Purchasing a yacht with 3 other friends

[Menlim3]

I am considering this but there are so many different scenarios to consider. Would like to hear other people's pros and cons from experience. Thanks.

[UNCIVILIZED]

You might try speaking to companies that handle fractional boat ownership about this. For their ideas & feedback, & perhaps for POC's of a few sets of clients they've worked with, so that you can garner opinions & ideas directly from said folks, who've lived it firsthand.


Also, said firms would likely have some contracts/guideline documents that you could use as a framework(s) for making such a venture with friends painless. Ditto sailing clubs, or fleets where owner's put their boats into charter rental, several days of each week or month.

[valhalla360]

Treat it as a business deal with the assumption that your buddies will do no work, pay late and in the end mess you over.

Then if they are really your friends, you will be pleasantly surprised.

[rourkeh]

I have never seen one of these deals work out. Basically turns into a bad marriage with messy divorce.

[westsail374]

Originally Posted by valhalla360

Treat it as a business deal with the assumption that your buddies will do no work, pay late and in the end mess you over.

Then if they are really your friends, you will be pleasantly surprised.

Owning a boat together - unless all are independently wealthy and willing to spend copiously - is the surest route to ending friendships.

[wayne.b]

Originally Posted by rourkeh

I have never seen one of these deals work out. Basically turns into a bad marriage with messy divorce.

===

Yes. At least 90% of the boat partnerships that I've seen end badly, usually sooner rather than later. The problems usually center around money, maintenance and upgrades. If you go ahead anyway, spend a lot of time thinking about how disagreements and dissolution will be handled.

[bruce v]

Be cautious. The best of friendships and even familial relationships can be torn by financial interactions. As perceptions of fiscal and managerial responsibility can change as well as the perception of equity, it is never "fair" to all involved. Unless you have monies to invest that you do not care about, it would be better to go through a yacht brokerage that sells partnerships. They don't care about the individual concerns, just the fiscal responsibility.

[MarkVatcher]

I'm in this exact situation right now. purchased what i called an experience building boat(inexpensive, old but sound) on a local lake with 2 other friends.

The first year was pretty smooth as we were all eager, a lot of sailing, some fixing and enhancing done mostly by me as i knew the others did not have any prior boat maintenance experience i was fine with doing it myself figuring they'd catch up.

second and third year , 1 of the 3 started loosing interest and was incapable of actually assisting in anyway, you know the kind of person who is just not a DIY'r. sure they can scrub the deck, but you have to show up in order to do so. Also due to home/professional life, they did not get that much sailing in.

luckily the other friend is a DIY'r and can assist but his time is limited so again it's back to being mostly just me. This season when the boat goes back in the water i'll be solo because the others have prior commitments on that day. It's not like we didn't know the boat was going in the water around that time frame why am i the only one to have planned for this.

It's difficult, especially when somewhat inexperienced, when you think you can rely on your crew/co-owners to show up to sail and work on the boat and then cancel. the inexperienced comes in because i'm not ready to single handed take the boat out of the marina and do everything and get it back in, i need a team. although this year my goal is to single hand as much as i can, even if my wife is on the boat, she will do nothing, unless emergency, so i can build confidence in single handing.

As for splitting expenses, we use the splitwise app and it all works out great. 2 of the 3 people spend the most money and the 3rd pays up when needed. however if you try to equate time spent fixing/enhancing/prepping the boat to money, it does not work out and probably 1 person will feel like they do way more then the rest.

So they end up affectionately, i think, calling me the F'ing Admiral as i am always the one saying we need to do this or that, we need to practice seamanship, etc... and they are always saying, i have limited time, can't we just sail and enjoy for today.

So anyways, from my standpoint, i don't know if i'd say i'm going to lose friends, but it's definitely much more difficult then i had originally expected. i sometimes say it's like i joined a sports team, 3 man volleyball for example, and every weekend at least 1 person is not showing up and it makes winning impossible if you don't have a full team.

But in the end, hey i have a decent boat and 2/3rds of the expenses are covered by other people. Still not a bad deal and i get to sail, often with a substitute crew when i can find them, more often then the rest of them. I just gotta get over i do more work then the rest of them.

[hamburking]

Originally Posted by valhalla360

Treat it as a business deal with the assumption that your buddies will do no work, pay late and in the end mess you over.

Its called a sailing syndicate.

When making plans, usually every one is gung-ho (enthusiastic). But when it comes time to pay the bills, clean/sand the hull, scrub the bilge/head, change the oil, or pump the head tank, you may find them less so.

Go in with a clear plan of financial responsibilities, work responsibilities, liability, and the all important escape clause.

In general, these only work when everyone communicates and participates, and you all have generous disposable income.

I was part of a "community club" run by the local yacht club, sharing 3 sharks (24 foot old racers). I could be certain that each time I signed out a boat, it would be filthy, messy, and wet. I would spend most of my time cleaning, and always returned the boat in bristol condition. When finally, the group who used the boat before me enjoyed several pounds of sunflower seeds, spitting the husks anywhere and everywhere, as well as enjoying a water fight which left the boat with several inches of water below, I decided it was time to walk away.

In all fairness though, it was a dirt cheap way to get out sailing!

[astokel]

My wife and I did this about 30 years ago with another couple. At that time any one of us could not afford a sailboat, but four of us could. We were smart enough to get a lawyer to draw up a partnership agreement including how one or more of us could get out or buy out the others.

Long story short; the other couple got divorced, the settlement gave the husband 50% of the boat and he bought us out. He never made the final payment, but it was a friendly agreement and he'd taken the boat thousands of kilometers away.

No more partners.

[amanoni]

As expected there are various experiences. I have shared a C&C34 with two partners for a number of years. Last year, one of the partners decided he had enough and wanted out. We found another compatible person who bought his share. I mention this 'cause we had set down the rules for exit along with the rules for operation, maintenance and financials (moorage etc).

When we started the partnership, we all agreed in writing and committed to a preset number of years, at which time one or all could exit. Mostly the arrangement worked well, it got us all out on the water regularly at minimal costs. In practice, most of the maintenance work landed to me, which I really didn't mind as I am more particular then some.

For big ticket items, such as bottom paint, we took a special assessment. Otherwise our monthly fees cover insurance, moorage and basic maintenance fees.

BTW, we are all still friends

[Skipper-Ingo]

Originally Posted by westsail374

Owning a boat together - unless all are independently wealthy and willing to spend copiously - is the surest route to ending friendships.

That's it.
I have been in a joint ownership for 7 years. Worked well for 4 years and then it ruined our friendship.
I would never ever do it again. Sooner or late you disagree to much over different things that it breaks apart.
ALL other joint ownerships I have heard off, made the same experience.
ALL. Dont't do it.
(By the way, I will buy my OWN boat next month.)
Ingo

[David M]

Get it all on paper. You need a legal document that protects all interests.

Something like this has the potential to turn the best of friends into the worst of enemies.

Research the details of other peoples boat partnerships and incorporate the ideas you like into your partnership agreement.

[out42]

Shared two boats, both successfully. The key was much as others have said, low expectations and definitely get the divorce settlement (of the boat partnership!) sorted out before anyone puts even a penny down. Then accurate accounting for spend is paramount.
The other point is to have an end time for the partnership agreed first or a break clause of some kind. It's when plans for the boat go in different directions that arguments break out and bad blood ensues.
It can work.

[Hunky Dory]

The old saying is true which I can attest to. (A PARTNERSHIP IS A ROCKY SHIP)