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S. Florida Yacht Charter Mgt Co.

Discussion in 'General Yachting Discussion' started by Danvilletim, Feb 10, 2012.

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  1. Danvilletim

    Danvilletim Senior Member

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    We just went thru the charter process to personally charter a boat for spring break. Yay! So I'm heading down to Ft lauderdale a few days early to look at some 65 -68 MYs. We have a lot of passive gains that would benefit the passive loss of a yacht assuming its more of a charter boat than pleasure boat... For now we'll max out at 4-5 times a year. So we need to get 5-8 charters.

    Need recommendations fo Charter Yacht Mgt Company that can....

    - Get the bookings / listings / publish it
    - Get the crew
    - Keep most the money (we'll....)

    Give me names and numbers!

    This works out really well for our Vacation Rentals (Any one want to swamp for a 7 bedroom Oceanfront on Hatteras!).

    I notice some people tend to so some of this on their own and some rock it a full service agent... My wife is already about to kick me out if I get a boat... if I have to spend hours coordinating crew and maintenance... forget about!
  2. RVN-BR

    RVN-BR Senior Member

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    I'm sorry, i may be completely high today but I cant make head or tail of your post....

    Do you want to charter a boat? do you want to purchase a boat and make it available for charter? Have you just chartered a boat and now decided to buy one? (I'm kind of getting the gist of this, although spring break isnt for a few months?)

    What do you mean you'll max out 4-5x year? you will charter a yacht 4-5 times a year or you will go out on your boat 4 - 5 times? you mean 4 - 5 weeks? and 5 to 8 wks of charter?

    I dont quite understand what you mean by passive gains and passive loss...?

    I really dont think that you will find a company that can do all of that and give you some money in the end and basically make the boat pay for itself, etc, the way you seem to be envisioning (again, I assume you want to puchase a boat, use it a bit, charter the rest, and have the boat cover its costs and yield a profit even maybe?)

    I am unsure about ho it works for houses but it isnt like this for yachts...yachts are complex, crew are sometimes complicated (you arent dealing with cleaning people), it is an intricate ordeal. And i really dont mean to put you off! just want to make sure you dont get frustrated because of false expectations from the get-go.

    Also, unless you are ready to throw cash at the yacht and management company to shut them up at any necessity (i.e. not question anything at all) I dont think you will be getting out of "spend hours coordinating crew and maintenance"... if this is the case, I dont understand why you would charter at all, the extra wear and tear just wouldnt be worth it. (i.e. if you have enough cash to give the yacht "carte blanche" for all spending, the charter income will be negligible)

    my 2 cents...but maybe i misunderstood?
  3. Danvilletim

    Danvilletim Senior Member

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    Hey Bro. Perhaps you are high today.

    To Clarify

    - I'm buying the boat. - Expectations is to NOT have the boat pay for itself. Boats and vacation rentals are both money losing ventures. That's fine.

    - However, I do have a great deal of passive tax gains that can benefit me. The expenses of the maintenance, crew, etc can all be offset by these passive gains if the yacht is used primarily as a charter. That's a big advantage most folks don't have. BUT the you can't fake the to the IRS if the boat is primarily a charter or personal boat.

    - And hell yes I don't want to spend time coordinating crew. And if the mgt company is doing it's job it will be able to handle and deliver on a realist expectations. So the question is what its realistic for 65' in based S Florida with 3-4 Staterooms. (of course can reposition to bahamas)
  4. Pascal

    Pascal Senior Member

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    The average management company is going to take a big cut out of your income in addition to the Charter brokers who get a 20% commission .

    This is how it works... Everyone something needs to be addresses on the boat, the management company will call one of their $100 an hour contractor and tack on their 20%... They will use whoever is convenient or whoever gives them the biggest kick back... Cost and quality isnt important...

    It all adds up to a big chunk of YOUR money...

    Then you still have a crew issue. If they use whatever captain they can find you will have someone who s not familiar with the boat... That may be acceptable on a delivery but not when you have guests who Are paying 20k who their week aboard...

    You see, the crew is just as important to charter brokers as the boat, if not more. Brokers will be reluctant to book the boat unless they know the crew will take care of their customers...

    You may be better off finding a good captain who will run the boat, handle the maintenance and (hopefully) represent YOUR interests incl. negotiating maintenance, hiring the mate/chef/stew etc
  5. NYCAP123

    NYCAP123 Senior Member

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    Totally agree with Pascal. A management company is OK for taking care of your boat (although my personal experience was bad), and fine if you're simply using the boat as a bare boat rental, but for your own boat, and especially if you'll charter, you're probably best hiring the right captain to manage the boat and oversee A to Z. He'll keep your boat better maintained and save you money overall. You'll also do better with the brokers, because the captain is a big part of why your boat gets booked over the other one down the dock.
  6. YachtForums

    YachtForums Administrator

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    Then I must be high too, because like RVN-BR, I was at a passive loss to understand your original post. Anyhow, like NYCapt, I agree with Pascal.
  7. Danvilletim

    Danvilletim Senior Member

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    Good input.. So hiring a local captain can take the place of the mgt company. I've talked to some good ones here.

    And as per # of bookings....??? Can a boat on Ft Lauderdale get 6-8 weeks? Is it often repositioned across the stream to get more? If I'm not high...and from what I have read here...


