Boat buying - what sites to watch?

[scruff]

It is looking increasingly likely that I will be looking to buy a ~£20k boat within the year and want to keep an eye on the market.

When I bought my last one, Apollo Duck was the major player in boat sale advertising - is it still so? Any other sites (Bar this one obviously) I should be keeping an eye on?

Thanks

 

[Gin]

+1 for Apollo Duck

 

[MikeBz]

theyachtmarket.com and yachtworld.co.uk are worth looking at as well. And if you like to 'dream on' as I do then jryachts.com and red-ensign.co.uk.

A list of which brokers do not use ApolloDuck (or do not put all of their offerings on there) would be useful.

 

[paulajayne]

Boatshed is good

 

[[70521]]

Several FaceBook pages for selling boat. Sold my old boat in 10 days from a FB advert.

 

[Laysula]

E-bay can be good as well.

 

[Praxinoscope]

Apolloduck gets my vote. Found my present boat on it and also sold my previous boat on it without any hastle.
I would be cautious of ebay, as an auction site there is very often little time to get to view the boat or get a survey done on the boat your interested in.

 

[Buck Turgidson]

12,000 ads on newsnow which trawls most of the boat sale websites.
https://www.newsnow.co.uk/classifieds/boats-for-sale/

 

[Concerto]

If zoned in a particular brand, then watch the owners association web site as some of the best boats never use a broker or promotional web site like Apolloduck.

 

[ProDave]

Boats and Outboards

I just sold my boat on Gumtree.

 

[Nauti Fox]

We had dealings with Clarke and Carter (very good) who are part of https://www.networkyachtbrokers.com/

 

[SiteSurfer]

Currently, I'm trawling Boatshed, Network Yacht Brokers, Yachtworld and Apollo Duck, NewsNow is great for the amalgamation of slightly more obscure brokers too (as mentioned above).
Having said that - getting a response from some brokers is like pulling teeth.

 

[Caer Urfa]

One tip when using Apollo Duck is to make sure you are looking in the right section, ie if you want a motor sailor then there is a complete section on them, plus look down the left side to the make of boat you are interested in

 

[Allan]

One tip when using Apollo Duck is to make sure you are looking in the right section, ie if you want a motor sailor then there is a complete section on them, plus look down the left side to the make of boat you are interested in

100% agree. Some people's ideas of classic yachts, motor sailors, racing yachts etc. are completely different to mine!
Allan

 

[QBhoy]

News now lists all the boats on all the U.K. sites compiled. Handy thing. If you go to google and type in a boat type and model and after it “for sale” it will likely come up 3/4 listing down the first page.

 

[[163233]]

Where do the French/German/Dutch etc sell their boats?
Must be a bigger market than the UK but not many appear on yachtworld etc..

 

[Yngmar]

Where do the French/German/Dutch etc sell their boats?
Must be a bigger market than the UK but not many appear on yachtworld etc..

For Germans: https://boote.de/ or https://www.boat24.com/de/ or a broker, which will list it on those and Yachtworld.

Where to look in general depends on the price bracket and/or if it's a niche boat. I.e. if you were looking for a Reinke, the Reinke forums would be a good start. If you're looking for a bluewater cruiser, check the various cruising association sites/forums/newsletters (often members only). If you're looking for "my first sailboat", Gumtree and eBay are your friend, while stuff in the over 50k price range will be more likely to be found on Yachtworld. Apolloduck (and Boatshed) are probably between Gumtree and YW.

 

[Crisby]

I second the owners association website, just bought ours from one and although the boat was advertised elsewhere it felt a bit more ‘personal’ this way. But you obviously have to know what you want in the first place!

 

[GB1307]

I recently bought a boat via boatshed Suffolk and living abroad, i had to trust them to a large extent.
Unfortunately, after the boat was collected, one of the engines is broken, the reverse drive does not work and it is in a terrible condition.
This was advertised as being mechanically sound and well serviced and maintained. After independent review, i have been told that it has been standing and not maintained for a long time. The boat is not worth anything near what we paid for it and is little more than a project at best.
Boatshed have refused to answer and immediately gone legal.
Please be careful with boatshed, however i am aware that its a franchise and some are better than others. However Suffolk and Cambridge have let us down very, very badly.

 

[GB1307]

We recently bought a boat via Boatshed and unfortunately trusted them.
After purchasing the boat "sight unseen" and collecting it, i had an independent review.
One of the engines is broken, the reverse drive does not work, the engine mounts are broken, the injectors broken, it has diesel leaks, broken cables and has not been serviced for a very long time.
It was advertised as being mechanically sound, well serviced and maintained, yet needed some cosmetic work.
So i went back to boatshed, who refused to speak to us and have now gone legal.
Is this really the type of service that boatshed provide?
However this is boatshed Suffolk and each is a franchise, so some may be better than others.
Please be very careful who you trust, not everyone has honour or integrity.