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Why we recommend hiring a marine surveyor when buying a yacht.
If someone asks us whether a marine survey is needed before buying a used boat, our answer is definitely “YES”.
And here’s why:
A professional marine surveyor devotes their entire life to yachts. Sometimes it’s through the experience of yacht building or 30-40 years of yachting. A correctly selected boat surveyor has knowledge of all systems and components of a boat from fore to aft. This allows the surveyor to see those problems that cannot be noticed by a less-experienced person. Also, a maritime surveyor has an understanding of the cost of fixing the problems found.
Here’s what you get from the maritime survey.
Having a pre-purchase survey report can help you:
- Be fully aware of the condition and performance of the yacht you are buying.
- Have reason to negotiate the final price.
- Avoid unpleasant surprises associated with the breakdown of maritime systems not identified when buying.
- Have a marine survey report with list of defects and repairs needed after purchasing a boat so that all systems and components will serve you reliably for a long time.
Let’s talk about a marine survey cost.
Today, the average boat survey in San Diego costs about $20 – $26 per foot. For example, the cost of a 50-foot boat is about $1,000 – $1,300. It’s possible the yacht you found is in good condition and there are no hidden problems. However, if something is wrong with the engine, then a repair may cost about $5,000, an engine replacement over $10,000 for a sailboat. And even more for powerboats. Replacing the main sail is $5,000 – $10,000. Fixing deck delamination issues also cost thousands of dollars. Even replacing rope clutches may cost about $200/each. If you need to replace five of them, the total is $1000.
How marine inspection save you money.
Yachting is expensive. As you can see, even small problems are expensive to repair. It’s better to find out about all this before buying a yacht in order to make the right decision to buy or not, or to have arguments to reduce the final price.
At a minimum, a marine surveyor can help you negotiate the final price of a yacht. As a maximum – prevent you from buying a yacht that can stretch tens of thousands of extra dollars from your pocket.
Also, a marine survey report is mandatory for obtaining insurance and financing in many companies.
In addition to the pre-purchase survey, we recommend doing a Full Engine Inspection provided by professional Marine Engine Surveyor.
We also recommend you read the article on how to find a highly professional maritime surveyor.
If you want to be aware of how a maritime survey goes, here is the pre-purchase survey checklist.
Here is a list of San Diego Marine Surveyors.
