Thick/dishonest yacht brokers that photo-shop the images...

  • Thread starter Thread starter Ric
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jwilson said:
Now I'm writing, I'd be curious to know how many people really like handheld videos of boat interiors that some brokers are using?
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They are a complete waste of time and effort.

Bitterend said:
Boatshed are great at providing multiple current pics and all you have to do to see them is provide an email address,,,,and the major plus is they do not bombard you with unsolicited mail. Well done Boatshed, excellent example of good broker approach.
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They must have changed tack in the last six months, I'd often get an email from a broker saying, you have looked at this boat six times call me and visit the boat. I usually replied, I have the same boat and am looking for ideas.
 
Just a quick thank you to our two 'resident' brokers for being good at their job and for their contributions here.

I knew Yachtsnet long before I was on the forum and have always considered it excellent and generous and informative in its approach by showing boats sold so that it is a really useful archive for the yachtsman. Photos are the best there are, the essential data is clear and there is history and price guidance for the class. I see above that you are willing to tell the prospective buyer what is wrong with the boat - that is so important to me as I don't mind knowing then I know where I stand and can work out the odds.

Jonic, is aiming at a particular market and, though I haven't (yet) dealt with him, his website is good but you just know (as others above have said) that you will get a wealth of advice and he won't sell you what you don't need (whether you know it or not). Bigger photos John :encouragement:

I like owner's comments. There was a great example a year or so back on (I think) a Hallberg 46. The owner had his own website and had a whole list of things that had gone wrong on the circumnavigation on this recent boat - most things laid at the door of HR (which was a bit of an eyeopener as well as telling us about HR's attitude). The owner was absolutely meticulous, obviously wealthy, highly skilled and his repairs were to aircraft standard. You just knew that a boat bought from this chap was literally better than new. Well it got listed with one of Jonic's competitors and it was not long before all that information got taken down. Shame really as I considered it to be gold and a real recommendation for the particular yacht - it was now bullet proof and sorted to the highest standard. Difficult to appreciate the quality of his kicker to boom fabrication unless you knew the original had failed.

Jonic has another example at the moment, an absolutely ball-achingly, lovely Bowman 45 where the owner lists what doesn't work and explains why it doesn't matter. You know, without more, you hardly need a survey as that owner knows it better than anyone and will have sorted everything to the highest standard.

They don't have to be about the negatives at all - just some of its history.

Big pictures/High resolution pictures (per Yachtsnet and not like Boatshop)

Pictures of the engine room and systems.

A reasonable appraisal of what needs doing, if anything.
 
In reply to jwilsons enquiry re videos, only last night a fellow club member called me on the 'phone to let me know how his search for his next boat was going.

He had found one he really liked and was going for survey.

He also told me how much he liked the videos on jonics website.

He thought as the lens was fixed you got a more reallistic view-what you saw was what you would see if you were on the vessel in the position of the camera.

I have no view either way. After looking at lots of boats during the last year very few came up to the illusion of the website photos.

As an ex car and motorbike dealer my philosophy is to believe nothing I hear and only half of what I see.

Roger at SD Marine is professional, as is jonic. Slipway Marine at Emsworth gave good advice and were very much on the ball, but had no suitable vessels on their books. Clarke and Carter showed us a fantastic boat-we eventually bought a cheaper lower spec one-but when we arrived after a 3 hour drive the boat was locked! The broker had no keys. Eventually resolved, but what a cock up-gave us a really long day.

We have been accused of being time wasters, treated as if we would not have the resources to make a purchase and told outright lies by major players in the brokerage industry.

I would not have treated a customer the way we were treated when I was a motorcycle dealer had they wanted to purchase a £500.00 secondhand scooter-and we were looking at spending uo to £200K!

Jonic and jwilson have set the standard-the others need to raise their game................................
 
rotrax said:
In reply to jwilsons enquiry re videos, only last night a fellow club member called me on the 'phone to let me know how his search for his next boat was going.

He had found one he really liked and was going for survey.

He also told me how much he liked the videos on jonics website.

