Which Broker?

[NPMR]

I have tried Apollo Duck, Boaty mags, local paper etc and still own my lovely condition, Sabre 27. Possibly because so few people have been to see it - well, just the one so far.

We plan on sailing away for a few months in May, in the new boat, so it looks like we'll have to let a broker sell it, over the Summer (assuming they can).

As it's an older boat and we're only asking £10500, does anyone have a clue as to whether we should be putting it in the hands, of say, Ancasta, with their big customer base, but maybe not ones looking for our wee boat, or any other suggestions? The boat's in Cornwall.

We don't like the costs of a broker but the boatyard costs are going to be there until we do sell, so .......

 

[Stork_III]

From a byuer's point of view,I found Red Ensign at Falmouth gave a very good service for the seller. http://www.red-ensign.com/

 

[jonic]

Try Marcus at FBC Yacht Sales Falmouth

I used to work with him in a Solent office.

Very nice guy and knows his stuff.

http://www.fbcyachtsales.co.uk/fbcyachts/home.asp

 

[SimbaDog]

Ancasta sold my boat very quickly

 

[longjohnsilver]

Have you tried a classified ad on EBay, about £30 and huge exposure.

 

[Ex-SolentBoy]

From a byuer's point of view,I found Red Ensign at Falmouth gave a very good service for the seller. http://www.red-ensign.com/

And they have sold two boats for me. Highly recommended.

 

[CFarr]

Also from a buyers point of view.
I've been looking for a yacht since November and it hasn't mattered that much to me which broker has which boat, I've found all the boats of the type I want in the budget I can afford and my search has taken me to them all at some time or other.
If your broker has it listed on the web and it's visible with a google search then there's little more you can do I'm afraid.
There are boats out there that have been for sale for a very long time

 

[Garold]

Also from a buyers point of view.
I've been looking for a yacht since November and it hasn't mattered that much to me which broker has which boat, I've found all the boats of the type I want in the budget I can afford and my search has taken me to them all at some time or other.
If your broker has it listed on the web and it's visible with a google search then there's little more you can do I'm afraid.
There are boats out there that have been for sale for a very long time

I agree in part. Most modern brokers have the ability to expose your boat to a wide market on line. And if not, then don't use them because thats how most of us find things these days.

However, some take better pics and produce better description that others. Some are keener to become familiar with your boat than others. And the willingness to answer queries promptly and show some intent to sell the boat can vary.

It may be handy to find a broker who shows a winllingness to keep your boat in clean and presentable order if you are going away. Even over a couple of weeks, boats can begin to look 'unloved' if they are dirty and covered in dust and birdy poop.

Cheers and good luck.

Garold

 

[ridgy]

I tried Ebay for a time and found that it attracted plenty of interest but mainly from the wrong sort.
That being people knew nothing about boats but liked the idea of it.

Will shortly be instructing Boatshed to sell it.
I also feel that most buyers would prefer to deal with a broker and in the case of a first time buyer, more reassuring.

 

[CFarr]

I also feel that most buyers would prefer to deal with a broker and in the case of a first time buyer, more reassuring.

That's my view too, as a first time buyer. It seems most private sellers have a very optimistic view of their boats worth.
On the subject of private sellers, do-it-yourself websites are a turn off for me now after coming across some very nice yachts on very nice looking sites only to find out the yacht was sold several months ago if not years!
If I now come across a yacht on a private site I immediately think it's going to be out of date so don't bother pursuing further. At least on a brokerage I know is current status.

 

[colind3782]

We bought Sargantana through Boatshed Barcelona who were very helpful throughout. However, the various Boatshed branches are franchises and there can be quite a variation in quality.

 

[V1701]

Could try making a website to better show off the boat & then linking to it from lots of different places. Sold 4 this way & it's about the best way to sell particularly good examples of smaller, older boats IMHO. See the link in my signature which describes the process, there's examples of sites I've made (& one below), useful info & links to help you DIY or I can do the website for you if you like (very reasonable cost)...

http://beneteau423.moonfruit.com/

 

[longjohnsilver]

That's my view too, as a first time buyer. It seems most private sellers have a very optimistic view of their boats worth.
On the subject of private sellers, do-it-yourself websites are a turn off for me now after coming across some very nice yachts on very nice looking sites only to find out the yacht was sold several months ago if not years!
If I now come across a yacht on a private site I immediately think it's going to be out of date so don't bother pursuing further. At least on a brokerage I know is current status.

Whilst I can't disagree about some the status of some private sites, the same can equally be said about brokers sites, often boats are listed which have already been sold.

My earlier post re Ebay for a relatively inexpensive boat reflects my own experience having sold a similarly priced RIB on Ebay in November within 3 days.

 

[Skylark]

That's my view too, as a first time buyer. It seems most private sellers have a very optimistic view of their boats worth.
On the subject of private sellers, do-it-yourself websites are a turn off for me now after coming across some very nice yachts on very nice looking sites only to find out the yacht was sold several months ago if not years!
If I now come across a yacht on a private site I immediately think it's going to be out of date so don't bother pursuing further. At least on a brokerage I know is current status.

This is a very interesting perception. I'm now just starting to try to sell my current boat privately and I'd be very happy to buy privately, too. From my past experience, I find that most Brokers (granted not all) are still living in the Arthur Daley period of the 1970's auto trade. Your comment about private sellers having an optimistic view of their boats worth is, sadly, probably very true, however

 

[lustyd]

It seems most private sellers have a very optimistic view of their boats worth.

The main problem here is that the vast majority of s/h boats are in terrible condition, so anyone selling a good one will want to price higher than those to justify the money spent keeping the boat in good condition and adding new bits. The reality is that the poor condition ones do eventually sell either to naive first time buyers or their price drops to a point where it's worth while. The good boats often sell at the price being asked for the poor ones once the owner gets serious about selling.
I recently went through this process with a forumite who wanted to buy Live Magic - I didn't want to sell so didn't budge on the price I would have sold at. He understood this so no hard feelings. It's likely that in a year or two I will sell for less than he offered, but that will be when I want to sell and have the immediate funds to trade up.

 

[Scaramoosh]

Its like any form of marketing - the right route to market is dependant on who (or what) the market is.

For an expensive boat (£100K+) I would personally go through Ancasta, the have sold two boats for me over the last 5 or 6years, one went to Sweeden and the other stayed on the Hamble!. The Sweedish sale would never have happened without their reach.

For you boat, how far do you think buyers will travel, is it likely that someone who goes into Ancasta Brighton will drive on spec to Cornwall to see you boat? If you think the answer is yes then a big broker with lots of reach would be right.

If the buyer is likely to be local, which of your local Brokers has a good selection of boats in your price / size / quality range on their books and how many have they sold in the last year? It could be still that Ancasta's local office is your best bet (with the added benefit of potential reach to their other sites) or you might have someone who specialises in your part of the market.

I would suggest that the lowest commission rate is not nessesarily the key issue, A faster sale may well cost less in the long run.

A visit to all of the local potential brokers with some key questions would seem to be a wise move.

 

[prv]

At least on a brokerage I know is current status.

!!!

Errm, nope. Our old boat was still all over the Web two years after we bought her, via a broker.

If anything, I'd expect a private site to come down (or say "sold") quicker than a broker's one. The private seller only has one boat to deal with.

Pete

 

[V1701]

I don't think over estimating a boat's worth is restricted to private sellers, nearly all boats for sale are effectively overpriced if only due to the dire state of the market & (some) brokers deliberately do it to get the seller to sign up with them. I see lots of boats for sale with brokers & there's no way on this earth they're going to achieve close to asking price...