Catamaran shopping in S. Florida?

[Stratos]

Wife and I are flying to S. Florida the first week of June to do some boat shopping...38-42' catamarans under 200K. If this was you where would you begin? Broker or not? Areas that may have a large FSBO selection? Got a week to just look and compare.
Hoping the wisdom here will save us some time and make some recommendations!!
We know the internet has lots of listings..but where else could we look for those listings by owner?
Would anyone recommend just walking the marinas looking for " For Sale" signs??
First trip to S. Florida..So specifics would be appreciated.

[monte]

I'd probably jump on a plane and head to Martinique if you have the time.
https://www.leboncoin.fr/nautisme/of...Catamaran&sp=1

[Stratos]

Thanks for the link Monte.... Just applied for our passports..so will be doing the first stage of shopping in country...planning on Caribbean in august.

[dennismenace111]

Originally Posted by Stratos

Wife and I are flying to S. Florida the first week of June to do some boat shopping...38-42' catamarans under 200K. If this was you where would you begin? Broker or not? Areas that may have a large FSBO selection? Got a week to just look and compare.
Hoping the wisdom here will save us some time and make some recommendations!!
We know the internet has lots of listings..but where else could we look for those listings by owner?
Would anyone recommend just walking the marinas looking for " For Sale" signs??
First trip to S. Florida..So specifics would be appreciated.

Check out Catamaran COmpany website...I always see boats with their for sale signs on them docked at private docks in Ft. Lauderdale...not so much at Marinas...but Im sure those exist too...I just dont frequent Ft.Lauderdale marinas very often....my tax bracket is too low..if you know what I mean.

[monte]

Good luck. With the USD being strong against the EUR it might make sense to try buy in EUR. At least you can use those prices to compare. A lot of the Caribbean yachts for sale are European so the owners are wanting their price in EUR, not USD, so you can find deals in any of the Caribbean islands from a European seller. Finding one with no VAT paid will likely save some more dollars as well. Skipping the broker will also likely make for a saving.

[amiller]

Originally Posted by monte

I'd probably jump on a plane and head to Martinique if you have the time.
https://www.leboncoin.fr/nautisme/of...Catamaran&sp=1

I'm pretty electrical ignorant. How does the 220V setup of some of these Euro boats impact livability in US waters? Difficulty with shore power? With household appliances? With resale to US buyers down the road?

[Cadence]

Rather than waste you time walking marinas, I would call them and ask the dock master if they have any for sale by owner or broker that fits your needs. You would cover a lot more territory. I would start calling now from home. For that matter they are generally wired into the area and may provide a lead someplace else?

[Scaramanga F25]

Call caroline at catco. She know them all.

[Tom and Maje]

Originally Posted by Stratos

Wife and I are flying to S. Florida the first week of June to do some boat shopping...38-42' catamarans under 200K. If this was you where would you begin? Broker or not? Areas that may have a large FSBO selection? Got a week to just look and compare.
Hoping the wisdom here will save us some time and make some recommendations!!
We know the internet has lots of listings..but where else could we look for those listings by owner?
Would anyone recommend just walking the marinas looking for " For Sale" signs??
First trip to S. Florida..So specifics would be appreciated.

I can highly recommend our broker, Jeff Jones, at the Multihull Company. PM me if you want his contact info. He is all about his customer, and will do his best to get you the best deal.

Just flying down to look at boats is, IMO, a waste of time. You want to have boats ready to look at when you make a trip. Jeff probably knows every catamaran on the market, and if he doesn't know the boat from before, he'll find out everything there is to know about it.

Narrow down your budget, figure out what you want in a boat, and he can help with the rest.

Maje

[wcapital]

Lots of cats in the BVI as well, and close together. [Shameless plug: including ours - St. Francis 44 offered @ $149k - great boat but in need of some refitting.] Carol & Greg @ 123Hulls in Tortola have decades of multihull history as well, much of it in FL - and close relationships w/ other veteran brokers in St. Augustine. Google their website and give them a call.

[monte]

Originally Posted by amiller

I'm pretty electrical ignorant. How does the 220V setup of some of these Euro boats impact livability in US waters? Difficulty with shore power? With household appliances? With resale to US buyers down the road?

Lots of options there, mostly pretty inexpensive. Most of the boats run on 12V systems so it's just a matter of recharging house batteries. Cheapest option maybe a shore power cord that converts 110 to 240 or a cheap 110v charger for around $50. More expensive options might be a multi input converter AP to a couple of thousand dollars.

[Stratos]

We are in contact with Jeff Jones and Caroline L., first thing we did was contact several brokers and setup several viewings.
Thanks for all the suggestions, keep em coming!

[SVrider44224]

From my experience, more industrial than marine, the bigger concern is the 50hz v 60hz.
Converting voltage seems to be simple, changing frequency, not so much.

[Cadence]

Look into a buck/boost transformer for 220 to 240 or via/versa. Any good commercial electrical supplier should be able to help you. In the US you may have to get someone with a tax ID if the supplier is strictly a whole sale business.