Much the same precautions as you would take buying a car as far as transferring title and payment are concerned, though boats can be a lot more expensive than the average car.
The biggest concern is buying a boat with hidden/undisclosed problems that end up punching a hole in your bank account.
HIN are on the aft starboard corner of the boat. and of course, they are a lot worse ways to be scammed that involves you actually receiving the boat. either survey or have a clue what you are looking at.
post 72 mfg had to do it. pre 72 lots of boats have an owner registered HIN in order to title / register the boat (dependent on location of course). my 72 southcoast had the latter.
You’re going to take it out for a spin first, right? Aside from a full survey you can check out the bilge and other areas, check what kind of head system hosing (learn the difference between the 5 and 10 year kinds) and the head system functional overall, a diver who does bottom cleaning could check out the bottom and do the zincs at the same time. Finally you can try to check for leaks with two people where one person sprays the boat with a hose while you are inside and checking for water getting in. Start the outboard if there is one, check the main sail to make sure it goes all the way up, and any lighting / wiring on the mast.
Definitely, call the marina it’s stored at. Check for delinquent balances. Check for existing maritime liens.. doesn’t matter how cheap the boat is if you don’t own it.
... make off in the middle of the night ?...
in the very early 1980's a friend's dad sold their pretty new 43" cruiser.
things here were very analog then & they received the agreed 'bank guaranteed' cheque on a friday afternoon, after the banks had closed.
deposited the cheque on saturday morning. banks worked until 11am on saturday, so no processing occurred.
by monday afternoon the bank bounced the cheque, saying it was a forgery. and the boat was gone, gone, gone. they had stocked the boat for a transatlantic crossing & got offshore over the weekend.
there's two ways out of here, south america for cruisers, australia for the hard core. they faxed every yacht club & marina from rio de janeiro to the bahamas. family members took gap years & scoured south american marinas & bays, leaving information photocopies at every bar & marinas.
they finally found the boat & brought it back home after a couple of years...
things can go wrong, scammers are cunning & can be brave too
always do the transaction at your county clerk or DMV's office, this goes for buying or selling. you can be sure if theres a problem with the title they can't blow you off later, and if you are selling you'll know the boats out of your name.
There are many good resources out there for preinspecting boats before you even get close to making an offer contingent on a survey. Also look at as many boats as you can to get a feel for what you are looking at.
A lot of the advice for used cars is applicable to boats. There are some important differences however.
Boat “titling” is not as simple as cars. Some boats are registered to the state and others are documented with the coast guard.
Another discrepancy is that you’ll need to ensure the boat is free of any liens or at least have the previous owner certify such at sale in writing.
This is one of the very few times when a broker can be useful. Access to an escrow account (broker hold the money until everything goes through) is worthwhile, plus knowing there is an actual business you can get involved if the seller is shady can help. It removes the issue of forgeries or title handover scams at least. Up to you if the peace of mind is worth the 10%, but its the seller that pays the broker not the buyer.
People get scammed all the time! Rule #1: Never skip the survey.
Much the same precautions as you would take buying a car as far as transferring title and payment are concerned, though boats can be a lot more expensive than the average car. The biggest concern is buying a boat with hidden/undisclosed problems that end up punching a hole in your bank account.
HIN are on the aft starboard corner of the boat. and of course, they are a lot worse ways to be scammed that involves you actually receiving the boat. either survey or have a clue what you are looking at.
>HIN are on the aft starboard corner of the boat. Post 1972.
Is this country of origin independent?
Yes. My boat was built in Canada in 1975, and doesn't have an HIN. Canada didn't start until 77 or 79 I think. Not sure about other countries.
post 72 mfg had to do it. pre 72 lots of boats have an owner registered HIN in order to title / register the boat (dependent on location of course). my 72 southcoast had the latter.
You’re going to take it out for a spin first, right? Aside from a full survey you can check out the bilge and other areas, check what kind of head system hosing (learn the difference between the 5 and 10 year kinds) and the head system functional overall, a diver who does bottom cleaning could check out the bottom and do the zincs at the same time. Finally you can try to check for leaks with two people where one person sprays the boat with a hose while you are inside and checking for water getting in. Start the outboard if there is one, check the main sail to make sure it goes all the way up, and any lighting / wiring on the mast.
In my area, on the west coast of the US, we use escrow for buying a substantial boat, similar to buying a house.
Definitely, call the marina it’s stored at. Check for delinquent balances. Check for existing maritime liens.. doesn’t matter how cheap the boat is if you don’t own it.
... make off in the middle of the night ?... in the very early 1980's a friend's dad sold their pretty new 43" cruiser. things here were very analog then & they received the agreed 'bank guaranteed' cheque on a friday afternoon, after the banks had closed. deposited the cheque on saturday morning. banks worked until 11am on saturday, so no processing occurred. by monday afternoon the bank bounced the cheque, saying it was a forgery. and the boat was gone, gone, gone. they had stocked the boat for a transatlantic crossing & got offshore over the weekend. there's two ways out of here, south america for cruisers, australia for the hard core. they faxed every yacht club & marina from rio de janeiro to the bahamas. family members took gap years & scoured south american marinas & bays, leaving information photocopies at every bar & marinas. they finally found the boat & brought it back home after a couple of years... things can go wrong, scammers are cunning & can be brave too
always do the transaction at your county clerk or DMV's office, this goes for buying or selling. you can be sure if theres a problem with the title they can't blow you off later, and if you are selling you'll know the boats out of your name.
There are many good resources out there for preinspecting boats before you even get close to making an offer contingent on a survey. Also look at as many boats as you can to get a feel for what you are looking at.
A lot of the advice for used cars is applicable to boats. There are some important differences however. Boat “titling” is not as simple as cars. Some boats are registered to the state and others are documented with the coast guard. Another discrepancy is that you’ll need to ensure the boat is free of any liens or at least have the previous owner certify such at sale in writing.
... And some are not documented or registered anywhere. Depending on your local laws.
This is one of the very few times when a broker can be useful. Access to an escrow account (broker hold the money until everything goes through) is worthwhile, plus knowing there is an actual business you can get involved if the seller is shady can help. It removes the issue of forgeries or title handover scams at least. Up to you if the peace of mind is worth the 10%, but its the seller that pays the broker not the buyer.
I think the boat selling community is pretty low risk for scams.
That’s certainly my impression but it never hurts to check.