Osmosis treatment - effect on resale value?

Skysail

Skysail

Well-Known Member
Joined
30 Sep 2004
Messages
1,213
Location
Victoria BC
Visit site
Just attended the survey on a 36 ft yacht I would like to buy. There are small osmotic blisters scattered across the hull.

The boat is 12 years old and the surveyor, broker and myself were gobsmacked; no doubt the seller will be too. The surveyor suggests possibly the negotiating the price, sailing this season and getting the hull treated next late this year. A rough estimate for the treatment is £ 8,000 - £10,000.

I don't feel inclined to pay any proportion of the osmosis treatment for such a recent boat, but would consider it if resale value is maintained.

Assuming we keep the boat for 8 or so years before Anno Domini takes over, does the panel have a view of the effect on resale value?

Above the waterline the boat is in very good condition, and only lightly used locally. SWMBO loves it!

Grateful for advice, I know I could just walk away but.....
 
I would be astounded if an osmosis treatment cost anything like that. On my old 33 ft cat ( so consider it a 66 ft mono) the cost was 4k.

Two things to bear in mind. First is that unless you use the hotvac system, you lose a lot of time messing around. The second is that an epoxy treatment is not a cure for all time - epoxy is also permiable, less so than polyester but more so than twin pack paint. In 10 years the pox might well have returned. But then in 10 years any boat you chose might have the pox.

When it came to selling the cat, the treatment had no effect on the price.
 
Bosun Higgs said:
I would be astounded if an osmosis treatment cost anything like that. On my old 33 ft cat ( so consider it a 66 ft mono) the cost was 4k.

Two things to bear in mind. First is that unless you use the hotvac system, you lose a lot of time messing around. The second is that an epoxy treatment is not a cure for all time - epoxy is also permiable, less so than polyester but more so than twin pack paint. In 10 years the pox might well have returned. But then in 10 years any boat you chose might have the pox.

When it came to selling the cat, the treatment had no effect on the price.
Click to expand...
+1 - If the quote was more than 3~4k tell them to go away in short jerky motions and commit an illegal act upon themselves - 5~10k is a rip off.
 
Thanks all. To an extent the cost is irrelevant as I will not be paying the bulk of it.

The main point is effect on resale, so Bo'sun's experience is interesting.
 
I purchased my boat eight years ago - with the 'pox'. I was advised by an old boatbuilder for whom I had great respect that it was nothing to worry about. "Many a boat has sunk with osmosis, but not one has sunk because
of it!" was his comment. Insurance companies are not concerned about it (as far as premiums are concerned)
I chose not to help a Yard owner put his kid through Private School by having her treated, the osmosis has not worsened ( on the Broads we generally lift out every winter) and I do not regret for one moment my decision either to buy or not have her treated.
 
Easticks28 said:
I purchased my boat eight years ago - with the 'pox'. I was advised by an old boatbuilder for whom I had great respect that it was nothing to worry about. "Many a boat has sunk with osmosis, but not one has sunk because
of it!" was his comment. Insurance companies are not concerned about it (as far as premiums are concerned)
I chose not to help a Yard owner put his kid through Private School by having her treated, the osmosis has not worsened ( on the Broads we generally lift out every winter) and I do not regret for one moment my decision either to buy or not have her treated.
Click to expand...

Agree entirerly- a Gibsea 96 that I once owned had plenty of small osmosis blisters when the crud and antifoul of the years was blasted off. They were deepened with a small shallow countersink bit-one I made myself-and filled with epoxy. A nearby Glassfibre specialist commented on what good shape she was in before I set to work. After fairing and subsequent Coppercoat treatment we had a senior moment and purchased our current boat. The Gibsea passed a full survey by the prospective and then new owners surveyor with flying colours as far as osmosis went. I would make an offer, clean out and fill and fair the blisters and put the saved dosh into the boat in other areas. Whatever you decide-Good Luck!
 
Really difficult to isolate the effect on future value in monetary terms. The "risk" is exactly what you are going through. Would an otherwise serious buyer reject the boat just because of the blisters? That has been the main selling point of osmosis treatment - removing resistance from future purchasers.

How you approach it depends on your timescales and attitude to the risk. If you can get it at a substantial reduction in price, intend to keep it for a long time, happy to deal with the problem yourself in the future at a time convenient to you, then might be a good buy. On the other hand if you don't like the prospect of a future bill, and you want to keep the option of selling the boat in the short term, walk away or negotiate a deal and have the "security" of the X years guarantee that you can wave in front of a future purchaser.
 
Osmosis obviously has a big effect on resale value but, in many peoples minds, a boat which has already been epoxied would have an advantage over one which hadn't. Alternative prices should be obtained for treatment as the one you quote is way over the top. Price should then be reduced to cover the cost.

You then have two options - have it treated now or, at some later date when/if it has progressed. If you have the time and inclination at a future date, treatment is not beyond skills of a capable DIYer and obviously much cheaper than the possible reduction in purchase price now.
 
Skysail said:
Just attended the survey on a 36 ft yacht I would like to buy. There are small osmotic blisters scattered across the hull.

The boat is 12 years old and the surveyor, broker and myself were gobsmacked; no doubt the seller will be too. The surveyor suggests possibly the negotiating the price, sailing this season and getting the hull treated next late this year. A rough estimate for the treatment is £ 8,000 - £10,000.

