Frustrated with yacht brokers

I can't get them to call me back. I have e-mailed, called, and even texted one guy. Nothing.
When I finally did get an appointment to view something, the guy e-mailed me that morning to cancel, then didn't respond to my request to re-schedule.
What gives?

Very strange, you would think in this economy that they would be all over you like a duck on a June bug! Maybe they are out on a boat. lol.

Kevin

Just as you are evaluating a boat by talking to a broker over the phone, they likely may be sizing you up to see if you are a serious buyer or a tire kicker wasting their time. I tend to keep interaction with the broker short on the phone, concentrate on specific questions only about the boat if you are familiar with that model, then talk more generally when seeing the boat.

Ted

Get a broker to represent you and have him/her contact the listing brokers. It will make life much easier for all parties especially for a newbie buyer.

GalaxyGirl said:

I can't get them to call me back. What gives?

Click to expand...

Apparently they do not think you are a serious buyer and choose to spend their time with those that have money and meaningful questions.

I have purchased boats both ways: by working exclusively with my broker and calling the listing broker directly. Both worked well and I never experienced the call back blow off that you mention.

I do believe that if there is a problem with the listing, say the seller terminated it, most brokers will blow you off and not return the call, especially if you are calling from out of town.

David

I hear stories of women having a hard time being taken seriously when buying cars. The only difference between a boat broker and a used car salesman can be a pair of Topsiders. Find another broker, there are good ones out there.

GG

Unfortunately is like that everywhere you go.
My recommendation? Do not call, visit them and look them in the eyes. ...Or, get your own buying brioker.

portuguese

I find some/most brokers are a waste of time. Especially if its a big expensive boat as they like to qualify you. You might want to get pre qualified with a bank or something. When we where looking most brokers were not much help as we/I don't act/look like we can afford much, and we have very little debt so our credit score is high buy not much there. I had to have my banker and insurance broker call the brokers, and then they become interested/helpful. We also did not really have the expereince/knowldge for the size boat we were looking at. Their evaluation/perception of you is important.

Also as mentioned before they are sizing you up! You need to talk the talk and walk the walk! So by now you should be able to at least talk the talk? "Like my SO and I are looking for a big boat as our present boat is to small for a resent needs. Our present boat is a 40 ft ________ and moored at ________." Feed them a line as they are going to feed you a line.

G – Girl – I’m sorry to hear you’re getting the brush off from brokers.

As posters implied on this thread... Keep it short in first “phone chat” with selling-broker. Tell em you’re too busy for discussion at this time and am simply calling to set a review date aboard the boat.

I recommend:

1. State which boat you want to review in person and/or ask what boats in general range of your desire the broker has listed and available for review. If none... then, thank em and leave your name/number to call if they get a boat that may fit your needs/desires. Move on!
2. State you are a cash buyer having limited time so you want to set a review date then on the phone if the broker has boat that interests you. Otherwise, leave name/number... move on!
3. Defer any broker questions to: “We can discuss that after I see the boat, I and my associates have the bases covered.”

Basically the first phone chat with broker should take but a couple minutes, maximum - - > All it is for is to establish a date for you to see the boat; not for chat-time... that comes once you locate a boat that really interests you.

Now, please understand I give you these 10 cents of my advice because I believe you really are seeking to locate the correct vessel for purchase and you truly have the wherewithal to finalize said purchase. Otherwise... please don’t waste a boat broker’s time... they are truly working for a living and always seeking to spend their time connected to viable buyers.

Best Luck - Art

Phil Fill said:

Also as mentioned before they are sizing you up! You need to talk the talk and walk the walk! So by now you should be able to at least talk the talk? "Like my SO and I are looking for a big boat as our present boat is to small for a resent needs. Our present boat is a 40 ft ________ and moored at ________." Feed them a line as they are going to feed you a line.

Click to expand...

Oh, yeah, that'll work ... Believe me, most brokers have seen and heard more BS from wannabe boat buyers, lookee lous, and fender kickers than you will ever imagine. If you think for one moment you can fool an experienced broker into thinking you know as much about boats as he or she does you should be selling cars or Amway products yourself.

