Brokerage

[Andrew_Fanner]

Re: Finance House

I will deliver my boat to the broker on Saturday all nice and clean. I will also have a conversation about who's responsibility it is to keep it that way, a conversation with no assumptions one way or the other. Broker gets a commission and I live 55 miles away and have another boat to look after. We shall see.

 

[pheran]

If the Galleon was new and a stock boat, then just handing over the keys and saying help yourself may be fair enough. After all, they own the boat. But I hope for boats on brokerage they escort potential punters round on each and every occasion. This has been the case on every boat I have sold thro' brokers although I have heard of those who don't and the tales of missing items etc.

 

[1yppah]

Again, why should a broker show you round the boat if its in the sales area (as with Penton or shepperton) some punters (most) prefer to look themselves and ask questions after. IF the boat is in the marina and not in the sales area then yes and escort is needed.

 

[DogsBody]

Re: Showing you round

Interesting thoughts, I've never been shown round a boat by a broker - always just given the keys and (usually) pointed in the right direction. Never looked at a boat worth more than £50k though (except for the dreaming at boat shows), perhaps they would on a dearer boat.

 

[Andrew_Fanner]

[ QUOTE ]
Again, why should a broker show you round the boat if its in the sales area (as with Penton or shepperton) some punters (most) prefer to look themselves and ask questions after. IF the boat is in the marina and not in the sales area then yes and escort is needed.

[/ QUOTE ]

Perhaps foolishly I vaguely expect the broker to have some idea of how things should work. If SWMBO wants to check that the vanity unit makeup light works then someone needs to show her!
I shall have the comprehensive file of instructions for all equioment left with the boat, that should get round most of the "how does this work" stuff.

 

[DogsBody]

Re: Boat cleaning

Sounds like your situation is similiar to mine Andrew, sold my last boat through Thames and Kennett, which was a good 70 miles from home for me. Deilvered the boat clean but popped down from time to time to check on her and make sure she wasn't too dirty.

Fairly sure the usual agreement is that the owner is responsible for keeping the boat clean, although do seem to remember being told by the guy at T&K that they have someone come in to rinse down the dirtier boats from time to time.

Worth asking the question though.

Darren.

 

[1yppah]

Agree to a certain extent but unless you have a photographic memory you aint going to know the ins and outs of over 50 pre owned boats that may include freemans from the 60's, Mirages from the 80's and Falcons from the 90's etc, then add to that the odd owner improvement / bodge job etc then you can see that knowing each and every pre owend craft simply is not possible. The owner may tell you that it needs a kick here to start it, push hard on the lamp to turn it on, only turn the hot water on first etc etc The list is endless. IF it is a new boat then yes the dealer (NOT BROKER) as its a new boat should know the ins and outs better than their other half (then again is this possible......)

 

[rickp]

Fortunately we invented pen and paper so such useful notes could be written down for later referral. Of course, I wouldn't expect such professionalism from someone taking only 8% of the sale...

Are you a broker, by any chance?

Rick

 

[1yppah]

Nope but as I said you cant remember everything and most people on this forum are intelligent enough to love and care for their boats and will do everything they can do make it sell and inform the broker accordingly. I am not sticking up for brokers but 8% is not that much for a boat costing say 30k which is an average thames boat .

I am talking thames brokers here as I really do think its unfair to compare them to south coast brokers, it really is a different ball game.

 

[Andrew_Fanner]

>>>
but 8% is not that much for a boat costing say 30k which is an average thames boat .
>>>
Thick end of £2.5K for a bit of photography and web page editing, answering and making some phone calls and fooling about in boats. All covered by "we are middlemen and not responsible for anything at all".

I'm in the wrong line of buisness.

 

[1yppah]

And the free mooring and the ads both in print and online and the staff costs and the rent for the building...........

It really is not as rosie as you all think, but yep parting with 2.5k does hurt what ever way you look at it.

2nd hand boats do not sell they are bought by people looking for that model or criteria. Any broker who "sells" a boat is not doing their job.

 

[Andrew_Fanner]

Very fair.

There again, maybe its like bookmakers. Ever seen a poor one?

 

[1yppah]

Very true!

good luck with the sale, from reading your posts over the years I would imagine she will go fairly quick!

 

[Andrew_Fanner]

Hope so. As said elsewhere the weather over the next few days suggests a flatbed back to the river rather than 150nm in an unfamiliar boat with uncertain engines and no idea how old/manky the fuel is. Got to pay for that lorry:-(

 

[pheran]

I'm basing my comments on Holland where I currently do my boating. The yard that sold my boat were very quick to assure me they would never let prospective buyers aboard without a member of staff accompanying them. That was my experience too when I first bought out there. And when my boat was surveyed this month, even the surveyor was accompanied out on the water for more than an hour. All this and they 'only' charge 5% commission, not the robbing 8% you say is justified for UK brokers.

 

[1yppah]

UK Brokers are not all the same, inland waterways brokers i.e. Thames based brokers are more like the ones you described in holland (where I also have experience of brokers) yep cheaper rate but then again what is not cheaper over the water.......

 

[oldgit]

Must say I prefer to not have a broker standing around when looking at a boat.After handing back the keys,it would be nice to ask a few questions,not so much about the boat condition,but if the boat is seriously for sale.
Have suspicion that a some boats are not even worth making an offer on because the owner bought the thing at top dollar,financed the beast on the never never and the boat is now worth less than whats left after the brokers fee/mooring charges and clearing the loan are removed.
The poor owner will be having to top up whats left out of his own pocket to pay off the bank.

 

[RutlandMike]

Why does anyone who lives nearish to their boat bother with a broker at all? I bought my last two privately and sold the last one privately, saving a packet. A good friend just sold £120k's worth of tjalk on Apollo Duck/Boats & Outboards - total cost £50. Anyone seriously looking for a boat (rather than a day out dreaming) will check out what's available on-line.

 

[byron]

I agree, I have sold several boats on line for non computer literate people. I have also sold my own boats ranging from a Princess 435 down to Slipper Launches and dinghies. I would have used a Broker if they worked like Dutch ones.

 

[bradtarga34]

Who did you settle on in the end?