Marina renting out slip when gone

[alctel]

The first place I was they allowed you to sublet your slip for the full amount while you were gone, not sure if they still do that

The last marina I was in they gave you 50% credit if they rented it out while you were gone

[Mike OReilly]

This is making me curious about my own slip contract. Last season, and likely the coming one, we rented a seasonal slip. Turns out to be cheaper this way. But we're gone for most of the season, so it sits empty much of the time.

[argonauta1]

I would sublet ours and did for months when we were on our circumnavigation. Marina went along with it but the renter needed to obey local rules.

[Colonel Bob]

Originally Posted by Jerry Woodward

I have a slip in a SW Florida marina. I have an annual deal which means I pay for the slip even when I'm gone. Currently I'm out cruising for 2 months and I know that the marina is renting my slip to transient boaters in my absence.

It seems to me that it would be fair/proper for the marina to negotiate a deal with the slipholder (me) to compensate me some percentage if they rent out my slip. I would be happy with 50%. So they would simply reduce my slip fee based on the amount of income they receive renting out my slip for a given month.

I would be curious if anyone has such a deal with their marina.

Herrington Harbour South at North Beach, MD does exactly that. All around great management team here.

[LTGoshen]

All you have to do is park your fishing boat there while you are out with the big boat. Most every marina reserve the right to sell you spot whilst you ate away. It’s in the contract.
I wish I could negotiate a deal with our marina.

[Ltfdrebbin]

Originally Posted by Mike OReilly

Further to this discussion, I just recalled a situation where I was the beneficiary of someone else's seasonal dock.

I was sailing Lake Erie and was forced to go into a marina to deal with some engine problem. The marina staff directed me to a specific dock which turned out to be someone else's seasonal dock. But the 'owner' had already hauled out for the season, so the marina knew it was open.

I ended up stuck there for almost a week. When I went to pay, the marina waived me off, explaining that they'd already got the full payment from the seasonal owner, so my stay was free. I was pleasantly shocked!

Hopefully it was our slip that you got.

[Sailor80]

I am in a marina in washington state and retired. When we take off for months at a time in the summer or marina rents out our slip and we receive part of the proceeds. Only fair.

[wibi]

This common practice here in Holland - the marine office is quiet open in it - failing to reach the targeted sublet income would lead them to increase the slip fees. (By the way I pay around 2.500 usd in a full serviced marina here for my 37ft sailboat)

[siamese]

I own a condo slip in Michigan, where there are about 240 slips total.

Any slip owner can rent their slip out for the entire season for any amount they can negotiate with a renter. The association doesn't get a share, other than the HOA fee already being paid.

If we leave our slip for more than a couple days, we notify the marina of our absence so they can rent it to a transient. The marina association keeps the rental fee. Which is fine with me, as it's income for the association of which I am an owner/member.

With regards to the OP's marina, I see nothing wrong with what the marina is doing if it's in the contract.

[leboyd]

Originally Posted by sailingunity

Would be nice, but most marinas are out to make money.

I've contemplated starting a marina that really understands and caters to boaters. It seems like most of them these days don't understand that especially as they get bought up by large corporations.

Uh... Isn't that what most businesses are trying to do? If you open you're own marina are you "out to make money" or be a charity?

I don't own or have any financial interest in a marina, so I'm not trying to defend any marina, or any specific business for that matter.

But I do own a business and I am "out to make money" with that business. The vendors I use also seem to be "out to make money" and I'm glad they are. I want them around for a while so I can continue to do business with them.

[OS2Dude]

Originally Posted by Stephen_MO

It is an income stream against costs of doing business for the marina. If they didn't do that your annual slip rental gets more expensive than you are currently paying because they have to pass costs and margins on to customers via price.

I disagree. Their income wouldn't go up if folks stayed put all year, so by your logic if no one went cruising the rates would go up? They are just doing it to make MORE money. All the contracts I've seen prohibit the lessee from sub-leasing the slip, so why do they get to? What happens if the lessee comes back earlier than expected and finds another boat in their slip?

[LeighWebber]

I notify my marina of my absences and they can rent it out to transients. I get credited for 30% of the transient fee (which works out to about 40% or so of my annual fee divided by 365, because transient moorage costs more than annual). To me that feels fair both for me and to other boaters who need a place to tie up for a couple of days.

[Mike OReilly]

I see the practice more along the lines of being able to accommodate transients, while still maximizing income.

In my limited experience, it used to be common for marinas to hold a few slips permanently open to accommodate transient boaters. Transients can be good for business*, but this is also part of basic (good) seamanship to be able to offer a non-resident traveller dockage space.

By renting out vacant seasonal slips, the marina has the best of all financial worlds. PLUS, it remains able to accommodate transient boats.

Seems like a win-win to me.

As a seasonal dock renter, I lose nothing when my slip is rented -- while I am not there. If I come back and my slip is not available, THEN I have an issue. But during the period I'm not using it, I lose nothing by having someone else in it. So what's the big deal?

It helps the marina, and helps fellow transient boaters. And clearly, if this becomes a significant revenue stream for the marina, it would factor into the costs of everything, including seasonal slips. In a competitive market, it would help keep seasonal slip costs down.


* If you also sell fuel, and have other services like pump outs, repairs, chandlery, restaurants/pub, etc.

[gulfislandfred]

When I was at the Port of Port Townsend, Washington, (1970s to 1990s) we had a deal for permanent slip holders. Tell the office if you'll be gone, and the slip will be made available to transients. Lots of us left for months in the summer, so they could give a transient a monthly rate, and sometimes, on a busy weekend, the transient would be gone for a week, and the marina could put a third boat in overnight!
I don't remember the details, but we got a discount when we participated. I think the marina tried different things over the years. Sometimes based on what they got paid by transients, sometimes a flat rate to hold the slip.
There were times when we got back, and our slip wasn't empty. The moorage folks would make sure we had a place to tie up (I've stayed at the gas dock overnight when I got back late), but everyone worked together, staff apologized for inconvenience, and it got sorted out. Usually the transient boat was supposed to be gone, but they hadn't left.

There was a discount in the storage yard for folks who kept their boats out all winter. They could be put behind more active haulouts, so the yards were able to hold more boats.
As a local government entity, there was a real desire to serve as many people as possible with the resources available, as well as increase income. Friendly, small town attitude.

[OBT]

Leave an old dinghy in the slip while you’re gone. It might provide you with some negotiating leverage.