Yachts will be given away????

[CAPTAIN FANTASTIC]

I wonder how many boats will be given away next season when economy bites hard due to apocalyptic Brexit failure coupled with the biblical failure of the coronavirus government policies. Boris will find a way out of the huge unemployment by initiating major construction projects to keep the workforce and trades busy and unemployment down.

Would this be enough to avoid many yachties from having to get rid of their boats as many would be unable to maintain.??? Perhaps Boris should be persuaded to help to kick-start the British Yachting industry too.

 

[Zagato]

Seems the majority have never been so well off. 2k paid off debts on average and people have money to spend from all the self employment coucil pay outs (10K for just renting out a shepherds hut every now and then in one case I know which would take years to reap that) and govt hand outs. Some garages I know have done really well, 10K plus handouts plus furlough and they have continued to work, maybe the same as a few hairdressers but I dont know. My industry has benefited, we have all never been so busy... I think it is the shop workers and alike that are hardest hit, people who probably don,t own boats in the first place...

They should be putting money into supporting production and local industry not blimmen nail bars, restaurants and fast food outlets etc. Not exactly necessary are they. Why can,t people learn to cook their own food. We need to go back to producing are own stuff...

I have friends who spend £30 on a meal, cinema ticket, or even a flaming Mac Donald's. They burn money on car PCP's, holiday resorts, iPad, iPods, x boxes, trainers, TV,s etc etc... and they complain they can,t afford a nice house and live in social housing! Sorry going off track there. lol!

 

[Poignard]

My boat is in France and I have considered what I might do if I were prevented for some reason from bringing her to the UK, should I wish to.

If that happened, and I was unable to sell her there, I would rather give her away to one of the many French men, and women, who have admired her than condemn her to being broken up for scrap.

 

[38mess]

It's been happening for years. Cheaper to give them away rather than pay next year's fees. I gave away my lovely little kestrel 22 years ago when I couldn't sell her, and I needed my mooring for my new boat. I'm pretty sure it's going to be a lot worse next year

 

[johnalison]

The second-hand market seems to have picked up recently, so at least some people are being optimistic. All those unemployed folk will have to do something with their spare time, so they may as well go sailing. My own feeling is that post-Brexit/Covid things will be very difficult for two or three years, and if the country seeks a change of government, maybe for another ten years, like the '70s, but pessimism can become a self-fulfilling prophecy and I would like to think that others are planning for a better future.

 

[Sybarite]

My boat is in France and I have considered what I might do if I were prevented for some reason from bringing her to the UK, should I wish to.

If that happened, and I was unable to sell her there, I would rather give her away to one of the many French men, and women, who have admired her than condemn her to being broken up for scrap.

Er....what sort of a boat is it?....

 

[Carib]

I wouldn't be so sure of a crash - I've seen several indications that, due to Covid, boats are actually in great demand at the moment (e.g. a statement on the Yachtsnet broker site). People have seen the advantages of having a self-contained way to go on holiday without the uncertainty of travel cancellations etc, or perhaps they'd normally charter but can't do so now and are unsure about being able to next year. Perhaps a broker with knowledge of the market will comment!

 

[hairbox]

Hi anyone giving away their boat I am looking for a 35ft sailing vessel to compete in the Golden Globe race, I would return it to on completion if you were in a better position so its a loan really.

 

[Poignard]

Er....what sort of a boat is it?....

Get in the queue!

 

[AntarcticPilot]

I wouldn't be so sure of a crash - I've seen several indications that, due to Covid, boats are actually in great demand at the moment (e.g. a statement on the Yachtsnet broker site). People have seen the advantages of having a self-contained way to go on holiday without the uncertainty of travel cancellations etc, or perhaps they'd normally charter but can't do so now and are unsure about being able to next year. Perhaps a broker with knowledge of the market will comment!

The local broker at Titchmarsh told me that they are really struggling to meet demand - that far more people are buying than are selling!

 

[Buck Turgidson]

I wonder how many boats will be given away next season when economy bites hard due to apocalyptic Brexit failure coupled with the biblical failure of the coronavirus government policies. Boris will find a way out of the huge unemployment by initiating major construction projects to keep the workforce and trades busy and unemployment down.

Would this be enough to avoid many yachties from having to get rid of their boats as many would be unable to maintain.??? Perhaps Boris should be persuaded to help to kick-start the British Yachting industry too.

Is that you Keir?

 

[Stemar]

High demand now makes sense; no one in their right mind would head off to foreign parts with no guarantee of getting home for the sake of a bit of sun and a yacht sounds like fun, but what happens after a couple of holidays on the Costa Wet'nwindy with a seasick wife and bored kids? Some will undoubtedly get infected by the sailing virus, but I'd guess there'll be a fair few who'll find that Management isn't interested and the Break Out Another Thousand joke has stopped being funny.

It won't affect me, I can't see me replacing Jissel, but if I were 10 years younger with blue water ambitions for a few years hence, I'd be feeling optimistic, though the kind of boat I'd chose for blue water probably wouldn't be the kind of AWB that I expect to bear the brunt of a collapse in second hand prices.

 

[Juan Twothree]

The local broker at Titchmarsh told me that they are really struggling to meet demand - that far more people are buying than are selling!

Very true. I've been looking to buy for a few months now, and anything half decent is being snapped up very quickly.

And even the ropey or overpriced ones, that have been on the market for a year or so, have been selling.

Is the market likely to crash next year? A lot of owners seem to be well into retirement, so unemployment wouldn't be an issue, although other economic factors might be.

 

[Kurrawong_Kid]

Problem might be where to put these resurrected boats that have been ashore for a year or two. The marina I am in now has a waiting list! Supports the argument that sales are bouyant.

 

[Cantata]

Market certainly seems to have taken off around here anyway (the SE) - I'm helping a pal look for a 30-ish-footer and he keeps missing them. Brokers around here seem to be selling steadily.

 

[newtothis]

I suspect there are a few people whose sailing usually comes in the form of a couple of weeks chartering each year. With travel restrictions/second waves etc, they are now looking closer to home. If you're not spending 3k a year on chartering, you can spend it on a mooring instead. That gives you a holiday that you can use at will without having to share with other disease vectors people.

 

[Wansworth]

Every cloud has a silver lining?

 

[Concerto]

More evidence that anything to do with holidaying in the UK has recent strong sales comes from people buying tents, caravans, motor homes, mobile homes. We just bought a mobile home close to our daughter's home 225 miles away so we can visit our first grandchild. Finding one was incredibly difficult. We were told during our search that on the first day lockdown was eased a major motor home dealer sold all his new stock and they carried a huge number.

 

[STATUE]

Sold mine two months ago fhew !!!
Well, alright gave it away for a song...
... but I've avoided paying £2,000 disposal fee after 31 October when furlough ends !

 

[Koeketiene]

My boat is in France and I have considered what I might do if I were prevented for some reason from bringing her to the UK, should I wish to.

Have you seen this? Get your boat back to the UK now to avoid post-Brexit import duty, say RYA and British Marine - Sailing Today