BUYING A YACHT
When you're ready to shop,
here are a few of the items that we stay on top of daily.
1. Finding the Boat
- Know the yachts available on the market
- Continually previewing yachts as they come on to the market
- Know the yachts available that are not actively on the market
- Attend continuing education classes and seminars regarding
yacht sales and the law.
- Real value of those those yachts available -
- Market indices and trends
- History of the yachts
- Resale values
- Motivation of the seller
- Provide referrals for insurance
- Potential for trades
- Provide referrals for financing
2. Making the Offer
- Purchase agreement with necessary elements to protect your
interest
- Secure deposit in escrow account in accordance with state law
requirements.
- Industry knowledge to reference surveyors and yards to perform
on your behalf.
- Keep you apprised on tax issues, VAT, or duties that may apply
to a particular vessel.
3. During the Survey
- Knowledge of specific items to look for with various builders.
- Experience with various items that may come up on survey,
whereas your broker can help estimate time and cost of correcting.
- Knowing where to obtain accurate quotes for items that are
unfamiliar.
- Translating pages of written reports into easily understood
language for the Accept or Reject paperwork.
- Inventory of items on board to confirm agreement between both
parties.
4. Closing Paperwork
- Daily coordination of all the players involved in a closing.
Office staff; finance companies; insurance agents; selling agents;
documentation companies; attorneys; offshore corporations; customs
brokers; captains and overseeing any repair work being done prior
to closing, etc.
- Paperwork. There are 23 forms needed at a closing (27 for
foreign flagged vessels). These forms can have a very specific
order whereas execution of a particular form may be necessary to
trigger off the next sequence of events.
- Escrow your funds for transfer to seller pending final
confirmation of all paperwork being in order.
5. After
sale follow up:
- A good broker will help coordinate any work to be done after
the closing.
- Refer crew to hiring for the yacht.
- Assist in arranging new dockage.
- Follow up with documentation company as the yacht is
transferred to new ownership.
- Offer assistance in any way possible to ensure continued
enjoyment of the vessel. And always available to answer new
questions as they come up.
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SELLING A YACHT
At some point.
you're going to want to sell that vessel. And once again that's
where the broker enters. We have a saying in the industry..."If it
was that easy, everyone would be doing it..." It's not that easy to
sell a yacht. It takes time, commitment and a great deal of money.
6. Preparing to sell the boat:
- Pricing the yacht.
- Knowing who your competitors are and where you fit into the
market.
- Advising of any improvements that should be made to compete
within today's market.
7. Preparing materials
- Specifications
- Marketing materials
- Print media
- Electronic media
8. Brokerage open houses
9. Arrange showings
10. Provide
marketing materials to corresponding brokers
11. Continual
updates on price changes, location changes, and sales status
12.
Display in shows
13. Ad placement in magazines
14. Internet
placement
15. Multiple listing placement
16. Responding and
following up on inquiries
17. Qualifying inquiries
18. More
advertising, more boat shows. more follow-up
19. Upon a
successful offer to purchase - repeat all of items 2-5 above.
These are all specific points that we live. breath, and take for
granted. I haven't touched on the intangible benefits. The most
notable intangible is within the art of negotiating the deal. A good
broker provides you with one of the best negotiating tools you will
ever have, "I'll have to discuss that with my client and we'll get
back to you." The element of time and the insulation from an
immediate answer is one of the single biggest leverage factors that
you can bring into any deal.
There are other intangibles that are not as obvious.
The commission doesn't change. Peace of mind at no extra charge.
That commission remains the same whether it's being split two ways
or ten ways. It doesn't cost a penny more to have a broker
representing your interests. And to the buyer, who talks to every
broker so they can be sure that they're dealing directly with the
listing broker (who by the way works for the seller as well), I
would ask you, "Would you use your wife's lawyer?"
And here's one more intangible that you can't put a price on.
After 20 years of selling yachts, I've found many valued friendships
with clients that started when they bought their first boat. We talk
frequently and sometimes not even about boats. I've helped clients
with everything from forwarding their mail while they're cruising to
helping them find pieces of artwork for their homes. Just as every
person is different, so is each client-broker relationship. Each
client is important and a good broker will value that friendship. A
good buyer will find a broker that he or she is comfortable with and
whom you have confidence in. |
