Top Tip No.3 Looking to buy a boat unseen? Extra eyes, some upfront investment and a 6-pack will pay dividends.
In these restrictive travel times and the ever-changing rules and regulations for entry around the globe, it’s sometimes hard to plan a trip to the Caribbean to see the boat of your dreams and make a sensible offer. Extra expense relating to testing is also a consideration. Finding a great surveyor with a superb reputation can sometimes be an issue if they are off-island and can’t return at a certain time due to isolation issues. All of these factors combine to make buying a boat unseen a sometimes stressful situation.
Our tip for working this through is twofold;
- Find a local boater/sailor/yachter who will help for a small fee/6 pack/boat part from home
- Invest funds in professional marine specialists on-island to be your extra eyes on the ground
So step 1: see if you can get extra eyes on the boat before you decide it’s the one for you and your friends and family. There are many Facebook Groups and Forums with very knowledgeable boaters and sailors in the islands who love to help other boaters and cruisers. Quite often, in return for a 6 pack of beer, or gifts from your homeland, they will make an appointment to take a look at the boat and send you up to date photographs. If they are really keen, and have WiFi, they could even do a live walk around for you.
Also do a search on that particular boat on YachtWorld.com to see if there is the same boat of a similar age closer to you for viewing. Who knows, you may just buy that one instead?!
Do some online research to next find the specialists you need to further help you. Of course, these specialists will charge for their time but they are on-island and specialist in key areas that might save you a great deal of expense down the line.
For example, here at Xtreme Marine Antigua, we are contracted to undertake engine checks and generator checks outside of the full/main survey. There are many boats that are for sale that have sat on the hard for the Covid 2 years. This will have an affect on the condition of the oil and fuel. Our climate is particularly harsh (sunshine, UV, salty) but beautiful! A Certified Marine Mechanic will spend time working through the components of the engine to give a summary of the condition, in their view, and given the access that they have.
For the haul-out and sea trial, again, find a boating friend or qualified marine professional who will take photographs and consider another live walk about with the surveyor on hand.
If you do decide to go ahead based on all the eyes on the boat, the professional input, the survey report and the price point being acceptable, then you should appoint someone to look after your boat under a ‘guardian-age’ system. This is particularly important if you are still not able to get down to the islands to see your newly purchased boat for a month or so.
This may seem like lots of extra costs for you, the buyer. But consider the actual price of the boat and think about what percentage of the overall cost you will be spending to ensure that buying a boat unseen is a sensible option.
If you would like us to prepare a ballpark estimate for this kind of work, please email us at ivan@xtrememarineantigua.com with full details. Bear in mind, this will be just an estimate at that stage as each engine is very different to the next with different levels of complexity.
Ivan DeSouza
Certified Marine Mechanic, Xtreme Marine Antigua