1940 wooden pile of lumber with two oars!Looking for a boat, need recomendations?
whats wrong with classifieds.

can get one at less than half price and now is the time..

most people are dumping boats --season for many is over..



some people get a top line jon boat 16 footer..

fully loaded don't run 6k



can get used one with trailer-motor-elect troll-life vest-oars-lights-ect for 3 grand..



do you get steals and deals type sales

www.stealsanddealsonline.com



i get news letter also...



local newspaper great source.............



good luck .......
picking the right boat is tough. you first need to outline what you want to do with it and where you want to do it. how big is the water you will be on, how deep, how rough, what are the launching ramps like, expected weather and weather warnings, number of people aboard, short trips or long ones, do you need a head, shelter, how fast to you need to go [ note need not want, we're just looking a reguirements, wants come later] , how much gear, what kind of fishing [ if you fish], draft, stability and manuverability, and many other factors need to be looked at. look at what other people are using where you want to boat, ask questions, beg rides. in short find out as much as you can before you buy. a few points from my experence- unless you really need the room or operate where the weather never gets cold and wet i would avoid a center console, no place to hide if it gets cold and nasty. i have one now but up here in the north i have to limit my use more that i like but at the time i needed the room. pick a power plant from a major company and one that has several dealers and part suppliers near you. example honda makes great motors but there's not a lot of dealers near me so its hard to get parts and they're expensive. used is a good way to go but since you seem to lack knowledge insist on having it checked out by someone that knows what to look for. hire someone or take the boat to a shop for an inspection. [ you pick the shop not the seller]. how expensive a boat is used has a lot to do with the make. a common boat like a bayliner may bring more just because there's so many around that people thing that they must be good. not always true, bayliners are common because they are built to a price and so are cheaper to buy. sea sprite, mark twain, and other less common names may be a good deal. i would avoid a boat with a lot of padding and fabric exposed unless you are willing to fix or replace a lot of foam and plywood dowm the road. you find a lot of untreated plywood and rusty staples under all that fancy fabric.

look like i said its a tough job but do your homework and then learn how to use your new toy safely. you can't walk home from out there. good luck

xenon