Sell a boat with Clarke & Carter

Our experienced team of brokers will help you sell your boat and stand out in the crowd. We create comprehensive brokerage details with the information provided by you from your forms. Wherever possible we visit your boat in person and take a full set of photographs, add a layout plan (where possible) to show your boat in it’s best light. Finally, we use our experience, combined with original brochures and magazine reports from our extensive library, to write professional descriptions to the highest standards.

We currently offer two different brokerage services, our standard ‘no sale no fee’ and our new fixed price service for boats under £10k. Click the links below for our brokerage forms to begin the process to sell a boat:

We are happy to provide a FREE market appraisal before you sign a brokerage agreement. Simply fill in the form on this page or follow the link below to request your report:

CLICK HERE to request your FREE market appraisal

Need a quick sale? We can buy your boat from you at a competitive trade rate!

Although we are known for our brokerage services we will also consider purchasing your boat. As our main business is brokerage and we are self-financing we are often more generous than other trade buyers. If you are considering selling a modern yacht or motorboat it is always worth checking what we may offer before accepting another bid.

We are particularly competitive on UK based cruising yachts under 20yrs old and between 30-45ft long.

HOW WE AS PROFESSIONAL BROKERS WORK TO SELL YOUR BOAT

WEB SITES www.clarkeandcarter.co.uk

Your boat will be advertised on our mobile responsive website which is itself heavily promoted. Although this site has great traffic and useful features like keel searches and easy social media sharing we are always looking at the latest advances in technology for the next site to ensure your boat gets seen. To help achieve this we advertise on lots of other boat sales sites across the UK, Europe, and beyond. This has allowed us to sell boats in, and to, many different countries including the US and Australia.

The list of sites we advertise on is constantly changing as we review them to ensure our boats are getting the best coverage. Many of these are sites that you cannot list on without a broker, or the costs privately are very high. See below for some examples of sites we advertise on, consequently generating hundreds of inquiries every week:

SOCIAL MEDIA

This is something that we are carefully growing to match customer feedback and current trends. Although we tend not to advertise individual boats on these platforms they are a valuable tool to promote traffic to our site, and ultimately, sell your boat. You can also help by liking and sharing our Facebook page which publishes boating news, events, and offers!

EMAIL MARKETING

We have a large mailing list on our networked database of clients looking to buy boats like yours. Once listed, we will look at matches for your boat and details will be sent to them as soon possible. We are in touch regularly with our buyers to ensure that they receive targeted and relevant information. To allow us to sell your boat quickly we use a large database of customers already registered with us. We often find buyers this way before your boat is even advertised!

PRINTED MEDIA ADVERTISING

Although less relevant than in previous years, we still advertise locally and nationally in a selection of premium publications. We are proud to continue our association with the Reeds Almanac and also feature in the very popular Coastal Guide.

NEGOTIATION

We act as the negotiators to arrive at a mutually acceptable deal to sell your boat. This agreement is secured by a contract fair and binding to all parties. Our experience allows us to handle the numerous pitfalls and issues that must be properly covered to avoid misunderstandings. We advise buyers to use only qualified and experienced surveyors and will arrange slipping for survey (at the purchaser’s expense), advise you on repair estimates if necessary and renegotiate revised terms where appropriate.

BROKERAGE PART EXCHANGE

To help your boat find a new home we may offer to facilitate a part exchange where appropriate. In these cases we will inform you of the part-exchange and any delay this may cause to your sale. We will also offer you the chance to fund the part exchange from your boat sale which may result in an improved return for you.

HANDLING TITLE

It is imperative that we are able to prove good title to sell your boat. We will check your title documents, VAT status, RCD Compliance and registration particulars to ensure that the sale progresses without delay. We also deal with all the marine mortgage houses to satisfy their requirements to make sure there are no delays in the final payment due to incorrect documentation.

KEEPING YOUR MONEY SECURE

Financial security is essential. These days we find that many purchasers will not buy privately due to the number of scams happening. We act as stakeholders and operate a separate Clients Account for this purpose. Our role is to ensure all parties fulfill their side of the contract and that full payment is made in exchange for title when you sell a boat. We handle all foreign currency transactions and exchange controls, advise on import/export formalities, VAT and duty. Settlements are direct to your account (unless otherwise requested) to ensure speed and security.

LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION

Location is a most important factor in achieving a swift sale. With a huge choice of boats on the market it is critical that your boat is quick and easy to access at any time. At our offices we operate either Sales Area hardstanding or berthing, subject to availability. Where available this gives you three to six months ashore free of charge (subject to terms) and thereafter at a heavily discounted rate. There is a much higher chance to sell a boat quickly and for a good price from one of our main offices. Purchasers like to view a selection of boats at one time, and we often encourage viewings that lead to sales on boats that people wouldn’t have considered otherwise.

PRESENTATION

A neat, clean and tidy boat always sells quicker and for more money than a tatty sistership. The impression that a purchaser gets in the first few minutes on board usually decides if he or she is going to make an offer. We advise how best to present including what to do for little expense and effort to improve the achieved end price. We can arrange quotations for cleaning and interior tidying for the purpose of sale. Give yourself a real advantage by presenting your boat properly for sale! It is exactly the same as selling a car or property, to sell a boat it should be clean and clutter-free. There is nothing like a full forepeak or quarter berth to quench any impression of space below.

OUR USED BOAT SHOWS

Clarke & Carter holds annual Autumn Used Boat Shows at our offices in Levington, Suffolk, and Burnham on Crouch, Essex. These are the largest, longest-running and most successful used boat shows on the East Coast. At each event we have up to 100 boats on display, both ashore and float. Over a month’s viewings are compressed into a few days with lots of offers and sales made, usually selling around 20% of the boats displayed. There is no fee to enter your boat in the show but it must be listed for sale with us. Free berthing or hardstanding for an agreed period (usually 7 days) is included. They are important events on the East Coast, often attracting media coverage and a great opportunity for selling your boat not to be missed!

PRIVATE SALE HANDLING

Over the last few years we have received an increasing number of requests from vendors who are selling privately but want the protection and assistance of using an experienced brokerage. Listed below are some of the many reasons why this might be desirable:

Professionally drafted ABYA contracts to help avoid future comebacks or complications
Access to a brokerage’s banking facility for safe, secure handling of funds
Title check service with assistance resolving historic issues including VAT and CE/RCD
Advice and assistance to both parties when arranging surveys and discussing the results
Confidence for buyers that their money will be safe and secure throughout the process
Ability to negotiate a better price with increased buyer confidence (many are now wary of private sales)
Transfer of title including assistance with opening, closing and transferring registration

There has been a huge increase in sophisticated scams and fake websites recently in the marine industry. It is more important than ever before to ensure you are dealing with the right person and your boat and funds are protected. Further advice on this can be found on our Fraud, Scams & Security page. As FCA registered ABYA brokers we have access to many resources smaller companies and private individuals do not.

With buyers warier than ever many private sellers have found the only way to secure their sale is to either go on trust without a deposit which leaves them open to expense and disappointment. We secure your sale with contracts to protect both buyers and sellers. We have found buyers are often prepared to pay for or split our service costs as it benefits them too. Please contact us to discuss your needs and request a quote tailored for you.