Boat buying question

Looking at buying a boat that will need some repairs as a result of the survey.

What's your preference when it comes to negotiating the repairs:
- have the owner make the repairs prior to purchase, but to your overall satisfaction?
- have the owner discount the sales price an amount that will allow you to have the repairs made after the purchase?

Is this a "six-one-way, half-a-dozen the other" preference thing? Or are there real reasons for doing one way over the other?

Have the owner discount the sales price an amount that will allow you to have the repairs made after the purchase.


You might do it yourself cheaper.
You might have someone else do it and now it's warranted to you.
You might not do it.

Also, the owner might not have the money, want to wait for the repairs to be completed, or want to gamble that you accept the repairs.

Some repairs are easy to estimate or are cosmetic. Here I like to negotiate a lower price, this allows me to spec the repair. Some repairs are impossible to estimate. In these cases I let the seller keep the liability of unknowns. The problem is a seller will do the least to repair a boat for sale. It’s hard to answer the question not knowing what repairs are in question.

Consider insurance. Usually the boat is at the sellers risk until completion. You have a duty of disclosure to your prospective insurer, non disclosure can mean no insurance.
Can you insure it as it is,fully, at all, or with exclusions for condition until repairs are made? Is it a good idea,it it safe,are you comfortable, in terms of risk to you? Consider cover for claims from others against you, as well as the value of the boat.
Sometimes it may be safer to require the seller do the work before completing the purchase.
On a different issue. Recently a seller offered me a price reduction for repairs. The repairer would only quote repairs provisionally, it was subject to what was found when the suspect area was opened up. The two did not sit together well, I walked.

Seems you are relatively new at purchasing a used boat.

Get bonafide, qualified bids on all repairs actually required.

Add 15% on top of bid prices [your time and hassle to get repairs completed as well as time you can't use boat after purchase due to repairs being performed]

Offer boat owner a bid on the boat using his price minus your cost for repairs [including 15% you tack on top of repairs].

If owner balks... depending on how much you feel you should own the boat... then adjust your offer price accordingly.

Be careful not to get stuck paying too much. Also, be ready to walk away with no purchase if items do not go well enough to suit you.

There is always another boat you can/will locate to make a bid on.

Remember this important "boat purchase" rule: Don't fall in love with a boat until well after the deal is done. Otherwise, your pounding heart of adoration for the boat before purchase may inappropriately color your vision for cutting a good deal... for yourself!

Negotiate what you can. Nevertheless, you are not buying a new boat you are expecting to be perfect.

markpierce said:

Negotiate what you can. Nevertheless, you are not buying a new boat you are expecting to be perfect.

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This is good general guidance. For some reason, these threads immediately devolve into hard-line stances that assume the other person is a total jerk which is often counterproductive to getting a good deal. Many (not all) owners have fond memories of ownership and are happy to see a friendly face taking the reins.

Assuming the used boat is, well, used, you won't be getting a full repair credit for most items. Sure, you have a right to expect bilge pumps and nav lights are operational and can request a full credit or repair, but many items are simply old and partially inoperable - maybe a burner on a stove or gauge isn't operable or some of the instrument lights are out. Maybe I'm a pushover, but my general rule is if something was advertised but is found to be end of life and needs replacement, I'll assume half the replacement cost for a new item. There is no practical way to do that unless I have the repair done post purchase.

There are exceptions. Anything electronic that was represented needs to work as expected. Many chart plotters and radar were never setup properly (eg vessel icon is at a 10-degree angle so vessel "crabs" along screen). Chances are, the person doing the setup gave up or said they'd come back and never did - - - maybe you get it figured out quickly, maybe you need a marine tech along with sea trial go swing the boat. This type of adjustment can become trial and error and get pretty expensive quickly - check the version of SW/firmware is current. All engine leaks - no matter how small - should be resolved with OEM parts.

The above said, brokers often nudge the sale along with as short a sea trial as possible, preferably to yard for haul and survey. Once in the yard, there is a tendency to try to nudge the buyer into keeping it on the hard for a bottom or minor repairs. Unless you know what you're doing and are comfortable with the vessel, best guidance is to splash the boat ASAP. Hoist is part of your sunk cost for survey and inspection. And it gives you time to mull over the data in front of you.

When I make an offer on a boat it always comprehends a certain amount of minor repairs. If the boat needs something major I generally end it there. Before I travel to see a boat I like to know what I am likely able to buy the boat for assuming there are no majors. If the price is reasonable I will perform my own survey to determine as much as possible if there are major concerns. If there are not I would move on to a professional survey. If this reveals majors, I would then likely move on. If not, I accept the issues and purchase as agreed to. Most of what needs repair is something I would expect to fail at some point anyway and I want to know it is fixed properly. If there is something that is in between a major and a minor I would want to ask the seller for help. Examples of this might be the following:
1. Rear main seal leak on generator.
2. Radar failure.
3. Significant blistering that has not degraded the substrate.
4. Serious windlass or thruster issues.
5. Turbo or heat exchanger serious damage.
6. Obvious marine gear issue.

This is about it as far as I can think of at the moment. Anything concerning built in tanks, stringers and decks, and delamination is a major. Serious engine issues are also a major for me. Unless there is some kind of obvious advantage to having the owner do the repair, i would get the money for it instead. I am the type of buyer that is not likely to be looking for repair money as I assume some level of it in my offer, and everything else I try not to get involved in. Bill

PS- I would not sell a boat that needed any significant repair either. I fix my issues and sell the highest quality boat I can. I enjoy representing and being proud of what I own and feel it shows to the new buyer.

Thanks for the replies - all good stuff.

The repairs in question are mid-major but not insurmountable, just costly. Small repairs are not on the table, its things I can do for little effort/cost.

I think I'd prefer to have the repairs done myself, after the sale. But the risk of finding more once its taken apart has me on the fence to asking the owner make the repairs and be responsible for any issues that may be lurking beneath. But as Al mentioned, having the warranty to back up the repairs you paid for is also a consideration.

I ask for a discount on the price on large things. Smaller things I agree to fix myself so the seller feels like I am meeting them part way. You are buying a used boat and so you can’t reasonably expect nothing to be wrong with it. You will find things that the surveyor missed and will have to eventually fix them yourself anyway. I would rather do the repairs myself than have someone else do the repairs. They will usually screw the repairs up anyway. In the end find the best boat that you can and that you like and then get the best price. Then you take your chances and go for it. Good luck!

I realize that this may be a sensitive time for you during a potential purchase, but if you provide more information you can get better advice. The fact that you are concerned about issues being revealed by the inception of a repair tells me there is more possibly going on here. It sounds like moisture or engine to me. If someone has told you that "I think it is this, but once we get in there we might find it is that", you need to have the repair addressed under your supervision and contractor selection. Get an estimate and have an escrow account established for 150% of the estimate. Do the repair and pay for it with the escrow. Escrows have their own set of problems, but you better know what you are getting into first, or be covered financially for the worst if not. Is there no possible way to understand the extent of the issue? Another contractor or surveyor possibly?

Patemey said:

Thanks for the replies - all good stuff.

The repairs in question are mid-major but not insurmountable, just costly. Small repairs are not on the table, its things I can do for little effort/cost.

I think I'd prefer to have the repairs done myself, after the sale. But the risk of finding more once its taken apart has me on the fence to asking the owner make the repairs and be responsible for any issues that may be lurking beneath. But as Al mentioned, having the warranty to back up the repairs you paid for is also a consideration.

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