Boat Forum / Building / May 2008

I'm not sure how the sail boat market is right now, but the power boat
market is real bad, brokers are apparently having a very bad year. I
don't beleave the sail boat market is much better. If I were you, I'd
probably stay away from the market for now, keep the money in my
pocket, unless you find a yard that's very hungry for work and will do
it for a low price just to keep their people busy and have some cash
flow.

Hi there. My name is Tom Downard and I am a marine surveyor here in
the San Francisco Bay Area.
I own two wooden motor yachts. I recently called a Yacht Broker just
to see if she was interested in selling
my boats and earning a commission. She talked to me like I was a red
headed step child. First thing was she
had a reputation of only selling the finest boats. (biggest
commissions) and wooden boats were beneath her.
Second, even though her office is about 500 feet from the boats, she
was much to busy and important to even
take a look.
I am afraid that you are going to run into this wherever you go. Since
you are dealing with a basically unregulated
industry, you will find that most brokers are very much like Realtors.
You need them because they have the MLS, or
with boats, a network to advertise that you cannot match. Also, wooden
boats really don't bring the high dollars that
plastic boats do. And since they take much more knowledge to market,
most brokers really are not interested.

My advice to you is to get the boat really clean, and market it
yourself. Take lots of pictures, and always have posters
and any free advertising going. Put a professional looking for sale
sign on it. Instead of making the changes, that cost $$,
listen to what the buyer wants, and then ask him if you do the work
that he wants professionally, would he sign a deal
that is contigent on that work being done.
Clean is the number one thing. From bilge to mast. Don't fix stuff
that the prospective buyer may not give a rip about.
Why put thousands into rigging when the buyer may just want to sit on
the boat and have cocktails and watch the sun go down.
The buyer may be more interested in having the cushions redone.
But the number one thing is scrub it up and make it pretty. So scrub
it up and then ask a few brokers to have a look.
Most of the brokers don't clean, have it cleaned, or even put a penny
into it's presentation.
Also have the current survey on the boat. And take everything off you
don't want to loose. Have a list of what goes with it,
but unless you want to loose your stuff, take it off the boat.
Most brokers offices are full of charts etc. taken from the boats that
they are selling. I am not saying they are dishonest.
They have lots of salespeople walking on and off your boat, who only
have one goal in mind. Commission.

Tom,

Every time fuel costs go crazy, sailboats come back in style.

I do not know what upgrades you had in mind, but since wooden boats are
a specialty market, I rather doubt that they would bring back the cost
at sale.

If you do not have wooden boat all over the house, barrow one and read
the classified in the back.

Fair Wind and Smooth Seas

Matt Colie
Lifelong Waterman, Licensed Mariner and Congenital Sailor

Thanks for you comments, folks.

Tom