G'day, Springbok
Florida is a good place from which to search - especially this time of year, when the
boats will usually be in commission unless stored, unlike those on the Cheasapeake and in
New England. My guess: You receive poor response from brokers because a) they must get your kind of query all the time (from tire kickers and dreamers far more than realistic, cash in hand buyers), and because a given agency's/brokerage's number of brokers has probably dropped over the last year (terrible sales numbers) so fewer hands to carry the workload, such as it is.
What you are considering has been done a great deal over the last few years due to a depressed U.S. dollar, large inventory (and breadth of selection) of yachts
for sale, and the 'easy escape' to the
Caribbean and points E or W from Florida. We've met Europeans, Aussies and Kiwis who've all purchased a
USA boat because
price and selection back home were bettered by what was offered in the
USA.
Florida recently changed its 'no tax' grace period for yachts being purchased; I believe it is now 90 days that you can have your boat on the hook or in a berth without tax liability. After that, tax liability is waived if it goes into a boatyard (tho' there are guidelines related to this).
Registration outside the USA is the right answer for someone thinking of sailing back home.
The 'no tax on cats' business sounds like a generalization. Any boat
sold in the States is going to incur a sales tax liability on the seller...but if you are a visitor here on a short-term visa and exit the country after the
sale AND if you sell privately, I can't imagine how that liability will apply to you after the fact. If you list the yacht and sell it through a
broker, they are obligated by state law to collect sales tax unless an exemption applies (see above).
If
purchasing a boat in Florida, there is no state of federal requirement that you insure it...altho' it is becoming more common for municipalities and private companies operating
marinas to require at least 3rd party liability insurance. Since this is unevenly practiced, you could
work around that issue. If you plan to insure for the period you begin to 'seriously sail' the
new boat offshore, you had best arrange that through an insurance broker. I'd shop both in
Europe (at the least, Pantaenius -
::: Pantaenius Yacht Insurance - Pantaenius Yachtversicherung :::) and the USA (plus SA if that seems competitive).
Jack
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