If you want to deal with a broker, go visit a few then select one you can work with and get to know each other.

Ninety percent of the people I talk to don't buy a boat within two years, and I am a 17 year veteran of boat sales. Having sold many trawlers over the years I know trawler buyers can research for 2,3,4 or more years before buying but my mortgage is due every month.
I follow up, call back, or send emails on a regular basis knowing that most of that time spent will not produce a sale. When I talk to people who tell me things that don't make sense, want to finance a live aboard, want to insure a boat yet they have no experience, want to cross oceans on a waterski boat budget, I have to decide how much of my time to invest in them.

I had a similiar problem when I was shopping around. I called several brokers and very few actually returned my calls--forget e-mail. One finally responed several days after I called, sent me a few photos based on my request, and only followed-up once. In retrospect, I should have done less communication via phone/e-mail and more face-to-face, stopping in their office. It is shame that it has to be this way.

Some good advice in this thread. Tucker offered some real insight into the way it is. In my real estate sales days I spent 75+% of my effort securing and marketing listings. Less than 5% working with buyers. Simple truth is a buyer is only a suspect until you've sat down and qualified them. Even then they are a huge waste of time until they actually purchase something. Buyers are liars and sellers are yellers is a truism that holds water. At least when the seller sold, you got paid. I won't tell you how many buyers I worked with at the beginning of my career that jumped to somebody else when it was time to close.

Given the above percentages I will tell you 80+% of the phone calls I received where wanna be buyers. Not a single day went by that I didn't receive a call from a buyer and 99% of them asked me the wrong questions. Sometimes I'd put them on my mailing list, most of the time not. That's the harsh reality of the business.

However if I had a qualified buyer with verified cash/credit available to close the deal and had a clue what they wanted, I'd spend some time on them. It's even more critical to follow those steps in a down economy because like Tucker, my bills where due every month. No time to waste chasing rainbows.

I hope this helps you understand where brokers are coming from. Their not bad people, just business people running numbers.

GG,

The boat you're interested in may offer little opportunity for the broker to make money. He may have shown it to 13 other potential buyers that didn't like the boat. So the broker is going to spend his time talking to potential buyers of other boats with a greater chance of selling. If the broker continually shows boats w the biggest commission and the better buys he (or she) will make lots more money.

We had a very different experience while we were shopping. We had limited our search well in advance, researched the exact model we wanted and compared all the Yachtworld listings. By the time I started contacting brokers, it was with very specific questions. Always got a response within a day or so. We flew out to see a few boats, made an offer on one (that was rejected); and a month later our perfect boat came on the market. Maybe the response was different becuase of the types of questions we asked? I will say that the brokers were very professional about following up with us, sending occassional emails asking about our progress but never pushy. I always made a point to respond and, when we finally had a contract on a boat, I sent each broker we had been in contact with an email to let them know we were out of the market. Many responded with congratulations and a simple request that we keep them in mind in the future. I was really impressed with the professionalism of the people we dealt with and felt that they deserved nonthing less from us. I'm sorry to hear that others have had less than stellar experiences.

EDIT - while I do see value in buyers brokers, we didn't wind up using one. It didn't seem to make as much sense given that we had a very specific boat in mind and there were relatively few on the market, so it was easy to do our own homework. That isn't to say that I wouldn't consider using a buyer's broker in the future. We did have a buyers broker when we bought our condo.

yachtbrokerguy said:

Ninety percent of the people I talk to don't buy a boat within two years, ... I follow up, call back, or send emails on a regular basis knowing that most of that time spent will not produce a sale. When I talk to people who tell me things that don't make sense, want to finance a live aboard, want to insure a boat yet they have no experience, want to cross oceans on a waterski boat budget, I have to decide how much of my time to invest in them.

Click to expand...

Always presumed that's to be expected. Thanks for the confirmation!