    65' 3-4 stateroom

    - ($17,000 a week)
    - Crew @ $3500 (2)
    - Broker Commission @ 20%)
    - Cleaning an per trip exp $1000
    - Charter pays for fuel, food, and exp
    ===================
    Gross Profit for Charter is $10,000

    8 Charters a Year Grosses $80K

    Yearly Maintenance with Local Captain Managing the boat, dockage $50 - $80K

    So break these apart please and see where I'm off. Obviously these number don't do anything to effect the payments of the boat... but If I new the expenses could be offset, I'd be happy...
  8. RVN-BR

    RVN-BR Senior Member

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    From my past experience (and it was on boats larger than the one you mention) the captain alone was making more than 50K... if im not mistaken we were paying closer to 60k on a 24M (80ft)... Even a 65 for charter will need at least 2 if not 3 crew imho...

    Docking will also be quite a bit more than you are anticipating (considering 50k for captain + stew + dockage)... I think lux yachts website (go on google as I dont know what the linking policy is) has a cost calculator that can help you. I have used it more for calculating rough estimates for larger yachts which is now what i have more experience with, but it should be somewhat usable for your size...
  9. Capt J

    Capt J Senior Member

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    He's talking about having someone manage the yacht or take care of it on a part-time as needed basis and having a Captain and mate for charters, which does work out well for all parties involved if the right people are involved.
  10. RVN-BR

    RVN-BR Senior Member

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    Regardless of how the ppl are arranged I think it will cost more than 80k to dock and maintain a boat that size... plus from what I understood on his posts about "hiring a captain instead of a mgmt company", etc, that would pretty much be a full time job for the captain... any takers for less than 50k?
  11. NYCAP123

    NYCAP123 Senior Member

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    It really depends on the situation and what's involved. I've managed a few boats where it's a supervisory job, monitoring the boat, and arranging for whatever work is needed; then captaining the boat. Most maintenance, washing etc. was handled by sub-contractors. I received a monthly stipend (way less than $50K annually, in fact less than $10K) plus my regular day rate when we cruised.
  12. RVN-BR

    RVN-BR Senior Member

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    Right NYCAP, but that wasnt all that was involved in the maintenance of the boat...

    What I am saying is that to have a boat ready to cruise for 12 - 15 wks a year (8 charters + 4 - 5 owner weeks + 1 or 2 extra), it will take more than 10K captain... it will take full time captain imo to have a boat in a good shape, but I suppose others will say otherwise...

    Even with a captain in a managerial position as you were, there was still the cost of all the contractors, which cant be left out... What do you think would be the fixed cost for maintenance and dockage for a 65ft?
  13. Pascal

    Pascal Senior Member

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    In south Florida, dockage is going to run $25 to $30k a year. You may get cheaper dockage behind a private home but won't be able to run charters out of that dock ($1 a foot boarding fees at marinas add up) or stay on the boat for more than an occasional overnight.

    With 15 to 20 weeks of cruising a year, a full time captain may be needed, or near full time.
  14. NYCAP123

    NYCAP123 Senior Member

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    All those numbers would be variable depending where and what the level of service is. For instance, they may choose to only have the boat washed once a month or before charters. Certainly interior cleaning would only be done before and after use. And the captain/ manager wouldn't or shouldn't be taking a cut of everyone's fee as a management company would. A management company wouldn't have flexibility and would do most things on a schedule not being familiar with the individual needs of the boat and owner.
  15. RVN-BR

    RVN-BR Senior Member

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    Yes, i suppose the level of service is key.... My experience has been solely at the higher end of the service spectrum, which is why I cant really comment on the minimum possible, but from all I gather it is always best to plan for higher expenses rather than low balling them...

    I'm also unsure abt how the OP's local market is priced in comparison to SoFl, similar?
  16. Pascal

    Pascal Senior Member

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    "I'm also unsure abt how the OP's local market is priced in comparison to SoFl, similar?"

    Read his 2nd post, he is asking about FLL based boats
  17. RVN-BR

    RVN-BR Senior Member

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    ops, you are right, i saw CA in his profile location and was assuming that... i'd say the costs are pretty much as I said then, most probably north of what his expectations are... should review in order to prvent being "bitten" down the road...
  18. Capt J

    Capt J Senior Member

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    It can be done for 50-80k a year providing it's not a high maintanence boat with a lot of varnish, teak, and etc. Dockage behind a house can be had for $12ft per month including water and electric. Even if you had to stay at a marina overnight to pick up guests and unload guests, they are responsible for all expenses during the charter.......Chances are the guests and owner are not going to want to sit on the boat for an entire week at the same marina anyways. Engine maintanence if they're detroits or cats will run 5k-10k a year with 12 weeks of normal usage. Exterior maintanence depending on the boat, but if it's Awlgrip...... a washdown every 2 weeks and that's it. Bottom paint and other running gear $5k a year. The Crew figure well that all depends on how many charters.....but he's including the crew cost for the charters into the charter price.......If you have a good yacht manager that knows engines/gens/electric/and plumbing, outside vendors will be kept to a minimum....
  19. RVN-BR

    RVN-BR Senior Member

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    An awlgrip job every 2 - 3 yrs on its own will be around 50k+! anyways, like I said, my experience is in a differente bracket of service so it sounds quite foreign to man an operation like this... and from the crew/capt salary threads that were going on the last few weeks i thought it was a trend that no one would work for the amnts mentioned here... nonetheless i seem to be neglecting the fact that you can have bare minimum crew/costs for a yacht... I wonder how the yacht upkeep will compare to a full service one in the longrun, but that is beyond the scope of this thread.

    good luck to the OP and do let us know what you end up with!
  20. Capt J

    Capt J Senior Member

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    Awlgrip every 2-3 years??????? I get 10 good years out of awlgrip and can milk it for another 3 years.......