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If I should locate a Whaler, lets say a 2 - 3 day highway drive from where I live. This boat would be in mint condition for the right price.
How do I go about securing it? Is there some way to get the vendor to hold it for say 72 hours?
Should I tell the vendor to hold it, I"ll catch the next plane down to his area.
Is there some way to place a deposit on it, that would be good for 48 hours?
Any advice would be much appreciated.
Thanks in advance.
I purchased a Whaler that was roughly 1K miles (2K round-trip) away. It worked out well because I dealt directly with the very knowledgeable owner, who was also a straight shooter. Good communication and a written agreement are key to a smooth transaction.
If you are buying from a business/brokerage, you would generally not have the benefit of direct communication with the owner for first-hand knowledge about the boat. But you would have the benefit of an established way that they do business, which removes some of the logistical challenges of the transaction.
Usually a deposit is taken with an accepted offer. As a seller, I would not accept a deposit to hold the boat without a purchase and sales agreement with an agreed sale price (subject to acceptable survey and sea trial.) Otherwise, a deposit merely to “hold” the boat while you get out there to see it and decide whether you want to buy it ir not, what you are really asking for is an “option” to buy the boat. Options are not refundable, because they are what the seller is charging you to remove the boat from the market while you decide whether you want to buy it or not.
Likewise, options contracts usually include an agreed future purchase price. So you might as well use the standard P&S agreement for recreational boats, which provides for a refundable deposit in the event survey and seatrial are unacceptable.
Don’t forget to factor the cost of transporting a boat those kinds of distances. Whether you hire it out or do it yourself, it will not be insignificant.
overnight a payment and as mentioned B-4 a sales agreement with stipulations.
Payment could be made only valid for day you get there and meet all requirements set forth in sales agreement. There are ways to get signatures via the internet.
I bought one of my classic Whalers 1000 miles away, from only photos. I never saw the boat in person until I picked it up a month later. It turned out to be an excellent purchase.
With a long distance purchase, your price bargaining power is greatly reduced. You are best to pay very close to asking price, or actually asking price, or otherwise you will risk losing the purchase to a higher bidder who comes along after you have made your offer and tentative deal. An honest seller will then simply return your deposit, but you lose the boat you wanted.
I would do the following. Always talk to your seller to make the price deal and to help you determine you are dealing with an honest an legitimate seller. Then send
a 10% deposit along with a simple sale agreement detailing price, boat description and VIN, and same for engine and trailer. Overnight delivery helps impress the seller that you are serious. The seller then signs the agreement and sends it back to you. Use snail mail as real home addresses are then involved for both parties. One you are at this point, of course, you are risking losing the deposit, which you must be willing to accept on any long distance purchase.
Next, if in the next couple of days you can't pick up the boat in person, or have someone you know pick it up, you want the seller to send you the titles to boat and trailer, so find out at the very beginning how much additional you will have to pay to him to do this. This could be anywhere from 80% to 100% of the total purchase price. In my case, I just paid the whole 100%, and got the titles back as soon as my check cleared, about a week later.
I was not able to pick up the boat until about 6 weeks after the initial contact to purchase.
If you don't trust any of the above on a purchase you want to make, the only really safe thing to do is to talk to the seller and agree on the price, then immediately travel to see the boat, pay for it in full, receive the titles, and arrange to come back and pick it up.
Depending on how high the price is, the mail process usually works with an honest seller, which most are. However, if it is an expensive purchase, say over 15K, I would recommend first seeing it in person, with a price agreement before making the trip. This will reduce your risk of serious financial loss.
I did this last year purchasing a classic whaler in a mid country state (I live on the west coast). One thing that worked well for me was to ask the seller if they objected to a marine surveyor inspection of the boat. If they are being truthful about their description they shouldn't have any objection with the request. Then do a little research on-line to find marine surveyor in the locality.
When I did this I got a good report with lots of pictures from the surveyor and I had a very good description of the condition of the craft. He also checked the HIN and that motors matched with the titles, the report also included his appraisal of the market value. I used this to negotiate a fair price with the owner.
Another plus to this approach is that displays to the seller that you are darn serious and he/she should have no issue in taking the boat off the market until you have reviewed the report and reached an agreeable decision. My cost for the pre-purchase survey was in the $300-400 range.
There is good information on-line, including forms for the paperwork you should consider if you decide to purchase.
Keep in mind that it is going to add to the overall purchase price for commercial transport, or if you pick it up and tow it home yourself (I did this combinong to an annual trip I make to a neighboring state) inform your insurance company for the new coverage.
Best of luck.
