Bargain boats: hurricane-damaged, long-forgotten, what have you

[Papasail]

Since Lake Mead is almost bone dry, you might find some interesting boats there….

* and I’m not sure why the boats have to be hurricane damaged…. there are simply tons of well made sailboats that people have allowed to become derelict: the bones are still great/ just TLC: circa 1980.

[hlev00]

Your idea seems like madness but I think Expedition Evans used this outfit

https://www.salvageboatsauction.com/

Good luck. You are going to need it.

[ben2go]

Originally Posted by heavyworks

I am looking for boats in Florida, mainly in the Tampa Bay region, that are priced well below average. They can be damaged in a hurricane, or be rarely used and now long-forgotten in a marina slip somewhere, or they can have their own reasons for being low-priced. I don’t mind. I would like to buy them, ship them over to Turkey, have them refitted there, and sell them in the local market there.

1) Does anybody have or know of such boats? Where and how can I find them?

2) Do you think this is straight out madness or possibly a viable business idea?

Go to boat yards and marinas and ask them about this. That's what I have done and found some pretty decent boats for short money. None of them fit my future plans.

[mocha]

as someone in the Tampa Bay area, you'll need to consider this, many if not most boats on the Gulf Coast of Florida are SHALLOW draft boats, and I'm not sure how that would work in Turkey - Gulf of Mexico is notorious for skinny water along the coastline -

if you're not a mechanic, carpenter, boatwright, etc. FORGET about this idea.
if you can't do the required work on your own, you'll never make any money.

Finding skilled, honest, reliable, reasonable craftsmen is impossible. Due to supply chain issues, finding parts for an older boat, who's manufacturer is long out of business, impossible at best.

Best of Luck!

[Sailortobe]

Why not search for "boat donations" in your area of interest like boat angel etc.
They have derelict boats that I'm sure they'll sell you.

[OneBoatman]

Insurance companies have designated groups that look to sell such "total loss" boat either back to the customer or other that are interested should their customer not chosse to re-purchase them. Shipping these boats along with the cost of storage and repair materials will eat up 90% of the value gained at the time you get out. The rest will eaten up in aggravation. You would better off finding a foreclosed or defunct business near the sites in Fl or other horricane vulnerable areas, and then flying in small teams of Turkesh workers on temporary work visas to restore and flip the boats. Unless you have captains willing to sail away. The biggest hurdle is that in the USA it is extremely difficult to insure such boats up to what a customer might buy them for as would allow you to make a profit and of course the buyers would blame this on you.

[Sailortobe]

Do a search for boat donations like boat angels , I'm sure they have derelict boats that they would sell you

[Cynara]

First where do you plan on reselling the boats.

If it is in Europe then do you have to rewire, may have to do that anyway.
Do you have people on both sides that really know boats

Make sure you have a great business plan so you can get the money to start, don't use your own money.

[carlosproa]

The powerboat market is huge and buyers are not as savvy as sailboat buyers. You can pile more than one in a double container, and be able to ship replacement parts with it. I am assuming you are looking at powerboats as with sailboats there is the added complication of transporting the mast, and in the case of monohulls, added weight of keels that May exceed the tare limit weight of the container.
With the great import laws you have in Turkey - 6670, very little if none import taxes are due as long as the vessel has an overseas tittle and is transferred into Turkey flag ownership.
So why not? If labor is cheap, and you can squeeze the necessary materials as part of the import process- you should be OK

[jay2rocket]

If you limited yourself to boats that can fit in a shipping container this could be workable. I knew someone in Oakland, CA (a big port) that - purely as as sidejob - bought (only great condition) used Toyota 4WD pickups, the simple ones that can be easily maintained, and put them in shipping containers and shipped them to Africa where a partner - also as a sidejob - sold them.

[heavyworks]

Originally Posted by MikeHoncho

Hey, if he wants to ship all of our derilique boats to Turkey and clean up our marinas I’m all for it! I’d hit up every marina and ask for auction boats. My marina has probably 6-10 right now.

Could you / would you share the name and location of the marina?

[heavyworks]

Originally Posted by Papasail

Since Lake Mead is almost bone dry, you might find some interesting boats there….

* and I’m not sure why the boats have to be hurricane damaged…. there are simply tons of well made sailboats that people have allowed to become derelict: the bones are still great/ just TLC: circa 1980.

I read an article about that. It really blew my mind! Could it potentially be a gold mine for this purpose?

[heavyworks]

Originally Posted by hlev00

Your idea seems like madness but I think Expedition Evans used this outfit

https://www.salvageboatsauction.com/

Good luck. You are going to need it.

This appears to be superbly useful! Thank you very much. Hey, we all need a bit of luck. ������

[heavyworks]

Originally Posted by ben2go

Go to boat yards and marinas and ask them about this. That's what I have done and found some pretty decent boats for short money. None of them fit my future plans.

Thank you very much for the advice. I will definitely take it. ������

1) Do you happen to know any marinas good for this purpose around Tampa Bay Area (or anywhere else in Florida)?

2) Who should I find? Who should I speak with in terms of personnel in a marina/boatyard?

[heavyworks]

Originally Posted by mocha

as someone in the Tampa Bay area, you'll need to consider this, many if not most boats on the Gulf Coast of Florida are SHALLOW draft boats, and I'm not sure how that would work in Turkey - Gulf of Mexico is notorious for skinny water along the coastline -

if you're not a mechanic, carpenter, boatwright, etc. FORGET about this idea.
if you can't do the required work on your own, you'll never make any money.

Finding skilled, honest, reliable, reasonable craftsmen is impossible. Due to supply chain issues, finding parts for an older boat, who's manufacturer is long out of business, impossible at best.

Best of Luck!

Shallow draft boats may not be exactly ideal in the Mediterranean, thanks for the insight. I consider limiting my search for these boats by certain boat types/length intervals/year. Older models’ parts might be harder to obtain, very valid point.

I am an Ocean Engineer and Naval Architect as per my undergrad degree. I worked in different fields over the years. Now I am truly humbled by how little I know about this particular problem/question/field at hand. There are numerous intricate details at play here. However, this problem statement is the core question, the raison d’être of a startup idea. All of your insightful ideas are much appreciated, fellow denizens.