Maybe I have blundered and offended the sellers of two boats i have tried to buy?

jmczzz

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Mar 31, 2013
515
O'Day 26 CB New Orleans
Now the sellers do not respond. they are both up in the north US near Canada. I live on a boat in a south LA bayou so i think i must have stepped in a pile of alligator poop and didn't know it. Is it the wrong time of year to buy a boat? Or is there a certain protocol i need to follow? I am being a gentleman and speaking English and correcting my spelling. I have been living, owning, sailing, working on the water for 60 + years. i have owned and sailed 4 different sizes and makes of boats. Am i being to brash when i say, "I like your boat and will buy it"? jimmy mac
 
Oct 22, 2014
20,989
CAL 35 Cruiser #21 moored EVERETT WA
Jimmy Mac... I am just guessing here, but it feels like there is more to the story.

Perhaps they had listed the boat for $60,000 and you made an offer of 3000 gatorskins? They likely do not know the trade value of a gator skin.
 
Jan 11, 2014
11,321
Sabre 362 113 Fair Haven, NY
There could be a lot of reasons. What kind of boat? If your looking for a less expensive boat, then the geographical distance between you and the seller could be a factor. What serious buyer would be willing to drive a thousand miles to maybe buy a boat and then take it back? Why waste the time dealing with this person?

For Sale by Owner boats attract a lot of scammers. Since you are far away the seller may just assume that your are a scammer. Why waste time?
 
Oct 19, 2017
7,732
O'Day 19 Littleton, NH
If it is not as JS suggests and that's all there is to the story, you offered to buy their boat and they don't respond, then, all I can suggest is, timing is everything. Someone else got there with the $ before you did.

It is pretty rude to just go away without explanation. Some people don't know how to let you know they sold the boat out from under you.

OR

They are swamped with their daily jobs and winterization and fighting the ex's lawyers and not getting good communication from their broker.

And yes, I'm sure 3000 gator skins could exceed the value of a boat, but they're notoriously hard to unload up here.

-Will
 

jmczzz

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Mar 31, 2013
515
O'Day 26 CB New Orleans
Jimmy Mac... I am just guessing here, but it feels like there is more to the story.

Perhaps they had listed the boat for $60,000 and you made an offer of 3000 gatorskins? They likely do not know the trade value of a gator skin.
i have an O'Day and told them it was too small and i wanted to get the next size up. No i offered them the price in USD they were asking in one case and did not off in the second because i never got a reply to my "I am interested..." em. And yes i am my own boss so i told them i could and would drive up there to look and do the deal. what is a 22-hour drive 1 way to get a good boat like you want? I go fishing 3 or 4 days straight non stop. I kinda sense I may have scratched a sore spot here by the nature of the collective replies i have gotten so far. I confess I am puzzeled. Hey sailors, i am not trying to shine my butt. I just want a bigger version of the boat i have. so please cut me a little slack, I am harmless and sincere just come from the marsh. jmc
 
Aug 19, 2021
495
Hunter 280 White House Cove Marina
I was looking at an 18' Catalina last year. On the day that I went to look at the boat, there was another buyer already there. I made the seller a full price cash offer. The seller and I shook hands and made an agreement to get together later in the week and close the deal.

I called, sent tests and emailed and received no response.

A couple of months later I had a friend tell me the rest of the story.

The other buyer that day also made a full price cash offer. The seller realized he had way under priced the boat and pulled it from the market.

30 days later later he put it back on the market with a higher price. Someone promptly purchased the boat with the new marked up price.

Just a man doing business that had made a mistake and corrected it. He owed me nothing. We had no written contract just a handshake.

I figure I grew up in a different generation were a handshake on a deal meant something.
 
Jan 11, 2014
11,321
Sabre 362 113 Fair Haven, NY
I don't think any of us were suggesting you were a scammer.

Scams often start with "I really like what you are selling. I'll pay the asking price." And that gets the victim hooked. Eventually there is something like "my representative will pick up the XXX" and then there is the "Bank made a mistake and wrote the check for too much, would you give me the difference..." or some such nonsense.

Why not look closer to home?
 

jmczzz

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Mar 31, 2013
515
O'Day 26 CB New Orleans
good point Marcus, I have not been on here for a while cause i am about 2 -3 gens behind a lot of the guys on here and we have trouble understanding each other. So i am wondering still what is the current way to reply to an ad for a boat I want to buy? i will watch and see if these 2 pull their ads.
meanwhile, what do i do? get a broker and pay him a commission? if anyone knows of an O'Day 272 for sale whisper to the seller you heard there was a weird old guy looking for one. ha! jmc
 

jmczzz

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Mar 31, 2013
515
O'Day 26 CB New Orleans
I don't think any of us were suggesting you were a scammer.
....
Why not look closer to home?
I am looking everywhere. I just need, want a bigger boat and really like the O'Day mid-size boats. and thanks for the "don't think" comment. I did not think that, but being a bit hyper-sensitive felt a few pinpricks in some replies. jmc
 
Aug 19, 2021
495
Hunter 280 White House Cove Marina
Well Jimmy, let me tell you the rest of my story....

