Accepting an offer on your boat - what next?

[Whitelighter]

Ok, so I have received a reasonable offer for Whitelighter from a chap who has asked all the right questions and done all the right checks. He has arranged the survey and got a credit line in place.

Beleive it or not, I have never sold a boat privately without a broker. Now, after accepting the offer what should I do next?

Is it reasonable to ask the buyer for a deposit, confirming the deal subject to survey? If so, how much should I ask for?

Also, should anything be signed at this point, or do I just need to do a bill of sale at the appropriate point?

Any help gratefully appreciated.

 

[Neddie_Seagoon]

If he's arranged the survey he's already committing cash. I would (perhaps naively) give him the help he needs and let the process take its course until he's ready to pay. Then you need a bill of sale,

Good luck!

 

[Sneds]

Hi

If I were the buyer I would expect to pay a holding deposit, on the understanding that it would be returned if the survey threw up anything that could not be satisfactorily resolved between the two parties.
I paid £1000 deposit on a £32,ooo boat, the vendor paid me back when the survey threw up a few nasties!
Some form of receipt would be in order outlining the deal and stating "subject to survey"
Saying that, if the buyer is having a survey, that is at his expense and shows he is serious.
At the risk of stating the obvious, make sure you have the money before releasing the boat! A CHAPS payment will cost him around £30 and ensure the payment is cleard in your account.

Hope this helps.

 

[landlockedpirate]

Very impressed that you have sold so quickly, and without a broker.

Can I ask which advert worked ?

Mark

 

[jimmy_the_builder]

You have PM

Cheers
Jimmy

 

[gjgm]

get some money off him- he should expect to pay a deposit anyway.Neednt be 10pct. This is a business transaction, not a wedding proposal. Sure, room for goodwill and decent behaviour, but unfortunately not everyone behaves the same.Hopefully all will go smoothly, but circumstances change etc. If you have a deposit you are in the driving seat. You could give it all back, or keep it all, or keep a bit for re-advertising etc. If you have nothing, and it goes pear shaped, then theres not much you can do.
Your risk is payment. Best bet is a CHAPS payment; should go through same day if he does it reasonably early in the day.Will cost him £20.
Second best is bankers draft. You need the draft number and the branch address. YOU look up the branch tel. number and call. Not much with data protection that they will tell you, but they will confirm the draft. Depends how tetchy he is about paying the money and getting the bill of sale. Not easy to arrange the money and the paper work at exactly the same time of day.
Good to see a well priced good boat sells fast-well done!

 

[thefatlady]

I have done this several times and made my own version of a Sale Agreement. If necessary, I modified it to suit the particular circumstances (e.g. my last boat was already ashore and I added a provision for a sea trial).
It seems to work and is as follows:


SALE AGREEMENT

This Agreement is made between John Doe (“Doe”) of ……………………………………. and Joe Bloggs (“Bloggs”) of …………………… on the xx xxxxxxx 2007.

Doe agrees to sell and Bloggs agrees to purchase Sealine xxx motor boat “Boat”, serial number SILGBxxxxxxx, (“the vessel”) together with all her outfit, gear and equipment as detailed in the attached Inventory free from any encumbrances for the sum of £xxx (xxx thousand xxx hundred pounds) subject to survey satisfactory to Bloggs and the conditions of this Agreement.

By signing this Agreement Doe acknowledges receipt from Bloggs of a deposit of £xx,000 (xx thousand pounds).

Bloggs is at liberty to inspect the vessel and to satisfy himself as to its condition and specification. All express or implied warranties or conditions statutory or otherwise are hereby excluded and the vessel its outfit, gear and equipment shall be taken with all defects and faults of description without any allowance whatsoever.

Bloggs may at a venue to be agreed and at his own cost haul up and place ashore and open up the vessel and its machinery for the purpose of inspection and/or survey which, including any written report, shall be completed within fourteen days of the signing of this Agreement. In the event that any inspection requires more than superficial non-destructive dismantling and limited removal of antifouling the consent of Doe must be obtained before work commences.

Upon the expiry of seven days after completion of such inspection and/or survey Bloggs shall have been deemed to have accepted the vessel unless:
(a) Bloggs shall have given notice to Doe of his rejection of the vessel or
(b) Bloggs and Doe shall have agreed any remedial action upon completion of which within an agreed time Bloggs shall accept the vessel or
(c) Bloggs and Doe shall have agreed in writing to alter the terms of this Agreement.

Upon rejection of the vessel by Bloggs, the deposit shall be returned by Doe to Bloggs within seven days.

Upon acceptance of the vessel by Bloggs, the deposit shall be treated as part payment of the purchase price and within seven days of acceptance:
(i) Bloggs shall tender the £xxx xxx (xxx thousand xxx hundred pounds) balance of the purchase price by cash, irrevocable bankers’ draft or irrevocable building society cheque drawn on a recognised financial institution.
(ii) Doe shall deliver an executed Bill of Sale in favour of Bloggs or his nominee showing the vessel to be free from encumbrance, a Value Added Tax invoice for the vessel and such other documents as are necessary to establish title to the vessel together with any authority necessary to enable Bloggs to take immediate possession of the vessel.

If either party to this Agreement shall be in default by reason of non-completion of any action for which he is responsible within the time period specified in this Agreement, this Agreement shall be voidable at the option of the other party.




