Broker's requests just sent me rolling on the floor laughing

WorstCase said:
I tried putting myself in the shoes of the seller and broker and I see how I might actually act the same way... as long as that wouldn't make it impossible to achieve my goal which should be selling the boat...

In this particular case I have visited the boat prior to making an offer at a location to which I had to travel to specifically for this purpose with a certain cost in terms of money and time.
I actually visited the boat twice during the same day after a lengthy discussion with my wife as I was "for" while she was against. The broker was not present but discussed with me arrangements for the visit beforehand, and discussed details a few days later.

I have sent the broker an email stating the amount I am ready to pay for the boat and at what conditions I am willing to proceed. These conditions have mainly to do with proving the assumptions that were made in order to come to the price. These conditions should go on the sale agreement at which point I am willing to pay a deposit nowhere near 15% of my offer (the 5% you mention is more like it). As I will have to hire a surveyor I believe it would be enough a loss if I had to renounce the purchase after that.
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In that case you have acted entirely properly IMHO and the broker should view you as a serious buyer in which case you have every right to stand your ground and insist that you get a positive response from the seller before proceeding further. If the broker digs his heels then walk away IMHO. You dont want to get yourself into a situation having put down a deposit on a boat you're not even intending to buy
 
Deleted User said:
In that case you have acted entirely properly IMHO and the broker should view you as a serious buyer in which case you have every right to stand your ground and insist that you get a positive response from the seller before proceeding further. If the broker digs his heels then walk away IMHO. You dont want to get yourself into a situation having put down a deposit on a boat you're not even intending to buy
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having had some PM exchange with OP,
I agree with the above
 
Sorry to hear these latest news. She looked a fine vessel indeed, not to mention a helluva lot of boat for the price.
Look at the bright side of it: as they say, the two best moments for a boater are when you buy and when you sell the thing...
...so, all the best for the next search! :)

Talking of which, the only suggestion I can think of is to make it clear with the broker from the very beginning that you couldn't care less about what is the common practice or their standard contract: if he wants a deposit to get out of bed, he can continue to sleep and save you the hassle of going to see the boat.
I'm sure there are brokers out there who are interested to actually sell boats.
 
MapisM said:
Sorry to hear these latest news. She looked a fine vessel indeed, not to mention a helluva lot of boat for the price.
Look at the bright side of it: as they say, the two best moments for a boater are when you buy and when you sell the thing...
...so, all the best for the next search! :)

Talking of which, the only suggestion I can think of is to make it clear with the broker from the very beginning that you couldn't care less about what is the common practice or their standard contract: if he wants a deposit to get out of bed, he can continue to sleep and save you the hassle of going to see the boat.
I'm sure there are brokers out there who are interested to actually sell boats.
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Well, for now I have told them these terms are not acceptable and that my offer stands for three days. If seller wants to sell I'm interested in buying at my conditions, which I have made very clear.
We'll see. Either way not an issue.

I agree with your last remarks. Worth presenting a "standard" set of conditions prior to even taking the time to look at a boat given the current market conditions.
 
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It goes like this:"Customers will manage perfectly without the services of a given Company, the opposite is not the case". You have the Money, they have the goods. It takes a balanced negotiation to agree on an exchange of things.
Turn the scene: Ask the broker for a formal proposal, then continue from there.

On the other hand, there are so many lovely boats for sale - no reason to insist on problems.
 
WorstCase said:
I just made a semi-formal offer on a boat and the broker's reply I found totally absurd.
But then again, maybe it's just my lack of experience in the world of yachts' brokerage...

Basically the broker reply was (I translate literally):
" Dear Sir,
we have received your email but unfortunately we cannot comment on your offer as long as we have not received signed copies of our standard agreement and the corresponding deposits"

The deposits they are referring to are:
1. 10% of the offer value
2. 5% of the offer value as their commission

The agreement says that if the offer is not accepted they will refund. Mind you... they cannot tell me whether the amount I offer is acceptable or not... to say this they need 15% of whatever I offer for the boat in their accounts.
I find this so ridiculous it's not even funny.

Are they for real?
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Ok play there game -hit a backhand back in response to there serve .
Reduce your offer to €1 +other considerations
Send the paperwork back based on that .
Wait for the "broker " to enquire exactly what is your other considerations -which is the balance ( €1 minus your original offer ) before you complete -into the owners account
 
Is the broker perhaps from Nigeria. Not to say that all Nigerians can be tared by the same brush. But this is just crazy. I'm glad that the thought of transfering any money didn't even cross your mind. Good luck on the boat hunt. ?
 
Interesting thread, particularly in view of Whitelighter's awful experience.

It's not just Italian boat brokers. We wanted to buy an apartment on Grand Cayman (grandchildren live there). Apartment was listed by a realtor. Nice place, not too expensive - about £120k plus taxes. We viewed it, put a sensible offer in. Told we had to employ a lawyer, agree a formal contract, and pay a deposit BEFORE our offer would be considered. Madness? No, just how they do it there when a realtor is involved. Decided not to play that game and bought a boat in the UK instead! Apartment hung around for ages before anyone bought it.
 
TwoHooter said:
Interesting thread, particularly in view of Whitelighter's awful experience.

It's not just Italian boat brokers. We wanted to buy an apartment on Grand Cayman (grandchildren live there). Apartment was listed by a realtor. Nice place, not too expensive - about £120k plus taxes. We viewed it, put a sensible offer in. Told we had to employ a lawyer, agree a formal contract, and pay a deposit BEFORE our offer would be considered. Madness? No, just how they do it there when a realtor is involved. Decided not to play that game and bought a boat in the UK instead! Apartment hung around for ages before anyone bought it.
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That is how it work in Florida too we found out when we bought our condo. We had one unpleasant experience getting a deposit returned when we pulled out having found rental tenant was in situ ( one of the seller realtor's employees), when we turned up with our building surveyor. we did get our refund after a few more days of arguing and being accused of harassment a serious accusation in septic land, by the realtor but our so called buyers realtor then refused to work for us any more ( suited us fine) We found another realtor immediately and set some very precise ground rules before we moved on again to another property, not least that we would pay a deposit and sign a contract (subject to survey) only after our offer was accepted, not before.

When we bought boats a similar situation arose but fortunately we found a broker who understood and knew which side his bread was buttered.

In both cases we were cash buyers and could provide evidence that sufficient funds were available.

Bloody foreigners!
 
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Just a quick update,
after a chat with the broker (he called me) he accepted the idea of me submitting a conditional offer without deposit until the offer is formally accepted (wooooow what a concession).
He still did not confirm my suggestion as far as the deposit amount. He wanted to let me know the seller is 100% committed to sell and so forth.
I think things are back into the realm of reason, provided they accept my mods to their standard agreement...
 
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