Calculated risk or just madness?

Shiver Metimbers

Shiver Metimbers

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I am thinking about making an offer on a boat. The offer would be 30% below asking price for a quick sale, cash, bought as seen, no survey, complete on day of offer etc. I will have a survey done later and hope any work is minimal which I can do myself. The boat is on the market at £30k. Calculated risk or madness, comments please?

/forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif
 
As the other poster implies... depends if you could still sleep at night if it turns out the boat is a complete and utter duffer. What's the rush in the current market /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif
 
would say how much do you want to risk it, i think for the price of a survey that you say you are going to do in the future anyway have it done before you buy, if person wants quick sale then maybe problems that he does not want you to know about. Also depends on your knowledge of boats and if you can make an INFORMED choice
 
Depends entirely on your own confidence in your ability to pick up any problems with the boat and its systems, your confidence in your judgement of the seller.

I did much the same and got a bargain price and I knew what I was taking on.

Its a buyers market! The Salvaged Oceanis that is for sale on eBay as a rebuild project at the moment is approaching what I'd pay for it given what work is involved. Even with the damage to it it is still a recoverable boat. A floating boat that you have looked at cant be any worse!
 
depends how practical you are - engineering wise. I'm a nit picker by nature and so far no surveyor has found anything on a boat I've bought that I hadnt spotted beforehand with one exception. that was the first time I came across the beginnings of osmosis. I'd know what to look for now but I didnt then

cost of osmosis say 4k on a 30 ft boat. if you have enough margin in the deal to cover that and provided you have seriously surveyed the boat in detail yourself, I would take the risk

posters will argue that the cost of the survey is small and thats correct. but if you're certain in your own mind that you can spot anything the surveyor would, then all you're buying for that fee is someone to sue. and given the inadequacies of the UK legal system that isnt worth much.
 
You should ask Clyde Wanderer about THIS ONE
He has seen it up close. I was also there when it was lifted onto a trailer. I only hope the bidders have seen it.
 
If you are confident you know what your are doing & can deal with any problems that you may miss then it is a calculated risk.

If you are just hoping you might be lucky enough to get a bargain then it is madness.
 
I think the strange bit in your question is "I will have a survey done later...". If you're going to pay for a survey, pay for it before you complete the deal - it might allow you to reduce the price still further.
 
Why not direct us all to the details of the boat you are considering? There are many experts on this forum who could advise on potential problems with the boat, and how they can be recognised.
 
You may need the survey for insurance, don't forget it will need to be insured while in the boatyard from day one.
I bought my Impala without a survey, but it was only £12k, but that was 12 yrs ago. I think I should have had a survey, I was naive. I started finding signs of problems as I learned about boats. I don't regret buying it though!
If you do go without a survey, get Ian Nicholson's book on surveying small craft if you can. Get a mate to go over the boat with you perhaps.
The asking price is a red herring. A surveyor will possibly have a good idea about value, as might a good insurance broker, particularly if its a class boat.
Good luck.
 
You've got nothing to loose by asking, he has one boat to sell you can look at plenty others. you may not get any more off the price after a survey but you could walk away if there was something seriously wrong.
 
But you could offer virtually the same thing with a survey - get a provisional date from a surveyor, tell the vendor you'll get a survey within say 3 days and that you'll settle within an hour of a satisfactory survey.
 
As a seller, I think it worked out that you accept a minimum offer subject to survey, then you have a little time to get your head around that price, then you take a further hit after the survey. So the shock is halved.
The the broker takes his cut leaving you with enough for a used car and a fast dinghy! (but I'm enjoying the dinghy!)
You should be able to get a surveyor pdq at the moment, ask a few.
Of course you may get trampled by hordes of buyers from euroland taking advantage of our poor currency?
 
If the boats out of the water how long would a survey delay the sale? you could speek to a surveyer and have one booked for the day you put the offer in and have the survey done while the broker types up the paper work.
 
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