John Doe Joe Bloggs


If you want me to email it to you, PM me.

 

[Jeremy_Sothcott]

Like that very much but how does that confirm Title / Title transfer , is that in the Bill of sale issued as a seperate document? If so do you have an example of that?

Jeremy

 

[thefatlady]

It doesn't confirm title or transfer - it is simply and agreement between the parties to sell/buy.

Bill of Sale form is available from www.mcga.gov.uk

 

[Major Catastrophe]

How does the <span style="color:blue"> "showing the vessel to be free from encumbrance"</span> bit change if there is a finance agreement to be settled?

 

[thefatlady]

I'm no lawyer, but here's how I understand it.

Any finance agreement should be settled by the vender either prior to or simultaneously with the sale and the boat passed free from encumbrance. If it is Part 1 registered, any mortage, etc, should be registered. If it isn't Part 1 registered, you have to rely on the vendor's honesty. The buyer may ask for evidence, but the absence of it doesn't mean there is nothing outstanding.

Basically, the vendor is warranting that there is no encumbrance, which gives you the opportunity to sue if you subsequently find there is one.

 

[Richard10002]

[ QUOTE ]
Is it reasonable to ask the buyer for a deposit, confirming the deal subject to survey? If so, how much should I ask for?


[/ QUOTE ]

I'm not sure what good a deposit does in these circumstances, other than show good faith on the buyers part... if he's committed to a survey, (not cheap), he's already showing good faith.

I would probably let him get on with it and do the legal stuff once he has confirmed that he is happy after the survey.

Unless, of course, you have a queue of buyers.....

 

[Renegade_Master]

Obtain a 10% deposit subject to survey. After survey any small defects or repairs are usually agreed between the two parties, i.e. via price decrease or owner carrying out the repairs. If nothing major comes up then a post survey period is agreed beyond which the deal must be completed.

If the buyer "changes" his mind after all the above, he looses deposit

 

[Whitelighter]

Thanks for the advice /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

I have taken the middle road, used the RYA contract found here which seems to cover all the bases.

Have also agreed on a £2500 deposit as he has booked the survey through surveyors known to me and they have already been in touch - so that is enough commitment for me. Plus he seems like a genuine person.

Thanks all - forums comes up trumps again.

 

[Sinbad2222]

Yes Jez, you have the right contract there. Don't use a Bill of Sale - as a seller you are not interested in one but the buyer might ask - its down to him then to get them
DONT use Bankers drafts,cash, or building soc cheques they can all be excellent forgeries. The ONLY way to do it is to do a CHAPS transfer together at a branch of the Buyer's bank and do all the paper work there together.

 

[[2068]]

I would second the use of a CHAPS transfer. I'm not sure that you physically have to be there, but a phone call to your own bank is needed to confirm that the funds have arrived as things can go wrong (incorrect transmissions etc.)

Either way, definitely a reason to "complete" during normal banking hours.

dv.

 

[Jeremy_Sothcott]

Great site but can't find an example..probably me could i trouble you for a direct link?

Jeremy

 

[thefatlady]

Sorry, I couldn't immediately work out how to post the pdf address, but here it is:

http://www.mcga.gov.uk/c4mca/msf4705.pdf

An afterthought. Shares in a ship are usually measured in 64ths, so if you are buying the boat outright, then where it asks on the first page for the share transferred, it will be 64/64ths.

Also, agree with previous comments on these days not accepting draft or BS cheque but direct transfer to bank.
Don't agree with not using Bill of Sale. I want to prove I've sold the boat as well as the buyer wanting proof of purchase. No reason not to unless you are being dishonest.

 

[thefatlady]

A long-winded story about me buying a boat privately some 13 years ago.

It was a 3 year old Sealine 328 with 43 hours and absolutely as new. We agreed a price of £60k (good value at that time) subject to survey, etc.

I found oil leaks in the drive ram hoses and he agreed that, if I were still interested, that and anything else I wanted doing would be fixed under my supervision. When the work was done, I phoned him to arrange a sea trial the coming Saturday. He said “I’ll tell them to put it in the water and give you the keys.” I said I would see him there, but he said that he wouldn’t be coming. Now, he had never met me and knew nothing about me. I said I wouldn’t trust me, but he insisted.

I went out and was very pleased with the boat. I couldn’t take it back to where I got it from, so I left it on the marina where I knew he had previously berthed it. I ‘phoned him and asked if that was OK or what did he want me to do with it. He suggested I take it to wherever I was going to keep it. I explained that I would be dry-berthing from inside a hangar, which he was happy with.

To recap, I, a complete stranger, took his boat out unaccompanied, then took it away and put it out of sight in a building for which he didn’t even have the address.

I asked how he wanted me to pay. He said “Oh, write me a cheque.”

By this time, I was getting concerned and decided to do some searching on him. I knew people who had met him on his marina and that he had bought the boat new. All my checks came up positive.

He met me for the first time in my office, I paid him by cheque and exchanged documents and he left.

That boat was one of the best buys I have made and I never regretted it. He was a very nice guy, totally trusting and ran his own business. I hope he never had to deal with a wrong ’un.

Can you imagine that nowadays?

 

[BOATKID]

im a bit confused I thought your boat was on brokerage with essex boatyard /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif