Question re: A Buyer's Broker

[ty.gregory]

I live on the west coast and know a broker here that suggested he could be of help to me in my boat search. I have no objection to using his services. My question is, I really plan on buying a catamaran on the east coast, probably Florida. The boat I buy will be in the $100k-$150K range.

I have heard when you find a broker you trust, you should stick with that broker exclusively. So, do buyer's brokers routinely assist in finding boats of interest thousands of miles away from where they live? Or should I concentrate on tracking down a broker on the east coast?

[djmarchand]

If you have a good relationship with the west coast broker, stick with him. He can help you just as easily find the right boat on the east coast and advise you throughout the purchase transaction.

David

[Kettlewell]

If you have a good relationship with the west coast broker, stick with him. He can help you just as easily find the right boat on the east coast and advise you throughout the purchase transaction.

In my experience you are better off doing the legwork yourself of finding the boats you want to look at then contacting the listing broker directly. In your price range virtually every boat will be on the Internet, and that's where your West Coast broker would find them too. An onsite broker can often provide valuable advice about local situations such as taxes, registration, where to keep the boat, who to do the survey, where to get hauled out for the survey, etc. And don't buy without a personal inspection yourself. I usually figure on making at least two trips. One to make a general survey of a variety of boats, and then a second run where I spend all day on the boat if I find a good candidate.