What would you pay, please be brutally honest

[lastqueenofscotland]

I have a few people I ride for, either strapped for time or struggling with their horses as I’m stupid enough to get on anything.
I’ve completely fallen in love with one of my “clients” horses and she wants rid as she’s overhorsed, she was going to look at doing a straight swap with the dealer but I’d sort of like to offer for him but don’t want to offend.

So warts and all details below

Pros: beautiful coloured horse, nice enough to show. 16.2 and moves well.
6 years old so lots of time to iron out the quirks...
Completely bombproof, does not spook at anything, rode him on bonfire night and didn’t bat an eyelid, our hacking is awful and you can ride him through the worst bits and he’s not bothered by kids on dirt bikes/out of control dogs/ heavy heavy traffic
Easy to do on the ground generally. Good to clip, comes when called to catch, puts himself on the lorry.
Doesn’t buck/rear/bolt ever

Cons
He is forward and very strong and therefore not remotely suitable for a novice. He doesn’t run away with you but does take a hold. I genuinely think he’s rideable in a snaffle. Typically in the more you pull the stronger he gets. But I used to ride racehorses so I’m not that bothered.

He will take the absolute piss out of his rider if he thinks he can get away with it. Can be really nappy/ completely ignore them. He won’t keep trying once he things he won’t get away with it though, if you see what I mean.
He’s done next to nothing over poles (which I don’t think is a bad thing until the breaks are a bit more reliable)
His one quirk on the ground is he doesn’t always like going into his stable but I think personally that’s because his is a bit small.

Sorry this is long... I was thinking around the £1-1.5k mark

I’ve always found that, in life, that offering immediate cash with absolutely no faffing can yield surprisingly good results! She know you, knows you don’t duck about, will get the easiest possible version of a sale, and assuming you are serious will divest her of her stabling costs immediately. She’s not going to sell inside of a fortnight, probably more. I’d work out my best offer (1800?) and offer tomorrow.

What she could expect in normal times when you don't want to get rid due to being overhorsed and what you can get in the immediate future under current circumstances are very different.
If she doesn't have an offer on the table from a dealer it could easily be a couple of months before she is able to sell. All that time she will be paying bills. Avoiding that and the hassle and uncertainty for cash in her hand now could easily be worth £1k - £1.5k discount depending on her attitude to risk and keenness to sell.

I am in Scotland and during normal times I would aso price him around the 2.5k to 3k mark. But these are not normal times! I would offer 1.5k and see what she says. She might be relieved to get him sold and to a good home. She might be disappointed with that amount but the prices of horses are going to take a tumble so it will probably even out. No harm in making the offer, OP.

You say he is bomproof to hack but he naps.

Bombproof to hack in my world does not start with napping heading out of the yard 😂

Offer the £1.5k i doubt a dealer will give more and she may prefer the cash.

I think it's worth a cheeky offer. I agree 3k would be reasonable based on my limited knowledge, but if she's scared to ride him she might just rather have the money in her hand so she can go shopping for something else without the complication of a part ex so id be tempted to offer £1500-1800 and see what she says. Do you happen to know what she paid for him? It doesn't sound like the cons are anything you can't handle.

Wait and see what the dealer offers in px. It’ll be peanuts, so then offer to match it with the benefit that she doesn’t have to see the horse go to a dealer and can keep track of his progress.

Sticks to your guns.
You happy to part with £1 to 1.5 thousands then go for low offer and if owner not happy then offer final price or ask what her asking price she accept.

Sounds like a nice horse, just green and unbalanced. At 6, if it had cob/ draft in it it will still have a couple of years of physical maturing to do. My cob didn't stop growing until he was 8.

I think he would be worth about 2.5 3k in my area, East Anglia, so would make a starting offer of 1.5 or 1.8k

It's an old post but I am now curious to know if the OP bought the horse.

I didn’t in the end, she ended up sending him back to the dealer.

I was also curious - having been looking for a horse since Feb, there is barely anything on the market for less than £4k unless it’s an ex-racer. The market is crazy.