After making the offer on the 18' cat, my wife and I were talking this transaction over with my in laws. Mom and Dad (both in their 80s) perk up and are excited to go sailing. I am thinking, the cockpit on an 18' cat is just right for the wife and I. With mom and dad it is going to be tight. I think I am going to need a bigger boat.

Time goes by I figure the seller ditched me I went shopping again.

Found a '96 Hunter 280 that I fell in love with, so bad that I hired a surveyor to protect me from myself. Shoot the price was way, way under comps that I could find.

Wrote up a contract. Got it surveyed. Found a couple of issues. Got some more money knocked off. Closed the deal.

Found out later I bought it for less than he owed on it.

I guess it is true God takes care of drunks and fools. I have been a little of both over my 60+ years on this earth.

I am sure you will find something out there.
 
Oct 22, 2014
20,989
CAL 35 Cruiser #21 moored EVERETT WA
AH... There was more to the story. There is nothing insincere about wanting a bigger boat. You have the funds you sound willing to make thte purchase.

The challenge appears to be communication. I'd try again if the boat is what you truly desire.
 
Jan 11, 2014
11,321
Sabre 362 113 Fair Haven, NY
thanks, Dave, how is this? "I was on the sailboat owners forum and saw your ad. I am very interested in your boat and would appreciate talking to you about her. thank you, James McPherson"
sound better? jmc
Sounds good, maybe add, "Could you tell me a bit more about her,.....Then add a specific question or two you might have. Shows you have done some research, are not a tire kicker, and have some knowledge of the boat. In other words, you are a serious shopper.

Leave out any reference to your friend Bubba and what might happen if the seller doesn't respond. :biggrin:
 
Feb 2, 2010
373
Island Packet 37 Hull #2 Harpswell Me
I don't think any of us were suggesting you were a scammer.

Scams often start with "I really like what you are selling. I'll pay the asking price." And that gets the victim hooked. Eventually there is something like "my representative will pick up the XXX" and then there is the "Bank made a mistake and wrote the check for too much, would you give me the difference..." or some such nonsense.

Why not look closer to home?
I went through that exact process when selling a Catalina22, therefore if i was offered what i was asking sight unseen i would assume its a scammer and ignore any further emails. Thats life, once bitten twice shy.
 
Jan 7, 2011
4,723
Oday 322 East Chicago, IN
I made an offer on the boat I own now…not obscenely low, but less than the owner paid for it a few years earlier ( and I knew he added a CP and new head sail). Didn't hear back (all email at this point)…figured I offended him with my offer :-(

Found his acceptance email in my SPAM folder a few days later…

Communication is key…


Good luck on your quest.

Greg
 
Jun 14, 2010
2,081
Robertson & Caine 2017 Leopard 40 CT
Most people today are quite wary of scammers, and would expect the buyer to ask detailed questions and want to see the boat before committing. However, today’s market is so hot it’s becoming a new normal for a buyer to make an offer and pay a deposit with that offer, conditional on inspection, sea trial and survey. If there’s no money up-front sellers will not hold a boat off the market.
I was shocked when the guy from out of area who bought my last boat wired me the full asking price without first-hand inspection. Yes we did a contract, but I opened a new bank account so I would not have to give him my “normal” account number to wire the funds, and I transferred the money out of that account as soon as it was received so it couldn’t be pulled back. The buyer turned out to be a straight-up guy and there were no issues.
The problem is that there are so many scammers and people who deal in a cutthroat dishonest way, it’s hard to know when you can really believe someone you don’t know well.
That goes for sellers as much as buyers.
 

DougM

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Jul 24, 2005
2,242
Beneteau 323 Manistee, MI
I just sold my boat privately. I had it listed on SBO and one other reputable site. I had numerous inquiries, and for the most part it was easy to differentiate the serious lookers from the scammers.

I literally ended up with two serious offers on the same day. Both potential buyers were serious enough to drive up and look at the boat and as they got more interested, requested a sea trial.

In the end, I accepted a very fair offer. I got an electronic deposit from the buyer in my account 24 hours later. We had a written “as is” contract with the agreed purchase price, and upon delivery, I received certified funds from his bank. He got a good boat, and without a broker, I got what I thought I should have gotten for the boat.
 

jmczzz

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Mar 31, 2013
515
O'Day 26 CB New Orleans
I just sold my boat privately. I had it listed on SBO and one other reputable site. I had numerous inquiries, and for the most part it was easy to differentiate the serious lookers from the scammers.
Thank you for this info. I am sorry i gave the impression I am a scammer. Truth is I am a 78 yr old retired school teacher. I guess that makes me seem unbelievable? James