Surveyor in South Florida

[Wolfie]

I think I've found "the" boat! Initial inspections and conversations have all been "right". A bid should be made soon. I need some help finding a good surveyor.

I'm in Chicago, the boat's in South Florida. My broker has suggested John Howe out of Ft. Lauderdale. Others have advised me to use any surveyor except the one suggested by the broker. I need help from folks familiar with South Florida boating resources.

Does anyone have any knowledge or experience with Mr. Howe? I'm not looking to drag reputations through the public mud, I'd strongly prefer if you would e-mail me any comments about him privately at wolfies@sbcglobal.net

Any positive information about any good surveyors in South Florida, feel free to post publicly or privately. Anything about who to avoid should be in private.

Additionally, I'd like to thank all forum members for their postings. They've been terrific resources as I've gone through the learning and shopping process. I'll keep you informed as soon as things become more tangible.

 

[DCBD]

Wolfie wrote:
Others have advised me to use any surveyor except the one suggested by the broker.

*I would agree with that statement. Find one on your own, it's better that way.

 

[FF]

I suggest you contact an old sailing friend who is an author and surveyor.

Chuck, at kanter_c@bellsouth..

He specializes in multihulls , but has been in the business "forever" . so should have a suggestion for a really qualified person.

 

[timjet]

BoatUS has a list of certified surveyors.

 

[Daddyo]

I would check the SAMS site. As to broker suggested surveyors I would have to take exception. I'm a broker and only recommend, good for the buyer, SAMS accredited surveyors.

 

[ktischler]

Malcolm Elliott is one of the best there is, in our opinion. You will not get any broker that will recommend him, as he is a straight shooter and will tell it like it is. He saved us from purchasing a boat that would have been a nightmare of ongoing problems. At the surface, she looked great. But after six hours of an intensive sea trial, Malcolm had a laundry list of problems and recommended against purchasing the boat. We decided to pass on the boat. The broker called us a week later and offered the boat at $30K less than we had offered. We declined.

You can reach him at*http://www.floridayachtsurveyors.com/

We thought enough of him that we offered to fly him to Kemah, TX to survey our current boat. But, his wife was was expecting any day, and he was reluctant to get too far away.