Selling a boat Private or via a broker

[Resolution]

The brokers I have been speaking to recently are saying they're having problems in getting the seller to reduce to a level which would encourage a buyer, I had one broker tell me an offer was made on the boat earlier in the year which the seller ignored completely and since then there has been no other interest, additional storage costs and clearly it's been sat around for a further 10 months!

Nothing new there. I think there was a big change about 15 years ago when a) inflation tailed off and b) better production techniques at Beneteau/Hanse /Bavaria brought the real price of new yachts down. This ended the practice in the 80s and 90s that you could usually sell your 30 ft AWB for something similar to what you had paid for it. ie Depreciation was matched by inflation. Boat owners that grew up with this as a guideline seem to be unwilling to accept that the situation has changed!

 

[jwilson]

The brokers I have been speaking to recently are saying they're having problems in getting the seller to reduce to a level which would encourage a buyer, I had one broker tell me an offer was made on the boat earlier in the year which the seller ignored completely and since then there has been no other interest, additional storage costs and clearly it's been sat around for a further 10 months!

This can happen: we have a few times had sellers insist on a specific price and then refuse an offer at perhaps 80-90%. A year later they have laid out a fair bit of the 10-20% drop on the asking price in storage/moorings, and the boat has got a bit neglected, so even if they then take 10-20% off the asking, offers come in lower still. We have known boats to end up eventually selling for less than an early offer represented. As brokers we hate this! We'd much rather have a reasonably quick sale and take our commission, though we do want to achieve the best possible price.

Bear in mind that the AVERAGE time taken to sell boats on brokerage is about 10 months - these statistics are from multiple brokerages. There are boats that if clean, tidy, and priced correctly ought to, and usually do, sell fast, as there are people out there looking for a good example of just that model. Give me an immaculate She 36 or Contessa 32 and I'd expect it to go very quickly - I'd be tempted to buy the She 36 myself! There are others that are very difficult to find a buyer for even if they seem good value: these days many older and smaller boats fit this category.

Back to the OPs questions - for an middle-aged quarter-tonner brokerage is an expensive option - with a likely asking price in the £5,000 to £9,000 range depending on condition and kit you will almost certainly be on a minimum commission rather than a percentage. Clean and tidy the boat, take lots of photos and copy them to CDs or cheap USB sticks along with an inventory.

Set a price by finding another one advertised for sale in similar condition and undercut it a bit. Advertise on the free sites with the single best photo. We http://www.yachtsnet.co.uk/ have free ads for smaller/cheaper boats at http://www.yachtsnet.co.uk/classifieds.htm or for a small fee you can have ads with lots of photos.

There are also the Boats & Outboards and Apollo Duck sites, that give you a free ad but make money from setting up premium rate contact numbers for you. On any of these you have the option of linking to your own website/photo storage, if you know how to set it up.

Once you get an enquiry send out a CD or USB stick unless the enquirer is local.

Finally get ads on the noticeboards of local sailing/yacht clubs.

 

[Bosun Higgs]

Hi

I am in the process of selling my Bolero 25 Quarter Ton yacht to move to something a little bigger to sail with the family.

I can't currently decide if I am best placed to advertise on the likes of Apollo Duck, Boats and Outboards, Ebay etc etc and try and sell myself or whether to go down the route of putting the boat in the hands of a Broker.

I would be interested in peoples thoughts.

Additionally, how much should I expect to pay a Broker, what are their typical terms?

I have been quoted 6% Single or 8% open minimum £800 +VAT by one Broker does that seem reasonable?

I have sold all my boats privately using YBW or PBO to advertise. As for broker fees, that depends a bit on the value of the transaction. My boat cost 70k and the guy who sold it to me through a broker paid 1.5%. A fee of 8% is laughable

 

[Scotty_Tradewind]

Not always easy unless there is a queue of people waiting for a particular boat or type of boat.

If it's a great little club boat for fun racing and jollies then how about sending your boats details to all clubs in your area or beyond.

It was easy to sell my Twister28 as it is a boat to suit many needs but some are not.

Most important, however you sell it, have everything ultra clean and smelling sweet.... everywhere, right down to the lowest part of the bilge sump!
No body like other peoples dirt!

Very high on the list.... have your own survey done (you can always put right some of the items queried) and offer a free copy to everyone who emails you for it.
I had my own cheap website designed with tens of photos showing all detail.

Like you I made several hints on several sailing websites including this. with my website at the bottom.

SOLD.... no broker, no fee!