GG
while I'm not a boat broker, I have been in sales for 40 plus years. A sales rep only gets paid when they sell something. When you're selling big ticket items (like a boat that can cross oceans), they are definitely sizing you up and trying to determine how serious you are. There are only so many hours in a day, so right or wrong, if they feel that you're only a tire kicker and they have you an 10 other prospects to work with, you will get ignored.
Good luck
John

johnma said:

There are only so many hours in a day, so right or wrong, if they feel that you're only a tire kicker and they have you an 10 other prospects to work with, you will get ignored.

Click to expand...

GG I've taken a few minutes to look over your web site/blog.

You are one very impressive young lady!

The actions you've seen from yacht brokers are probably the same way you, as a young person were dealt with when you first ventured into the real estate business.

I'm guessing nobody took you seriously then and I'm guessing that yacht brokers are not taking you seriously now.

As others have said, I'd keep it short and sweet on the phone. Ask a few questions regarding the condition of the boat your interested in, without sharing much personal. I would not share that you're a single mom and going to live aboard. You will get discounted as a dreamer right away. If they ask, tell them the truth that you are a real estate developer and leave it at that.

Then make it clear, if the boat is remote, that you'll be able to fly there and name a very soon in the future date. I'd bet that brokers get calls from a whole lot of out of state buyers that never show up to actually look at the boat.

Anyone in sales will do a "quick qualify" at the outset. It is likely issues of hesitation in acceptance you experienced on TF are mirrored with brokers. You are a very atypical first boat buyer. Buyers may be categorized in the qualification process. You likely do the same with potential buyers and sellers in real estate.
Art has given you good advice which should help. Sooner or later you and a broker should establish rapport.
In my experience, brokers (in Australia) vary greatly. Some are well established, genuinely motivated to help, decent reliable people you`d welcome as a friend. Some others were just not good at used car sales.

GalaxyGirl said:

I can't get them to call me back. I have e-mailed, called, and even texted one guy. Nothing.
When I finally did get an appointment to view something, the guy e-mailed me that morning to cancel, then didn't respond to my request to re-schedule.
What gives?

Click to expand...

As others have pointed out, and I will emphasize, brokers only make money when they sell a boat. I'm guessing that you're not about to buy a Nordhaven. So why would a broker with a Nordhaven for sale bother showing it to you? He's never going to make money on it.

One thing to remember is that boat brokers are often not located in the same place as the boat. When I was looking for Island Eagle, I looked at a boat in Oakland and the broker flew down from Seattle. That costs real money, and the broker wants to make darn sure that I'm at least a good prospect.

You need to have a realistic idea in mind of what type of boat you are going to buy and how much you are going to spend before a broker will take you seriously. When you have a realistic budget and target boat in mind, I'm sure brokers will take you seriously.

Scott Welch
Island Eagle

Until a few months ago I was a very serious "moving up" buyer with several offers made on vessels. The brokers and builders all dealt with me on an immediate basis knowing I was a player. The brokers will have no problem dealing with you once you put skin in the game, telling them you're serious will not matter, money on the table and boots on the ground talks.

Take advantage of boat shows and trawlerfests to get aboard boats. Pick up various boating magazines in the area you can travel and check them out for advertisements of up-coming boat shows. This is the most efficient way to get aboard a large number of boats.

While it is true that brokers only make money when they close a deal and it takes a substantial amount of work to get to a closed deal, good brokers realize that only 20% of their time will be productive in producing 80% of their income. The other 80% of their time will be "lost" to marketing.

I received sage advice from the first broker I worked under in the land business. He suggested that my numbers were wrong, I was closing a sale on every property show I made. While I thought that was an efficient way of doing business he pointed out that there were deals out there I was missing because I was so tight in my qualifying. I loosened up on the qualifying and ended up scoring some pretty amazing sales. Not everyone is who they appear. Keep you chin up and you will eventually strike up a relationship with a broker that will work with you.

You might also gain the attention of a broker by having your banker make some contacts for you and get you introduced. Most of all, best wishes.

By Golly GG

For months, via independent posts entered here and on other threads, You elicited and have freely, happily received the best TF has to give re boat-buy consultations...

Now... Go Forth and Conquer!

As a currently licensed boat salesman and USCG captain and after many other years in other businesses the Golden Rule tends to be forgotten by people selling boats along with other items.

