Advice / comments on selling a boat?

[gareth h]

My father is trying to sell his boat as it has become a bit much for him, it has been on the market for about a year, this is the brokerage who are selling it on his behalf:
http://www.broomboats.com/boatsales/boats-for-sale...
The price appears to be competitive, any advice on why it might not be selling?
Thanks
Gareth

[paintman]

Not a lot of money around & this is the time of year when people are trying to offload boats.
If it's only advertised through them then it may not be getting the exposure that an ad on other more general boating sites - or even an ebay classified ad - would bring.

Edited by paintman on Sunday 4th October 18:16

[gareth h]

Yes, I guess winter isn't the best time to sell, but it's been on the market for over a year, is there anywhere else we should be advertising?

[ecsrobin]

Whilst I can't comment on the specifics I believe it's quite common for boats to be up for sale for a long period of time. Certainly judging by how many are out the water at the marina I sail from and all for sale it appears to be the same boats everytime I'm there.

I'm guessing the ones that go are the ones with standout features or in immaculate condition?

[oldnewbie]

I believe Brooms recently sold one of the same model for £45k, it also had the more desirable Volvo engines maybe there is a clue.

[Huntsman]

oldnewbie said:

I believe Brooms recently sold one of the same model for £45k, it also had the more desirable Volvo engines maybe there is a clue.

Big clue.

The HT6.354 Perkins. Horizontal. Turbo charged. 6 cylinder. 354 cubic inches.

Was not a great motor when new, now parts availability for the bits that we're added to make it horizontal, an extra oil pump is NLA. Pistons are now NLA. If one is a contra engine then the water pump and camshaft are NLA.

Charge cooler body is cast iron and has sea water in it. Its £1000. Exhaust manifold is cast iron and full of sea water, its £1000. There's an exhaust riser on the HT6, NLA for a long time, but has been re-made recently.

It looks a nice well kept boat, but sadly, at the first hint of mechanical trouble its a re-power project.

Walk into a Perkins or Cummins agent as buy a new pair and you'll be £30k lighter....

[Simpo Two]

A year - not good. My first thought was that it's a lot of boat for the money. So perhaps the broker is no good. Try www.nya.co.uk - they do well in searches.

Then I read the comments about the engines. I don't know that much detail so there's a fair chance yer average buyer won't either but twin 185hp diesels is bonkers for an inshore craft. You don't need to know much to know they will be expensive to run, probably noisy and very overpowered.

But the broker is a supposed to be a professional boat seller - ask them why it's not selling.

[belleair302]

It is all about advertising, reaching the right market and passing a marine survey. If the paperwork is strong, mechanically sound and cosmetically appealing then it just needs better marketing to a broader consumer marketplace. Simple. Don't drop the price but do improve where it is seen.

[hidetheelephants]

Huntsman said:

oldnewbie said:

I believe Brooms recently sold one of the same model for £45k, it also had the more desirable Volvo engines maybe there is a clue.

Big clue.

The HT6.354 Perkins. Horizontal. Turbo charged. 6 cylinder. 354 cubic inches.

Was not a great motor when new, now parts availability for the bits that we're added to make it horizontal, an extra oil pump is NLA. Pistons are now NLA. If one is a contra engine then the water pump and camshaft are NLA.

Charge cooler body is cast iron and has sea water in it. Its £1000. Exhaust manifold is cast iron and full of sea water, its £1000. There's an exhaust riser on the HT6, NLA for a long time, but has been re-made recently.

It looks a nice well kept boat, but sadly, at the first hint of mechanical trouble its a re-power project.

Walk into a Perkins or Cummins agent as buy a new pair and you'll be £30k lighter....

What they said. You're trying to sell a motorboat with engines anyone with any knowledge(or who seeks advice from a experienced mobo-er) will avoid with vigour, even if it is otherwise in very good condition(which the photos suggest it is). Either drop the price or brace for a very long wait for someone to buy it.

[Sealine South]

Hi. For a boat it be for sale for over a year IS uncommon. We have sold over 100 boats this year with the average sale time around 5 weeks.

Give James Fraser at NYA a call. He'll be able to give you an ACCURATE valuation and list it for you as he knows that market like no other. He may even buy it for stock off your father. Either way I'd be surprised if she doesn't sell at the right money fairly quickly.

BTW. Winter is still busy, we have sold 4 boats so far this week.

Good luck

Ben

[RumRunner]

Interesting, I sell out of just our North Wales office over 100 boats a year, more than any other of our offices. However it can be common to have them on for 12months. Normally the issue is owners spending money on them and thinking they are going to see it back. Most owners think there boat is best and worth loads more than it is. If unrealistic it can take time to manage there expectations even when you tell them from the start.
Remember the one's on the net are the one's not sold so it does not make them always worth that figure. Many are old so similar to buying a old car condition condition. Old power boats can be much less desirable, power boats are a bit of a show tool, so showing off in 20 year old mondeo does not cut the cool. Also the case of spending 2k on replacement mondeo engine, seats covers and wheel trims makes it worth very little extra but boat owners think otherwise.
I see very few that are so called mint by owners ,generally those are likely to be something big with a crew.
We have been twice as busy in Sept and Oct than July and August.

Edited by RumRunner on Saturday 10th October 00:41

[Huntsman]

Sealine South said:

Hi. For a boat it be for sale for over a year IS uncommon. We have sold over 100 boats this year with the average sale time around 5 weeks.

Give James Fraser at NYA a call. He'll be able to give you an ACCURATE valuation and list it for you as he knows that market like no other. He may even buy it for stock off your father. Either way I'd be surprised if she doesn't sell at the right money fairly quickly.

BTW. Winter is still busy, we have sold 4 boats so far this week.

Good luck

Ben

To be fair though, the kind of stock you sell is likely to be fast moving.

Lots of older or more esoteric stuff will take longer to sell.

The boat in question I fear is at the wrong price.