Pay $50 to see a boat??!

[massnspace]

It seems to me something is broken in the yacht broker/potential buyer relationship.

I have been (trying) to contact brokers to ask questions and possibly see different sailboats I am interested in BUYING.

But I have had similar responses to others I have read about on this forum. No call back, no return email, etc. etc. And the ones who I was able to contact seemed a bit antagonistic. Not all, but quite a few….

My proposal: Yacht brokers should charge a small fee to look at a boat. Let’s say $50. Fee would be applied to the final purchase price, if one buys the boat. Maybe also like $10 to recieve a return phone call with the promise of having time to ask and get answered your important questions.

As a buyer, I would happily pay this. It would be a very, very small percentage of the final amount I will be paying for the privilege to own a new (used) boat (even if I looked at multiple boats).

As a broker, this would tend to weed out all the lookers, which I understand from reading threads here is the number one reason brokers won’t return inquiries.

A win-win, I would argue.

Any ideas?

David
Seattle

[mvweebles]

Pay a broker twice to do the same job? I don't think so.....

[Jammer]

Brokers will lose money showing boats to people who won't buy for $50. It takes half a day to show a boat, in most cases. So you would still have brokers picking and choosing which clients and which boats they will spend their time on.

[boatpoker]

I have sold two previous (37' & 41') boats without a broker as being a local surveyor I just did not want any conflict.

I got so sick and tired of the lookie loos that I came up with the perfect answer to the most common question ... it made them leave right away ...

Lookie - Why are you selling the boat ?
Me - I'm dying.

[Knotical]

Don’t agree with OP.

From a buyer’s perspective - I saw 16-18 boats before I bought our current one, not because I didn’t intend to buy, but other boats were no where close to their described state in the ads, by that account I would have lost 750-850 dollars. Also, do we give out our CC number every time we call the broker?

From a broker’s perspective - will I be satisfied with just $50 to show the boat to a buyer who now feels entitled just because he is paying? How much is enough - 50, 100, 500? Where do you draw the line?

[leecea]

When we bought our boat we did all the online research we could and narrowed things down to certain models.

Then we looked at one example of each model because no matter how many pictures we'd seen, seeing the real thing was important to us. From that we picked the model we wanted.

Then we looked at four of that model that had issues and finally the 5th one was good and we bought it.

So I guess we were useless "lookers" to everyone except the final boat.

That said, we used a buyer's broker who showed most of the boats and maybe it gave us credibility as a buyer.

[Island Time O25]

It's a problem to which ALL parties involved have contributed to. The sellers with their unrealistic pricing. The brokers with photos which hide the negatives and mislead the buyers. And the buyers often having no clear idea what they are looking for in a boat. Fixing one part of this equation without fixing the other parts will do very little to alleviate the problem.

[massnspace]

Originally Posted by Jammer

Brokers will lose money showing boats to people who won't buy for $50. It takes half a day to show a boat, in most cases. So you would still have brokers picking and choosing which clients and which boats they will spend their time on.

It doesn’t take half a day to show a boat. At least any boat I have looked at for an initial look-see. Just takes an hour.

This would make the brokers job of “picking and choosing” a lot easier, as most who are not really interested wouldn’t pay the fee. So a win for the broker…

[massnspace]

Originally Posted by Knotical

Don’t agree with OP.

From a buyer’s perspective - I saw 16-18 boats before I bought our current one, not because I didn’t intend to buy, but other boats were no where close to their described state in the ads, by that account I would have lost 750-850 dollars. Also, do we give out our CC number every time we call the broker?

From a broker’s perspective - will I be satisfied with just $50 to show the boat to a buyer who now feels entitled just because he is paying? How much is enough - 50, 100, 500? Where do you draw the line?

If you looked at close to 20 boats, then perhaps you are part of the problem that prevents me from looking at any. Brokers who won’t reply to me.

Also. Why be reluctant to spend $850? That is a small cost in the boating world, and you probably ended up with a great boat, way cheaper than if you had only looked at a couple and ended up with one that needed a bunch of work. In other words, you would save money by spending the $850. (If you know what to look for).

And yes, give the broker your CC number. Takes about 10 seconds…

The broker can set a price to see the boat. Let the market decide. I would pay it, if it led to me getting good, expedient info on a very large purchase…

[Tsuru]

I think the the boat brokerage market ebbs and flows, sometimes hot and sometimes not. I sold our last 2 boats and appreciate the amount of work it takes.
I kept the boat clean, orderly, and ready to show. I made handouts that detailed the boat and inventory. I took photos that accurately showed the boats condition. I was respectful to every caller and thanked them for their interest. There were many more contacts either email of phone than showings. In every case the 1st or 2nd party that viewed the boats bought them (although there was several more showings). Everyone who viewed our boats commented that they looked as good or better than the advertisement photos.
I don’t feel that any of the potential buyers wasted my time. In many cases email messages went on for days, with concerns, details, or general questions.
Selling a boat is a lot of work, much of it unappreciated.
My advice is to make an appointment with a broker in Seattle. There are a couple large ones. Explain your situation and ask for their help. Detail what you are looking for and how you will pay for it. Let them do the leg work and set up showings.
Good luck, it shouldn’t be so hard to buy a boat.

[Knotical]

Originally Posted by massnspace

If you looked at close to 20 boats, then perhaps you are part of the problem that prevents me from looking at any. Brokers who won’t reply to me.

Also. Why be reluctant to spend $850? That is a small cost in the boating world, and you probably ended up with a great boat, way cheaper than if you had only looked at a couple and ended up with one that needed a bunch of work. In other words, you would save money by spending the $850. (If you know what to look for).

And yes, give the broker your CC number. Takes about 10 seconds…

The broker can set a price to see the boat. Let the market decide. I would pay it, if it led to me getting good, expedient info on a very large purchase…

At least I saw close to 20 boats, and the brokers showed em to me

A couple of those brokers (fellow boat owners) have become good friends, they are professionals and will throw the 50 back at ya, treat them with respect, build relationships, and they’ll return the favor, it’s not all about the money.

[Mike OReilly]

Pay them money to do the job that they are already being paid to do — and that they AGREED to do? Seems wrong to me.

If a broker won’t respond to queries, and won’t show a boat to potential buyers, then they’re not doing their job. It’s a good signal to look elsewhere. This is not the kind of person I want to deal with. Unless the boat is unique or an incredible deal, I’d look elsewhere. And/or I’d try and contact the seller directly, and at least inform them that their broker is not doing the job.

[Peregrine1983]

Would being represented by a buyer's broker make them take you more seriously? Are buyer's brokers a thing in yacht sales?

[Mike OReilly]

Originally Posted by Peregrine1983

Would being represented by a buyer's broker make them take you more seriously? Are buyer's brokers a thing in yacht sales?

Seems to me that having a buyer’s broker would be a disincentive to the seller’s broker. The commission will have to be split in two.

[Jammer]

Originally Posted by Peregrine1983

Would being represented by a buyer's broker make them take you more seriously? Are buyer's brokers a thing in yacht sales?

They are if you're spending enough money that both brokers can eat something besides ramen noodles.