The following procedure is to buy a used boat in Hong Kong.
1) When a buyer contacts us, we can show the boat to the buyer first.
2) After the buyer sees and likes the boat, he/she would like to proceed further, and then we try to look at the boat in more details and find out as much info as we can.
3) After buyer decides that he/she wants to go ahead, then we negotiate the price and sign a safe agreement which is good for boat buyer and the seller.
4) The buyer places deposit normally 10% on the boat, this deposit is refundable if the buyer finds the boat to be non-seaworthy or showing many problems in the survey.
5) All boat sales require a professional independent surveyor to do a full survey and inspection of the boat, the amount for the surveyor is paid by the buyer, and so is the lifting costs in a shipyard and any cost that may require cleaning the bottom of the boat so the surveyor can have a clear look at the boat’s bottom. In turn, the seller has to make a crew/captain available to test the boat and the fuel costs required.
6) Upon satisfactory survey report, the buyer can decide to make a final payment, re-negotiate the deal or back out depending on the survey report. Point to note is that, normal wear and tear are usually not points to negotiate on. The negotiation or rejection of the deal is taken place when there are lot of problems or any major problem that deem the boat un-seaworthy or incur lot of expense on the buyer to make the boat in a acceptable condition.
7) Asia Boating Ltd or your yacht broker should prepare all documents, check for any debts on the boat, ensure the items that are included are kept on the boat, all documents that the buyer may need in the future are available. The preparation for closing and all documents are signed by Buyer and Seller and are held by the Seller until the final payment is made.
8) Buyer requires to prepare cashier’s order which is normally exchanged for final documents in the Marine Dept of Hong Kong. Immediately after giving the cashier’s order and getting the documents, we give the documents to the Marine Dept to carry out the transfer of ownership of the vessel from the seller to the buyer. This procedure takes approximately 1 or 2 hours in the marine department of Hong Kong.
9) After the certificate of ownership has been issued to the buyer who is not the new owner of the boat, the buyer arranges to take the boat to his/her mooring place and takes the physical delivery of the boat.