Anything you buy "Brand New" is going to start depreciating the minute you walk out of the store with it, wether it's a car, boat, airplane, laptop, cellphone, etc. For a First Boat (cat) you'd be much better off to find something old and beat up, and CHEAP. That way you can learn without doing any more harm, and once you do learn and decide what you really want, you can sell the beater for about what you have into it, as it's already fully depreciated.

Every boat I've ever had I was able to sell for the same, or more, than what I paid for it, but they were all used boats when I bought them, and I did put some fix'n into them, but I always got my money out of them at the sale.