Pre-Purchase Survey Costs for Dry Storage

[TrawlerDavid]

Just looking for whether there is a "standard" practice on cost allocation for a survey on a dry-stored boat. I have an accepted offer on a GB 36, and am scheduling the survey and sea trial. The boat is dry-stored. The proposal is that the seller and I divide the cost of the transport of the boat (about $650 each way because stored off-site). Assuming the survey is acceptable and we close, I'd then have to pay another $650 a week later to again move the boat to the water. If the boat was in the water, I'd pay for a "haul and hang" as part of the survey, but that would be $324, a lot less than $1300 for the 2 transports. My other 2 boats were all in the water when surveyed, so never an issue. Is there a "norm" for how this is handled? Would it be reasonable to ask the seller to pay for putting the boat in the water as part of closing? Any experience and thoughts welcomed.

 

[twistedtree]

My only suggestion is to think through and provide for both scenarios; one where you accept the boat and close on the purchase, and the other where you reject the boat or for whatever other reason don't close on the purchase. Also, once the boat is in the water it will presumably start to accumulate slip fees. Who pays those, and at what point does the responsibility change hands if the deal goes through, and if the deal does not go through.

 

[Delta Riverat]

Best case the survey goes well - you pay
Then the sea trial - seller pays for captain and move to water.
If you want to proceed, then slip fees for wet storage, if not then I guess you pay to return to dry.

Kinda different, boat being dry this. Adds another level.

All I can tell you is as soon as the deal closes, the storage is on you.

 

[BruceK]

Can`t you pay your half of $650 and leave it in the water until you decide?
If you reject it you share another $650 back to storage. But if you buy it there`s no final $650 from dry storage back to water.

Of course you need to resolve marina fees pending accept/reject.

 

[tiltrider1]

You knew where the boat was when you made the offer. It is now your responsibility to pay all costs associated with moving the boat and then returning it back the way it was. The time to have negotiated anything different was before you made the offer.

That said you can always renegotiate after the survey if you are willing to walk.

 

[mvweebles]

You knew where the boat was when you made the offer. It is now your responsibility to pay all costs associated with moving the boat and then returning it back the way it was. The time to have negotiated anything different was before you made the offer.

That said you can always renegotiate after the survey if you are willing to walk.

This type of discussion comes up every spring - a boat has been stored for winter (shrink wrapped, whatever). Seller doesn't want to un-wrap it. Local custom prevails, but seems nuts to me. If the seller doesn't want to make the boat available for customary inspections, the boat isn't for sale. Buyer should wait until the boat is seriously available and seller has to hope the buyer is still in the market. Consider this example: a sea trial could easily consume a couple hundred bucks of diesel plus several hundred more of a professional skipper. Should the buyer participate in the costs? I don't think so.....but if the parties are okay with it, so be it.

I hope the transaction goes smoothly. Best of luck.

Peter

 

[Fleming]

Your surveyor can do 90% of the survey with the boat on the hard. Then pay to move it to the water on another day where the engine, generator, AC if it has one, and raw water pumps are run which will only take a few hours. You'll know by that point if you want to accept the boat and start paying slip fees or pay to send it back to dry storage and renegotiate.

 

[Shrew]

I would work it so if you bought the boat, he pays the transportation.

If you pass, you pay the transportation.

It's not your fault that he moved the boat so far from a place to be launched. On the other hand, it's not his fault you brought the process all the way to sea trial and walked.

That is usually how we've handled it over the winter in the NE. If I insist on unwrapping the boat and commissioning it (after both a visual inspection and a survey) then I'll pay to re-winterize it if I walk.

There's nothing written in stone.

 

[TrawlerDavid]

You knew where the boat was when you made the offer. It is now your responsibility to pay all costs associated with moving the boat and then returning it back the way it was. The time to have negotiated anything different was before you made the offer.

That said you can always renegotiate after the survey if you are willing to walk.

Don't disagree. Definitely a learning experience, as all prior experiences were with boats in the water when I made an offer and we surveyed. If I'd realized that transport costs would be $650 for each trip to and from the water, I would have thought this through as part of the offer. I was expecting closer to usual haul and hang costs which are a lot less. Negotiations have been cordial and I'm sure we'll work it out fairly. For now, we'll split the cost of getting the boat to the water and back to storage. After the survey and report, additional cost of transport back to the water will be part of the decision on whether or not to ask for a price renegotiation. Appreciate everyone's comments and perspective.

 

[Circumnavigator]

I disagree. The typical P&S agreement requires the seller to get the boat to the place where it can be surveyed. When we sold Fintry, we had to take her, at our expense, from Boston to Fairhaven Ship, a day's run (Fairhaven Ship was is the closest place to lift her 150 tons).


Once she's in the water, if everything on the survey looks good, I don't understand why you would take her back to the dry storage -- find someplace to keep her wet.


Jim