It is of course also likely that your dream is sitting in a marina just around the corner from you, negating the need to have to travel to often and too far.

If the need to travel can be eliminated then that leaves a bit more money in the kitty for spending on the boat if it needs to any minor work done to it.
Don't be impatient and jump on the first boat you see, wait and watch. Make offers if you like the boat and wait for them to get back to you, quite often there is a large amount of wiggle room depending on the sellers need to sell.

Now I'm not going to ask what type of boat you are seeking or lust after or what your budget is, there will be others on here who will tell you what you need, after all everybody likes spending someone else's money.

Usually first time buyers aim too high with what they want/need. There is a need to consider how many people are available to do the heavy lifting (especially when it all goes pear shaped). How far away from home will the boat be berthed? This usually translates to if the boat is too far away, it won't get used as often as you may want to use it. The overall size of the boat will be a large factor, regarding boat handling skills, marina costs and that huge hidden great unknown .... The annual costs of upkeep eg. antifouling, sail repairs/replacement, mechanicals, including engine and ancillaries and rig replacement, either in part or in whole.

When I am buying a boat new or second hand, I always want to see and sail it myself. Boats can read and look good in photos and brokers only tell you the good things and if they tell you something is not real good, it usually means it is real bad. These day air fares are cheap between the major cities. You fly out in the morning and home in the afternoon. Most sellers / brokers a happy to pick up up and drop you back to the air port If they think they are going to sell a boat.
Know the value of the type of boat you are looking at. Good boats that are priced correctly sell quickly, making offers and sitting back does not work on quality boats. I have alway kept all my boats in immaculate condition and priced them at a sensible price. I have probably owned more than 15 boats over the years and not one has taken more then a month to sell. Most boats have been purchased by the first person to see it. In the scream of things an air fare or two in insignificant. The advantage of buying local is the relocation costs, but on the other hand you may enjoy sailing you new boat home, as I did.

Trek said..


I would get on the Inter Web and like FreeRadical suggests hire an agent nearby where the boat is to look at it. Look up a nearby sailing club or a marine surveyor.

At the first instant it will cost you more than an airfare to pay an independent agent to check the boat out and when you see the boat it may not be what you expected. Nothing beats seeing a boat yourself. When you know it is the boat you want, then engage the profesionals.

Jode5 said..

Trek said..


I would get on the Inter Web and like FreeRadical suggests hire an agent nearby where the boat is to look at it. Look up a nearby sailing club or a marine surveyor.

At the first instant it will cost you more than an airfare to pay an independent agent to check the boat out and when you see the boat it may not be what you expected. Nothing beats seeing a boat yourself. When you know it is the boat you want, then engage the profesionals.

The question was how to find out about a boat without going there which I answered.

We all know you need to try the boat yourself sometime.

But good point about the cost Jode5 you have to agree that first. That's why I suggested sailing club.

I bought a boat in Tauranga from Sydney by asking the local sailors in NZ to let me know about it. They said it was good. I went there eventually to confirm it and it was good and I bought it.

The cost was several cartons of NZ beer.

FreeRadical said..

Jode5 said..

Trek said..


I would get on the Inter Web and like FreeRadical suggests hire an agent nearby where the boat is to look at it. Look up a nearby sailing club or a marine surveyor.

At the first instant it will cost you more than an airfare to pay an independent agent to check the boat out and when you see the boat it may not be what you expected. Nothing beats seeing a boat yourself. When you know it is the boat you want, then engage the profesionals.

No. The buyers advocate gets paid only from the sale commission and can help you through the entire process. We used this method to purchase in Airlie from our home in Perth. Our advocate looked at the boat initially for us and provided a written report and lots of photos, after further discussion, he suggested the boat sounds like what we want and was worth a look at.

And that's what we did. We made an offer subject to our inspection and further survey etc that was accepted and I headed on over for our own inspection and test sail.

After looking at the boat, we could have walked away at no cost apart from airfare. But the boat was exactly as described by our advocate and we went ahead with his help along the way. I have no idea what our advocate was paid out of the sellers commission.

Sure, our advocate only got paid on a successful deal and no doubt he was hoping a deal would happen. But the big difference is that we chose our advocate to act for us. Someone we knew from many years and trusted and respected.

For the seller, it also presents a professional approach much less likely to involve time wasting tyre kickers.

Trek said..


I would get on the Inter Web and like FreeRadical suggests hire an agent nearby where the boat is to look at it. Look up a nearby sailing club or a marine surveyor.

At the first instant it will cost you more than an airfare to pay an independent agent to check the boat out and when you see the boat it may not be what you expected. Nothing beats seeing a boat yourself. When you know it is the boat you want, then engage the profesionals.not all brokers will go in conjunction

FreeRadical said..

Jode5 said..

Trek said..


I would get on the Inter Web and like FreeRadical suggests hire an agent nearby where the boat is to look at it. Look up a nearby sailing club or a marine surveyor.

At the first instant it will cost you more than an airfare to pay an independent agent to check the boat out and when you see the boat it may not be what you expected. Nothing beats seeing a boat yourself. When you know it is the boat you want, then engage the profesionals.

No. The buyers advocate gets paid only from the sale commission and can help you through the entire process. We used this method to purchase in Airlie from our home in Perth. Our advocate looked at the boat initially for us and provided a written report and lots of photos, after further discussion, he suggested the boat sounds like what we want and was worth a look at.

And that's what we did. We made an offer subject to our inspection and further survey etc that was accepted and I headed on over for our own inspection and test sail.

