Boat purchase questions

Freshwater!

Rather than a broker I'd hire a captain. A good, experienced captain can narrow down your search and save you the cost of surveying boats that aren't worth it. He can also direct your negotiations.
As Alzira mentioned freshwater use is a big plus. Engine hours you don't want too many or too few; 100-200 hours per year is what I like to see. Smoke, bad engine noises, vibrations are some tell tales of poorly maintained engines. Even a dirty engine room. This is one place where that captain will come in real handy. Premature rebuilds aren't good, but timely rebuilds are giving new life to older motors. I'd rather buy a boat that was just rebuilt than one that is about to need it. If the port and stbd motors have vastly different hours it says that one motor had a problem and the other could have it coming. Something to investigate. Recent upgrades are a good thing.
If all that pleases you it's probably time for you and the captain to take a look. From there get a survey.
P.S. If you're new to this size vessel there's a good chance your insurance company will require a captain be with you for the first year. This would be a good way of checking a captain's experience. You want one with at least 5 years experience (2nd issue license).

Depends on the motor and use, 3,000-7,000. Consider that getting a license could subject you to a different level of liability, but if you proceed your experience will determine your tonnage and endorsements if any. What you want the captain for is his experience in choosing the right boat, not his license. Your 41 may eliminate the need to hire a captain your first year, but that'll be up to your insurance company. For now the captain can help narrow down your search. He or she can help you determine the style that suits your planned use, which manufacturers to consider, which look good on paper, which stand up to inspection, what you should offer and why, and help your negotiations. He can also help find a good surveyor.

Unfortunately that describes most boaters. As long as they have money to burn (and don't mind taking a car service home), good for them. There's a thousand things on a boat that can break down., stop you cold and maybe kill you. No need to maintain the ones you don't mind breaking down. Every cruise starts with an engine room check and the more you know from there the better. Remember there's not a service station on every corner for boats.

Your first paragraph is what your attorney does. He's better qualified. With a buyer's broker there's too many ways into conflict and you get what you pay for. When the owner is starry eyed and the brokers are looking to make commissions on a sale that captain is looking for why you shouldn't buy the boat. Even if the buyer has a lot of experience he can benefit from that unbiased eye and the experience behind it.

You can also get a better deal a lot of times if dealing with the sellers broker, if the deal is tight, well they have twice the commission to work with and some will cut commission a little to make a skinny deal (for the owner) happen.

When I bought my boat I had a discussion about this topic with my agent (wasn't applicable then but I was just curious). An experienced agent with years buying and selling under his belt. He said he never cuts his commission, even when he's the only broker in the deal. I thought that was really surprising given what I've seen with real estate over the years. Glad to hear some are actually doing that, since it makes sense.

To the OP, whether you hire an agent depends on whether you think you're capable of doing the tasks the agent would do for you, including finding the boat, finding the surveyor, negotiating, paperwork, etc. The only thing keeping me from hiring an agent would be the thought that I could get the boat cheaper if I did these things myself and could get a lower price because the seller's agent will cut his commission. As I said above not all agents will do this.

For the other items I would rely heavily on the surveyor (and hire one with a great reputation). You could also hire a captain as mentioned above but then you're out of pocket on every boat you have him look at.

Cutting commissions is a very slippery slop that most reputable brokers will avoid lest they get the reputation of a "cut-rate" or "fly by night" broker. Plus they only have so much room to move before they're working for free. I wouldn't get my surveyor from the broker due to possible conflicts and attorneys are better at protecting you with the paperwork than a broker who may not have your best interest at heart. Yes hiring a captain will result in a bill for each boat you check out. If you have a knowledgeable friend who will look at it with an educated eye towards why you shouldn't buy the boat great. Otherwise that captain is a cheap investment and a lot cheaper than hiring surveyors who may kill the deal for might have have been fairly obvious deficiencies.

If you find a boat online that you would like to see just call the selling broker and ask if the commission is less by you not hiring a buyers broker, most will reduce the commission. I have had a broker say leave your broker at home and I can get you a better deal. Then use some of the commission savings to hire a highly rated hull and engine surveyors that has a reputation for being thorough. The surveyors can be the most important part of the process. If you don't have the expertise, hire a captain as mentioned to do a walk thru inspection with you to see if the boat is worthy of making an offer.