BEWARE!! 46ft Markley Myrtle Beach

Your talking about the '06 near Murrells Inlet?

Never go to survey without a sea trial first to make sure the boat is worth surveying. The vibration would have been the first red flag

Yes, the full sea trial with surveyors is done on survey day but it's always a good idea to do a shorter sea trial befor to make sure the boat is worth surveying. Needs to be out in the contract when making offer.

This way, if t h boat has an obvious issue... running hot, vibration, poor performance, etc.. you can back out before spending thousands on a survey

Did the listing broker have the info all along?

Yea I agree, if possible do sea trial and then land survey.
The history and full disclosure by owner and broker is a must.

For me, as a buyer, if I detect any intentional deception its a full show stopper.
On to the next boat, remember its a buyers market.

For some reason the last two boats I purchased I did backwards.
Both of the last two boats I purchased were already on land, so for me it made sense to do the land survey first.
I did my own extensive unofficial land survey before hiring someone to do an official survey.
So I had a pretty good idea what I was getting into.
By the time the last boat hit the water I was already into it for a nice hit if I had to walk away from it.

I did put in the contract that any Owner or Broker knowing and intentional failure to disclose any and all known conditions or history will result in full refund of deposit and any and all survey costs. Intentional failure to disclose will result in crew, decommissioning, commissioning, hauling and blocking costs to be paid in full by the Seller and Broker.

Also, I request in writing any and all insurance claims, repair work, and maintenance records.

Regarding vibration, its not always a show stopper.
You have to do some investigation.
Years ago, I had a boat that all of a sudden started vibrating bad under load.
couldn't figure it out, never ran aground, bottom clean.
One engine was shaking excessively on its mounts. Thought maybe spun a bearing or bad cylinder?

After a while jumped in water and found a mass of crab pot line wrapped around one of the wheels.
A serrated Dexter and a mask was all it took to fix that problem.

Lesson for us all!

Some excellent advice here. Sadly a lot of brokers are as sleazy as the proverbial used car salesman. Any seller that refuses a pre survey sea trial is either hiding something or incompetent. Same goes with the broker.

I her what your saying. I'm currently getting ready to make an offer on a 65' Hatteras C. I will put in the contract that a pre-survey sea trial is required. In 64 years of boating I've always done this and have never been challenged by a seller. Just how I do business. Doesn't mean I'm right or wrong, just how I do it.

If I offer free boat rides to anyone who claims they are thinking about buying my boat, guess what I'll be doing 24/7 until an actual buyer comes along? And who would buy it if they could get unlimited boat rides for free? I love taking people out with me on boat rides, but not this.

Knight, pm me if you wish. I dealt with this same outfit years ago.

It's not a free boat ride since a contract has already been signed and a deposit is held by the broker.

It's not a $1000 expense either, even if the seller has to use a captain. An half hour of fuel is $100 on a 70/80 footer

Either a seller wants to sell or not. As a buyer I m not going to gamble $2000 to $4000 unless I know th boat is worth surveying

In all fairness to brokers in general, unless a boat has been sea trialed or surveyed and rejected a broker may not know of mechanical problems an owner isn't disclosing