After looking at the boat, we could have walked away at no cost apart from airfare. But the boat was exactly as described by our advocate and we went ahead with his help along the way. I have no idea what our advocate was paid out of the sellers commission.

Sure, our advocate only got paid on a successful deal and no doubt he was hoping a deal would happen. But the big difference is that we chose our advocate to act for us. Someone we knew from many years and trusted and respected.

For the seller, it also presents a professional approach much less likely to involve time wasting tyre kickers.

Not all broker will go in conjunction and there are a lot of private sales. I have only sold one of my boats via a broker and I had a prearranged agreement that if I found a buyer the agreed commission would be half, which is what happened. I also purchased a Young 11 from NZ. I flew to NZ to check out this boat that I had been told by the broker and another friend who had raced against it, that it was a good boat. When I got there it was by no means in good condition, yes it was fast and winning races but it was knocked round to buggery. While I was there we did find another Young 11which we purchased and that leads to another bad story about bad brokers and why you should not sign a contract premetually that I won't go into now. I have never had a problem selling or buying boats privately and met some lovely people to boot. I have a simple approach to selling boats. I do not take deposits and I do not take to being stuffed round . I give them 5 days to do any surveys or finance then the money has to be in my account. If no money the deal is off and they can stuff round as much as they like. If another buyer is waiting for the 5 days to pass or comes along he will be given first option.

From what I have seen, there are sometimes good buys in SA.

The next point is that if you are going to buy a boat far, far away, it better be in very good condition. If she needs a long voyage home this is critical. Many stories are told of sinkings where the owner had just bought the boat. Maintenance costs, far, far, away, when you are not there, can be very expensive.

Lastly, the posters here are very helpful, if biased. However, I am sure some would be happy to pop down if local, and take a quick look at a boat for you. Like others have said, locals often know the particular boat. So first step, once you get serious about a particular boat, is ask on this forum if anybody knows the boat.

It is tough to make the call. It usually isn't worth flying over to see every individual boat that interests you.

I used a variety of resources to check out interstate boats. Interstate friends & people on web forums such as this checked out a few for me (and rejected them). I had a survey done on a timber hull boat in NSW (rejected). When I found several in one area that I was interested in, I flew to Brisbane to have a look and also to visit a mate. The boats were rejected, but the visit was still worth it. It helped narrow down what I was looking for, and I had a great time with my mate I hadn't seen in years.
Eventually I came across a private sale that ticked all my boxes. I flew to Melbourne, had a look, organised a survey, and made an offer. I trucked the boat back to Adelaide and lived happily ever after.

I did not fly from Bundaberg to Townsville to view a yacht that was not as it was represented to be. It was represented as a Van De Stadt 34 but was actually a Van De Stadt 30.

I drove up there 12 hours straight, spent 24 hours there and drove 12 hours straight back home. The exercise cost me $800.

Taking your time is the essence of buying (and selling) or you creating yourself a rushed, harassed unsatisfied nightmare.
I was looking for a suitable yacht for two years. During this time l saw the offerings between Mooloolabah and Adelaide on the east coast of Oz.
It paid hansomely, l became an expert on the subject and ended up with a nice and good boat cheaply.
The only help was Cisco, who, when l spotted the real thing checked it out because he was near and offered his help, which l graciously accepted.
Happy sailing ever since!

I have seen an awful lot of rubbish. Virtually l saw the rejects of the east coast of Oz and lots of nice things to boot. Time was not a factor and l used my travels to look for yachts not the other way around.

If l could help some members to look at boats in the Sydney region l would do it gladly, free of charge of course, to assess the condition of the subject and take fotos as well.
What goes around, comes around.

Yara said..
From what I have seen, there are sometimes good buys in SA.

The next point is that if you are going to buy a boat far, far away, it better be in very good condition. If she needs a long voyage home this is critical. Many stories are told of sinkings where the owner had just bought the boat. Maintenance costs, far, far, away, when you are not there, can be very expensive.

Lastly, the posters here are very helpful, if biased. However, I am sure some would be happy to pop down if local, and take a quick look at a boat for you. Like others have said, locals often know the particular boat. So first step, once you get serious about a particular boat, is ask on this forum if anybody knows the boat.

If you walk around any of the marinas in Adelaide (or Wirrina), you'll see a number of boats that are for sale. That's a fun way to explore the local market. My club, CYCSA, lists these (http://www.cycsa.com.au/boatsforsale.html) but I suspect there are more which are not listed.

That said, I purchased my boat in Airlie Beach following a process similar to what FreeRadical described above. I sailed the first 1000 miles to Sydney, but used a delivery skipper from Sydney to Adelaide.

PS The best sailing in SA involves occasionally handling big swells, big tides and big winds, so make sure you get a vessel that can handle it. It seems that surprisingly few yachts in Adelaide venture to Kangaroo Island and beyond, which is a real shame.

What Trek was telling, well, is hmmmmm, unfortunate or worst.
Towing anything behind is a no no in my books. Period.
Just? going around the corner or anywhere without insurance is just as silly. Especially with an unknown boat.
When l bought mine, the only reason l employed a surveyor was to satisfy the requirements of the insurer.
I did not leave the marina before l had insurance.

As l mentioned before, time was not a factor, ever. I had a three week getting ready or get to know time with the new boat and only then sailed down to Scarborough where l stayed for two months to fix everything to my liking before sailing to Sydney. The weather was sometimes so calm, we had to motor a fair bit giving the engine a good trial in the bargain.
It was a magic trip with lots of dophins, turtles, whales and no worries at all.