He thought as the lens was fixed you got a more reallistic view-what you saw was what you would see if you were on the vessel in the position of the camera.

I have no view either way. After looking at lots of boats during the last year very few came up to the illusion of the website photos.

As an ex car and motorbike dealer my philosophy is to believe nothing I hear and only half of what I see.

Roger at SD Marine is professional, as is jonic. Slipway Marine at Emsworth gave good advice and were very much on the ball, but had no suitable vessels on their books. Clarke and Carter showed us a fantastic boat-we eventually bought a cheaper lower spec one-but when we arrived after a 3 hour drive the boat was locked! The broker had no keys. Eventually resolved, but what a cock up-gave us a really long day.

We have been accused of being time wasters, treated as if we would not have the resources to make a purchase and told outright lies by major players in the brokerage industry.

I would not have treated a customer the way we were treated when I was a motorcycle dealer had they wanted to purchase a £500.00 secondhand scooter-and we were looking at spending uo to £200K!

Jonic and jwilson have set the standard-the others need to raise their game................................
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Thanks, it's really good to hear the feedback.

I don't know Jwilson but have spoken in passing to him. I suspect the fact we are both passionate sailors and experienced boat buyers in our own right plays a big part in our approach.

Professional Brokerage if done well is actually very time consuming and hard work. For me it is all about a healthy dose of reality and keeping expectations realistic, both in terms of price and condition.

Someone else in this thread said it was useful to know what may be wrong with a used boat. I totally agree. Used boats absolutely will need all kinds of upgrades and fixes - some more than others, so it's important to try and get this across. Having lived long term on a cruising yacht I know that cruising is fixing boats in exotic places!

I had two viewings yesterday, we went through all the good things but I also highlighted things I as a sailor would guess would need attention. The clients were thankful and appreciated the candor.

Both under offer. :encouragement:
 
I also quite like the videos as most brokers are not skilled enough to photo-shop or manipulate videos. Any plonker can edit out the name of the boat on the photograph of the bow or transom, but it takes a lot more skill to do the same on a video...
 
"Now I'm writing, I'd be curious to know how many people really like handheld videos of boat interiors that some brokers are using?"


Videos are nice if well done but to do them well is probably not cost effective on a smaller boat. The sort of heavy breathing jobs where a broker plods round a boat videoing his feet in low resolution are not worth the bother.

Good photos are vital.
 
We are currently looking for our next boat, and whilst I agree that good photos are an absolute, I find that videos can be helpful in placing the photos in context as it were. When looking at photos of a boat you have never seen it can sometimes be hard to visualise the layout, but a well taken video can make it quite clear what is where.
 
The other aspect that I like about videos is that it is immediately evident whether the broker knows anything about sailing or boats, as they are obliged to make a live running commentary.
 
Ric said:
The other aspect that I like about videos is that it is immediately evident whether the broker knows anything about sailing or boats, as they are obliged to make a live running commentary.
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Some of they don't, there is just cr***y music.
 
You have to recognise that the broker is paid by and represents the vendor. His duty is therefore morally and legally to them. He's not in business to get a bargain for a buyer although he may suggest other more suitable boats for them.
How would you feel if you discovered your agent had advised a potential buyer that you would accept a significantly lower price. It's up to the buyer to make an offer unprompted by the broker.
 
Sandy said:
They are a complete waste of time and effort.


They must have changed tack in the last six months, I'd often get an email from a broker saying, you have looked at this boat six times call me and visit the boat. I usually replied, I have the same boat and am looking for ideas.
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I've been registered with boatshed for many years now.

I don't recall ever having received the sort of 'pushy' sales emails that you did.

I would also find that approach a bit annoying, but, happily for me, they seem to leave me alone, unless I specifically contact them.
 
NealB said:
I've been registered with boatshed for many years now.

I don't recall ever having received the sort of 'pushy' sales emails that you did.

I would also find that approach a bit annoying, but, happily for me, they seem to leave me alone, unless I specifically contact them.
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I have more than once. I think you have to look at a particular boat a good few times to trigger it though
 
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