I don't feel inclined to pay any proportion of the osmosis treatment for such a recent boat, but would consider it if resale value is maintained.

Assuming we keep the boat for 8 or so years before Anno Domini takes over, does the panel have a view of the effect on resale value?

Above the waterline the boat is in very good condition, and only lightly used locally. SWMBO loves it!

Grateful for advice, I know I could just walk away but.....
Click to expand...

12 years old is early for UK coastal conditions. What sort of boat, and where kept? In fresh water? Warm waters? Either will substantially accelerate development of blisters.

Doing an "full osmosis treatment" (typically £5-7K for 36 ft not 8-10K) when only minor blistering has occurred may not be a good idea. You are having removed a part of the hull that is 99.99% still chemically bonded to the rest, and replacing it with what is essentially a glued on layer of a different material. You may find that 8 years on more blisters have appeared, despite the "treatment" - ones that would have appeared anyway later had the "treatment" not been done.
 
We have recently been in this position, boat was everything we wanted, wife loved it, beautifully maintained boat, thought survey would be doddle, but to surprise of all it had pox; seller said he would pay a portion of remedial work as I would be the one to benefit from the work!

My personal view is the problem belongs to the current owner, no reason you should relieve him of his problem and adopt it yourself. If you are happy to continue then let him/her fund any work required.

There are plenty of good boats out there, we ended up with a better boat, and with hindsight feel the decision we made was right for us.
 
Osmosis occurs to most yachts eventually. Plan on 4K for a good job; this adds value to your boat if resale occurs in short order.

My mate's Swan required 2 treatments to get it right.

Caca happens.:D
 
I'm a bit puzzled.
If your own boat showed signs of osmosis you would have a commitment to either ignore it or treat it.
The effect on value is not a lot to do with the logic of a boat having had a good treatment but a possible purchaser's perception of the risks he may encounter in the future.

As the OP doesn't own the boat, why become embroiled in the whole process and possible loss of boat use and possible adverse value, which will always prey on his mind until he sells it, which is the point at which he will find out if it will sell?

Find a boat without the problem.
 
From a resale point of view, which is what the OP is asking about I'd have thought that as long as it's treated professionally and with proper paperwork to show that, it's resale value shouldn't be affected much, if at all.

I'd happily buy a boat that had been professionally treated for osmosis as long as I could see the paperwork and have some confidence in the people who have done the work. Even though it's possible to DIY it at far less cost I would be very unhappy buying a boat where osmosis had been treated by a DIYer.

And as long as the boat ticked all the other boxes, and as long I could negotiate a fair amount for professional osmosis treatment off the sale price, I'd buy the boat now and treat the osmosis later.

IMHO of course.
 
Thanks again all, what a good place this is.

The variety of opinions, all of them pertinent, reflects my dilemma, but I suspect I will go with the head not the heart. We were so looking forward to getting afloat soon!
 
osmosis

If you like the boat that much then IMHO go for it.
Make a revised offer less the cost of the osmisis treatment and see if you can do a deal.

When I made an offer on my present boat, it showed osmosis below the water line at haul out and survey, the boat had been afloat in fresh water (Holland) for a number of years.
I made a revised offer less the cost of treatment (hot-vac). I can't remember what we agreed in the end but it was the asking price less the cost of the osmosis treatment, and some other bits and bobs that showed up at survey. i.e. always get a survey - it will more than pay for itself !!
A good friend who own a yard suggested I have the osmisis treatment done just before selling, because in his opinion any treatment would only be guaranteed for a fixed period, normally 5-10yrs.
Fortunately for me my boat lives in sea water and is hauled out over winter for half the year. All osmitic blisters disappeared after the first winter layup.

Yes Osmosis does effect resale value, and so long as you don't pay over the odds for a boat with the pox, you shouldn't loose when you come to sell.

As said before it's a buyers market, make a low offer.

Good luck.
 
If you are looking at 12 year old boats and plan on keeping it for a further 8 years then you likely will either be dealing with some osmosis now or before you re-sell it. As far as resale is concerned, I would much prefer to buy a boat with a recent osmosis job or better still with a discount so that I could get the job done and any guarantees / contract liabilities would come to me.

But in all honesty, there are far worse problems you can have on a boat than osmosis. Wet balsa in the deck for example. And a 12 year old boat will be coming due for some expensive replacements anyway - rigging for example, electronics, maybe an engine. The last two can easily cost as much as an osmosis job. And having bought 3 10 year old boats in succession ( why do I never learn) I can confirm that 10 to 12 years is when most current boat kit starts to show its age.

So I would be relaxed about it. Get a decent discount and if you like the boat , go ahead. Losing a season boat hunting is not worth 5k IMO - I've got the T shirt on that one too.
 
It's not such a big deal. After all, it's not much more cost than a new set of sails or new cushions (and less than a new engine). You can easily spend £5k on any secondhand boat.

Make an offer at £5k under what you would have otherwise paid, and live with it.

When you come to sell, you can either get it done (and ask £5k more), or sell it on as it is doing a similar deal with the new buyer.
 
You guys make a lot of sense and if the seller agrees to a sensible reduction on my original offer I will consider it. But osmosis is a much more emotional issue than sails or engine - and the sails, engine and deck look very good according to the survey.

Very few boats from this builder exhibit osmosis after 25 years, let alone 12, which is why it was such a surprise.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Share this page

Top