Hello, so I found a mare I tried out and I really like. "Cheap" mare only a little over 3k, which is cheap for the market right now even for grade horses it seems like. The owner now that is selling her is doing her best to get the old owner to file for lost papers and sign transfer papers but obviously that is not guarenteed. Owner on paper lives in different state. She has people wanting to buy the thing grade or not because of price and the thing is broke and started on the pattern. It's a 7 year old mare. She said she understands if I don't want her in case the papers never get signed, but she has others wanting to come and get her and she needs her out so she can go pick up a different horse she bought. She is selling this horse because it is too much for her granddaughter starting out and she is older and she isn't looking to finish it because she has a 2 or 3 year old she needs to worry about. I am wondering if I should buy her and risk her being considered grade if the original owner won't sign. 

You cant ride the papers. If you like this mare then buy her, if papers is a big deal then dont buy her. To me papers is NO big deal if this is the right horse. 

Do you think if I had to resell though I could get at least 3k out of a grade horse since it's broke?

I dont know about her resell, if shes broke, looks good and is running barrels nicely then I see no problem selling her. But if you are planning on reselling her and worried about not having papers, then pass on her, maybe she will find a forever home with someone that dont care about papers. I'm one if its a nice horse papers dont mean squat to me since I'm not into selling. 

If a grade horse is running barrels thats can pull a check who cares about the papers. Unless you are into breeding this mare later in life. 

It's not in my plan to resell...I just would like a cushion if for some reason she did not work out. 

The mare that took me to circuit finals and I won a lot on way before the "D" races was grade. I did breed her once, but knew that I would be keeping the foal so papers were not an issue and since she had a great competition record I had no problems picking a stud. Good luck!

I would personally pay the exact same for a horse with papers as I would for a grade horse. I didn't always have that mentality, but I think being married to a team roper for so long has changed my views on papers. There are some papered horses bred as solid as can be and still don't turn out to make great horses and yet you have grade and completely no name horses who are spectacular. I personally bought a 2 year old grade mare from a friend over a year ago. She technically can be registered but when I looked into it since I waited so long it would cost me an extra $400+ so I'm not even worrying about getting papers on her. Anyway, I say all of that to say if the horse is nice, sound, works well then who cares what papers say. Best wishes!!

$3k is not a lot for a good riding horse regardless of discipline.  If I really liked the horse, I'd buy it.  I have one that I paid a lot more than that for 12 years ago.  I didn't have any plans to breed her later like a lot of people do with mares so the lack of papers didn't bother me, i just wanted a nice barrel horse.  She's been great!  In fact, I bought her twice.  I rode her for a while then my daughter talked me into letting her dad (my ex) buy her to take to his house.  When they decided to sell her, I couldn't buy her back right then.  Five years later, that buyer reached out to me and I bought her the 2nd time.  She's 19 now and I would do it again in a hearbeat.

Papers and good breeding are a great start but they aren't magic.  They will add a bit more to the price if they are stellar bloodlines but ultimately the horse's performance is what sets the value to me.

I have mixed emotions on this because of past experience. Bought a dirt cheap mare. She was amazing. A year or so later, soundness issues arose....long story short...she had soundness issues brewing when I bought her (navicular, suspensory, compensatory injuries, etc.) and that's why she was dirt cheap. I, of course, didn't know this at the time. I learned through gossip after I already owned her. After spending a whole lot trying to get her sound through visits to various lameness experts and through corrective shoeing methods and bodyworkers, the one lameness expert finally told me it was time to throw in the towel. So, now I had a grade mare that nobody wanted as a broodmare becuase she was grade. Nobody could use her as a riding horse because she was lame. Best outcome I came up with was finding a vet center in need of a recip mare (which was a tax donation, but otherwise a complete financial loss for me). She has lived her days out there happy as a clam taking care of "her" babies. 

Would I buy a grade mare again? No. Could it work out in your favor--sure. But you can never predict the future. Lesson learned.

If you really like her than get her.  My current horse is a grade mare.  I loved how she rode (she reminded me alot of my retired gelding) when I tried her.  She has a nice pattern on her and was already running barrels. She is not the fastest thing out there but we place pretty consistently in the 4D and she also is fun to trail ride. I paid $2k for her 3 1/2 years ago. 

If you like her, buy her.  If you will pay 3k for her - i'm sure someone else will also - you say peope are standing in line to buy her....

Me personally, papers are not the first thing I consider when buying - maybe if I were in the buying/selling business I would be more interested in papers, but I have only purchased horses for personal use so far.

Update, I have purchased her. I think I will be able to get the papers but if not it's okay. She was a really good deal and I will not find another one that broke with decent bloodlines for that price. I have proof of her bloodlines, I just am taking a chance of not getting papers in my name. I am glad I did, she really is a sweet mare and super cute. 

You do know that it is a rule that you have to post pictures, right?

Awesome!!! Can you show her to us, PLEASE!!!!

Yes I will try to later, I have a hard time getting pictures on here lol..she is apparently almost 7 but she still looks like a baby to me. 

Good deal! If a horse fits you it fits you, papers or no papers.  The seller was point blank honest it sounds like and that means alot this day and age.... and as far as the papers are concerned at this point, they are just a perk otherwise it sounds like you bought yourself a super nice mare and you got a great deal on her... I have more then 3K in getting colts started ... so you got her cheap!

If you know who her sire and dam are, you can get a DNA test to verify. While it isn't registration papers, at least you will have proof that she is what is being claimed if you decide to sell her down the road.

I honestly loathe the statement, "You can't ride papers". If that were actually true, we wouldn't have associations to track bloodlines, all stallions would have the same stud fee no matter how they produced and every horse would be priced the same. 

It keeps saying error when I try to upload picture...but another update I may be getting her papers after all. I came back to this thread because I didn;t forget some of you wanted a picture. I tried but apparently I am not smart enough to get a picture on here lol. 

I'll send you my email if you like and send me pictures of her and I'll post them here for you, so if you would like me to post the pictures pm me and then I'll pm my email to you.

I don't think they meant it like that...the mare I have is DNA tested but I wasn't sure if I was going to get the papers since the OG owner never signed but I may be getting them after all. Certain bloodlines are definitely worth more, but I am the type of person where I don't pick a horse mainly on that. My gelding is definitely not barrel bred but mainly halter and racing and he has been wonderful for me. I know some people that have barrel bred horses and they didn't work out. Obviously just a matter of opinion...I certainly do not have money for top bloodlines though. The mare I bought is not barrel bred either...cow horse, some halter, and racing.