sell U.S. classic in U.K.?

[seo]

This coming Fall/Winter I plan to take my family on an extended cruise in our Sparkman & Stephens 40' Keel/Centerboard yawl. It's a model called a "Nevins 40," which is very directly based on their well known "Finnesterre" She was built in 1956 by Nevins.

Our plan is to go from our home in Maine (American Northeast, next to New Brunswick in Canada) down to the Carribean. Very prosaic, but there you are. I have two ideas that I'd appreciate comment on.

1) Instead of skulking down the Intracoastal Waterway to Florida, and then beating forever up through the Bahamas toward the Antilles, I have it in mind to start out by going East along the Nova Scotia coast, and thence directly south, maybe stopping at Bermuda. In mid-late October the incidence of hurricans is quite low, and the slant on the prevailing winds and Gulf Stream current is much more favorable. I've spent quite a bit of time out on the ocean in winter on tankers, tugs, and research vessels, and have always been amazed by how much warmer and calmer the Sargasso Sea (around Bermuda) is than the Continental Shelf of the US. I'd appreciate any comments, especially those based on experience, or on the British pilot charts, which may be different from the American pilot charts.

2) At the end of the trip, I've thought some about sailing to europe instead of the US, and selling the boat. Any good advice on where there might be demand for a boat of that description. There is a periodic ebb and flow of US boats to europe, European boats to US, seems to be mainly based on exchange rates. Once again, any good advice would be appreciated about the best time and place for such a sale, brokers who are knowledgable about boats of this class, etc.

seo

 

[theodora]

Nice boat. I'm about to start an S&S new build replica of design 0602, Revonoc in New Zealand and, although I am not intending to sell, my used market would be New England.
I don't think there'd be much call for a Nevins 40 in the UK. I've always had the impression that the Brits prefer something heavier for "classic" designs, usually based on working boats such as pilot cutters or smacks. I suspect the weather and sea conditions have something to do with it.
My advice would be to look at Italy for selling. The Mediterranean climate would be more suitable for your boat and there are plenty of first class yards and brokers there.

 

[Mirelle]

I respectfully disagree

It is hard to judge the UK boat market from New Zealand!

Not only do S&S designs have a strong following here (Ted Heath, to name but one owner, had three in a row, and Rod and Olin Stephens spent a lot of time here) but there are several Nevins 40's in the UK and they change hands at very healthy prices - they are a known type.

It is my very distinct impression, based only on brokerage adverts of course, that these boats command a higher price in Britain than they do in the States.

PM me if you would like advice on brokers; I know several of them personally so dont want to comment in public.