A tale of 2 Marinas

[Guest]

Well had a nice few hours today nosing around used boats to get a flavour of what will be able to get for our budget next year and the approach of the 2 marinas we visited was interesting.

 

One let us loose with the requested keys (up to 3 at a time) and their boats were shall we say 'in need of preparation' - prices didn't seem to reflect this though and seemed high. I don't intend to name them as I may have caught them on an off day/week and I wasn't sure what to expect as we have just started nosing about.

 

There was a good few staff around but all appeared a little too busy to be interrupted with questions.

 

The other who I am happy to name was at Crick. Their boats seemed just as well priced but much better prepared - one in particular really caught our eye, if only we had the deposit saved I think we may have made a very impulsive purchase!!

 

At Crick there was just one member of staff on who was more than happy to spend time with us even though I'd made it clear we weren't currently in the market at the moment but were wanting to physically see 'in the flesh' the type of boat our budget will stretch to.

 

To be fair I'd made the same clear to the other marina too and think that might have affected the slightly dis-interested response. As I say a nice day all around though and it really and has certainly given us food for thought particularly around layout and stern type.

 

I post this with no other interests other than a potential customer and no affiliation what so ever.

[alan_fincher]

Your experience is not unusual.

 

They vary enormously.

 

It's unlikely the less good one was having "a bad day" - it is far more likely they were "business as normal", (it could be one of several!).

 

As I think I have said already, some of the "bad" ones are still worth visiting, as they often represent a way of crawling over many boats with nobody breathing down your neck.

 

I would not want to sell through one of these though, as the approach assumes the total strangers they freely hand out keys to are completely honest. There is often stuff on the boats of reasonable value, (and sometimes high value), and I feel sure at these "more lax" places some of the stuff on board probably goes "walkies".

[churchward]

Yup, there is a lot of variation out there in service and style of brokerage. It pays to see as many as you can I think. A good one takes some of the risk out of buying a bad one doesn't help at all.

 

I saw something that raised my eyebrow today in fact. A rather scruffy boat I thought, selling for £42K (much too expensive I thought) and a label that described it as being built in 1996. The BW license plate was 5 digits (6 digits came in in 1995) and the number sequence places the age of the registration to 1990! An example of very poor research by the broker unless someone has been having finger trouble with the advertising text.

Edited September 19, 2009 by churchward

[Guest]

Your experience is not unusual.

 

I would not want to sell through one of these though, as the approach assumes the total strangers they freely hand out keys to are completely honest. There is often stuff on the boats of reasonable value, (and sometimes high value), and I feel sure at these "more lax" places some of the stuff on board probably goes "walkies".

 

Interesting and spot on Alan,

 

One boat we viewed at 'the marina with no name' had a number of small value items (Nicholson Guides and other canal books on the shelf) and a strange looking small fan gadget on top of the stove.

 

Didn't think a lot of it until I went into the chaldendry (SP?) at the same marina and realised it was an 'ECO Fan' which was retailing at £129 in their store. Had I been the dishonest type, it and the books would have been fair game.

 

However the other boat we really liked and viewed accompanied at Crick was also filled with extras (TV, Chairs, full kitchen equipment etc etc) which was confirmed would come included in the sale.

[Athy]

I would hazard a guess that Anonymous Marina is close to the A5 and to the main line from Euston.

One thing which we learned early in our boat-seeking days was that the responsibility for preparing boats lies with the owner - not like in a used car showroom where the salesmen make sure that vehicles are valeted to show them off to their best advantage. One boat which we viewed (at possibly Anonymous Marina) had a pair of men's slippers under the dining table and a plate with the remains of a meal on the table. Marie Celeste, perhaps? How people hope to sell boats which they have made little or no efort to tidy up I really don't understand.

[Sarah and Ian]

I would hazard a guess that Anonymous Marina is close to the A5 and to the main line from Euston.

One thing which we learned early in our boat-seeking days was that the responsibility for preparing boats lies with the owner - not like in a used car showroom where the salesmen make sure that vehicles are valeted to show them off to their best advantage. One boat which we viewed (at possibly Anonymous Marina) had a pair of men's slippers under the dining table and a plate with the remains of a meal on the table. Marie Celeste, perhaps? How people hope to sell boats which they have made little or no efort to tidy up I really don't understand.

 

 

I am guessing that the good broker in Crick is ABNB at Crick Wharf their service when we bought our boat was sensational. Made the whole process a pleasure. We looked at a lot of brokerages when we bought Dignity and a lot of them were very Arthur Daly type salesmen. We also put our names down on lots of mailing list and only 1 broker ever gets back to us.

 

Ian and Sarah

[carlt]

One other way to look at it, though...

 

I've always been of the opinion that a badly presented boat is worth £2k off the asking price.

[Guest]

One thing which we learned early in our boat-seeking days was that the responsibility for preparing boats lies with the owner - not like in a used car showroom where the salesmen make sure that vehicles are valeted to show them off to their best advantage.

 

Even though it is totally logical I can see now what you mean. I hadn't initially 100% appreciated the difference.

 

They are of course acting as brokers which is a different to a used car seller - puts the onus very much on presenting their boats in a positive way, brokers though should also IMHO ensure they only act for sellers who a prepared to make at least some effort in presentation.

 

 

One other way to look at it, though...

 

I've always been of the opinion that a badly presented boat is worth £2k off the asking price.

 

 

We thought that too, one boat we looked at we quite liked but would need a lot of TLC to bring it up to scratch, the layout suited and it looked well made and fitted out - it was just a bit grubby. With a bit of work and further investment it could have been made nice - I suppose it all depends on how quickly we want to on the cut after buying.

Edited September 21, 2009 by MJG

[Naughty Cal]

The brokerage at our marina plays a very clever game. It is of course up to the owners of brokerage boats to keep their boats in a clean and tidy condition whilst on the sales pitch. This does lead to some of the craft looking a little scruffy at times. The broker then places one of their similar stock boats near to the scruffy brokerage boat and keeps it looking immaculate. I think you can probably guess which one sells first.

[Cris P]

Only £2k Carlt ? I realise I'm more ruthless than I thought.

[Guest]

I am guessing that the good broker in Crick is ABNB at Crick Wharf their service when we bought our boat was sensational. Made the whole process a pleasure. We looked at a lot of brokerages when we bought Dignity and a lot of them were very Arthur Daly type salesmen. We also put our names down on lots of mailing list and only 1 broker ever gets back to us.

 

Ian and Sarah

 

Hi folks - you have a PM