That golden rule which I have run all my businesses on is "Do undo others as you would want done to you if roles were reversed".

If you think this is hard to do with boat sales people try it in a Sheriff's Office with my deputies carrying guns and driving fast cars.

Phil Fill said:

I find some/most brokers are a waste of time. Especially if its a big expensive boat as they like to qualify you. You might want to get pre qualified with a bank or something. When we where looking most brokers were not much help as we/I don't act/look like we can afford much, and we have very little debt so our credit score is high buy not much there. I had to have my banker and insurance broker call the brokers, and then they become interested/helpful. We also did not really have the expereince/knowldge for the size boat we were looking at. Their evaluation/perception of you is important.

Also as mentioned before they are sizing you up! You need to talk the talk and walk the walk! So by now you should be able to at least talk the talk? "Like my SO and I are looking for a big boat as our present boat is to small for a resent needs. Our present boat is a 40 ft ________ and moored at ________." Feed them a line as they are going to feed you a line.

Click to expand...

Phil,
Your right. That's the way Real estate works also. Pre-Approvals are key, but I am paying cash.
I would feel funny lying about having a boat already, then I would have to keep the lye going when questioned.

Art said:

G – Girl – I’m sorry to hear you’re getting the brush off from brokers.

As posters implied on this thread... Keep it short in first “phone chat” with selling-broker. Tell em you’re too busy for discussion at this time and am simply calling to set a review date aboard the boat.

I recommend:

1. State which boat you want to review in person and/or ask what boats in general range of your desire the broker has listed and available for review. If none... then, thank em and leave your name/number to call if they get a boat that may fit your needs/desires. Move on!
2. State you are a cash buyer having limited time so you want to set a review date then on the phone if the broker has boat that interests you. Otherwise, leave name/number... move on!
3. Defer any broker questions to: “We can discuss that after I see the boat, I and my associates have the bases covered.”

Basically the first phone chat with broker should take but a couple minutes, maximum - - > All it is for is to establish a date for you to see the boat; not for chat-time... that comes once you locate a boat that really interests you.

Now, please understand I give you these 10 cents of my advice because I believe you really are seeking to locate the correct vessel for purchase and you truly have the wherewithal to finalize said purchase. Otherwise... please don’t waste a boat broker’s time... they are truly working for a living and always seeking to spend their time connected to viable buyers.

Best Luck - Art

Click to expand...

This is good advice Art, but I can't even get to the point of an initial phone conversation. I leave a message and no return call.

Vashon_Trawler said:

I had a similiar problem when I was shopping around. I called several brokers and very few actually returned my calls--forget e-mail. One finally responed several days after I called, sent me a few photos based on my request, and only followed-up once. In retrospect, I should have done less communication via phone/e-mail and more face-to-face, stopping in their office. It is shame that it has to be this way.

Click to expand...

Some of these guys aren't in my state so it wouldn't even be possible to run into their office. I have no clue why someone would list with an out-of-state broker?

ksanders said:

GG I've taken a few minutes to look over your web site/blog.

You are one very impressive young lady!

The actions you've seen from yacht brokers are probably the same way you, as a young person were dealt with when you first ventured into the real estate business.

I'm guessing nobody took you seriously then and I'm guessing that yacht brokers are not taking you seriously now.

As others have said, I'd keep it short and sweet on the phone. Ask a few questions regarding the condition of the boat your interested in, without sharing much personal. I would not share that you're a single mom and going to live aboard. You will get discounted as a dreamer right away. If they ask, tell them the truth that you are a real estate developer and leave it at that.

Then make it clear, if the boat is remote, that you'll be able to fly there and name a very soon in the future date. I'd bet that brokers get calls from a whole lot of out of state buyers that never show up to actually look at the boat.

Click to expand...

Thanks Kevin.

I agree, but I am in Massachusetts calling on boats that are in Massachusetts.
The funny thing is that whenever I e-mail an out of the country brokers they are very attentive. They answer all the questions quickly, send pics, and ask about viewings. Now, here I go calling for showings on boats that are 20 minutes from me and nothing.