There are millions of boats for sale across the world at any moment in time. In the UK for example, it is estimated that there are currently between 100,000 and 200,000 boats for sale, and the picture is the same in most boating regions. In such a crowded marketplace connecting boat to buyer is an essential part of the broker’s role.

IPAs - How to standout in a crowd

Sellers need their boats to be advertised for sale clearly and transparently and presented to the widest possible, relevant, marketplace. Buyers need as much information as possible about available boats for sale, to help them focus and narrow the selection, viewing and purchasing process. This ‘symbiosis’ can result in the right boat quickly attracting the right buyer. Once an owner has decided to sell, he or she will usually want to achieve a sale, quickly. Similarly, most buyers want enough information about used boats advertised for sale to be able to rapidly narrow-down the available stock, having to physically view only one or two boats before making a final decision.

The reason why most of our boats sell after just one viewing, and why we sell boats twice as quickly as other brokers, is that we have learned over the years how to effectively connect boats to buyers. One word best sums up how we achieve that: Transparency.

Neil Chapman, Boatshed’s founding broker

'Transparency' is your friend

Our philosophy is that the more transparent information buyers have about a used boat for sale, the quicker that boat will sell, with the least aggravation and disappointment for seller and buyers. All of our boats are personally inspected and photographed by a local, trained and experienced Boatshed broker.

We were the first broker to introduce a suite of up to 80 standardised high definition images per boat to better help buyers compare similar boats and equipment on a like-for-like basis; we were amongst the first brokers to routinely introduce HD video footage of boats for sale; we expect to be the first broker to offer aerial video footage of boats at sea and in use; and we are the first broker to introduce Independent Pre-Sale Assessments when marketing used boats for sale.

15 years of experience selling all manner of used boats around the world confirms that our philosophy is correct. We have successfully dealt with over 20,000 used boats for sale, and we sell more than 1,000 boats a year, using this approach and these techniques. Our websites attract over 210,000 unique visitors a month and we have over 600,000 registered buyers using our systems to find their next boat. Put simply, the transparent way we sell boats, works!

IPAs - Independent Pre-Sale Assessments

At the Southampton Boat Show last year, Boatshed, together with the Marine Inspection Association of leading marine surveyors, introduced the use of IPAs when selling used sail and motor boats. An IPA is a further tool to increase the transparency of a used boat offered for sale. Boats we sell can be physically inspected, assessed and reported upon by an experienced, independent, marine surveyor before, or whilst they are listed. Up to 55 critical areas of a second-hand boat are assessed and the IPA report can be viewed by an interested buyer alongside the boat’s details.

This transparent approach to selling boats has many benefits: it can make a good vessel more marketable and improve the prospect of an early sale; owners have an opportunity to carry out any minor repairs before advertising their boats for sale, or to price boats reflecting their actual condition - thereby avoiding potentially long delays finding buyers. Buyers can have real confidence in the condition of boats with IPAs marketed for sale by Boatshed.

Whereas others brokers are, perhaps, afraid to market boats so transparently, in our experience this approach, from the very start of the sales process, makes boats on our system stand-out from the crowd, attracting well informed, serious minded buyers, which reduces, significantly, the time it takes a seller to find a buyer and a buyer to find the right boat.

By utilising Boatshed’s IPA service, a seller greatly reduces the risk of a buyer being put-off a boat after the full pre-sale condition survey has been carried out, and a buyer can avoid the wasted costs and inconvenience of travelling to view boats, which, on inspection, turn out to be a disappointment, or in poorer condition than expected.

A Surveyor’s view

Leading Marine Surveyor, Peter Wallis, who recently carried out an IPA of a twin engined, Aquastar Ocean Ranger 33, 4 berth, for sale by Boatshed Portsmouth, commented:

I feel the real advantage of an Independent Pre-Sale Assessment is to provide an independent view of the brokerage description and, within the scope of an IPA, to give the seller an opportunity to declare any defects discovered or to rectify them. This of course helps to simplify any negotiations following a full pre-purchase survey. (The IPA).. should give extra confidence to a prospective purchaser.

Marine Surveyor, Peter Wallis

What it costs

When an owner lists a boat with Boatshed, he/she will be given the opportunity to have an IPA. IPAs represent good value for money, Boatshed having agreed a discounted fixed fee structure with the MIA based upon the length of the boat. Owners pay:

  • Up to 40 feet: £149 plus VAT
  • 40 to 60 feet: £199 plus VAT
  • 60+ feet: £249 plus VAT

Recent IPAs

Owners are also discovering that IPAs are a great way to refresh the presentation of a boat that has been for sale for a while. Graham Wharmby, the senior broker at Boatshed Bourgogne, has recently arranged 4 such IPAs for owners. He reports:

My IPAs are now online in French and English languages. One of these boats, that had been listed for 14 months, was viewed and an offer to buy made only 27 days after the IPA was added to the boat advert on-line. Another boat for sale received an offer (which was accepted) just 14 days after the IPA wasuploaded to my website! I think that is a pretty positive endorsement of IPAs.

Graham Wharmby, Broker

We've taken IPAs on board with enthusiasm. It’s another Boatshed unique selling point.. The potential to improve buyer confidence is evident and will make a Boatshed / MIA inspected boat stand out over a competitor’s offering. Four of our boats already on our listings have recently had IPAs; three because they look scruffy, but I believe them to be excellent propositions ‘under the dust’. In the fourth case we have a boat that has had a fortune spent on it over the last 18 months with full refit, new engines etc... and whilst the owner is not seeking to recover costs, the asking price is still well over market average. In this case the vendor and I agreed that an independent IPA would be a great tool to substantiate our asking price.

Graham Wharmby, Broker

What Owners think

Owners are embracing IPAs and seeing their real advantages. One Boatshed owner summarised his experience of a recent IPA in this way:

The IPA process for my boat was easily arranged by my Boatshed broker through the MIA. I think it will help my boat stand head and shoulders above other similar boats in the marketplace.

Mr R. Hamilton - boat owner

IPAs for Owners:

Whether it’s to help your newly listed boat stand out from a crowd of similar boats; to refresh the marketing of a boat that has been listed for some time; or to emphasise a long list of valuable equipment or upgrades being sold with a boat, an IPA will, on every occasion, significantly strengthen your boat's presentation and sale prospects.

IPAs for Buyers:

Boats offered for sale with IPAs have the invaluable reassurance that they have already been given a preliminary, focused once-over inspection by an independent, expert marine surveyor, who is knowledgeable about second-hand yachts and motor boats and what to be wary of and to look out for when buying one. This avoids a buyer wasting time viewing unsuitable, disappointing boats and speeds up the boat search and selection process.

How to arrange an IPA

All Boatshed brokers are members of the MIA and have access to MIA local surveyors. If you are interested in an IPA, just contact your Boatshed broker who will be able to make all of the arrangements on your behalf; the vessel inspection and reporting process is quick and efficient, with IPA reports appearing alongside a boat’s details usually within 48 hours of an inspection.

Example boats for sale with an IPA:

For more information about IPAs and the MIA, please visit: www.marineinspectionassociation.com