Every day I pass along the news to my clients that the insurance company requires a marine survey. The reaction varies from willing acceptance to visceral anger. I suppose this is the same way many view their annual physical exam. Nobody really wants to see the doctor but you know you should do it. The same thing applies to the marine survey. The challenge is finding a good surveyor. Never have a survey done by a surveyor recommended by the seller and I thought it would be wise to get somebody from outside the Cleveland area for my boat.
I recommend many surveyors to prospective buyers but I chose Barry Goodyear of RaKon Marine Surveys. We work closely at boat shows giving advice to first time buyers and that that has helped build a trust and rapport. Trust is the very basis of the surveyor-buyer relationship so make sure that exists before you move forward. Trust in their abilities but verify when possible. A good surveyor will also co-ordinate engine tests, and oil analysis when requested. This proved to be very important to my purchase even tough the boat was less than 10 years old. The oil tests established the previous owners had not adhered to manufacturer recommended maintenance so there could be a big problem with the saildrive. This is not something I would have expected to see.
There is a lot of preparation and planning that goes into the survey. To get it done properly it can't be rushed and you also have to wait for the right weather conditions.
The details of Barry's report and the condition of the 2005 Bavaria 38 are not important to this story. What is important is that the survey brought the deal back to a rational discussion and removed all of the emotion. Finally I could negotiate based on hard facts. She was scored a 9 out of 10 but there were a few areas of concern. Not enough concern to scuttle the deal but I had to do more research on repairing the saildrive and that could affect the closing price.
Next Up : The Yacht broker
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