Brokerage sales have calmed down and levelled out in recent years. We get expert advice on how to understand the market and still find a great yacht deal in 2025
Photo: James Mitchell/WCC
Three years ago the idea of finding a yacht deal in the used market had ceased to exist, with demand soaring as the world escaped an unprecedented pandemic. Today many of those snap decision circumnavigators have returned home. Others who purchased to sail in home waters may have decided it’s not for them. Some owners, as is always the case, are selling due to circumstances they wouldn’t choose.
At the same time new yacht sales have slowed, ensuring the used market is not flooded with supply. So the market has levelled out, with prices steadying and transactions less pressured. Understanding patterns of where bargains are likely to exist is key to finding a good deal in 2025.
Discovering a timeless classic yacht deal
Yacht design and fashion are not so far separated on the Venn diagram. Trends come and go. When builders began to switch to twin rudder designs their older, single rudder predecessors immediately became less valuable. A similar readjustment of bow designs has taken place, with brands such as Hallberg-Rassy committing what some previously thought unthinkable by adopting a modern blunt bow.
Beloved classics such as the Contessa 32 are often beautifully maintained when they come to market. Photo: Paul Wyeth/CWL
But designs that have transcended fashion to become modern classics have none of these factors influencing price. Well supported by owner associations, perhaps decades of shared ownership experience, and yards that have got to know the flaws and foibles of a particular design can all make for a fulfilling and more predictable ownership experience.
George Isted and his business, The Solent Boat Butler, specialises in Contessa 32 maintenance. This year he has four rebuilds in progress, and his YouTube channel Refit & Sail just documented a comprehensive refit of a Contessa 32. But how can an old design be a bargain?
“The wonderful thing about a Contessa is you can pick up something you can sail, even race, for £20,000-30,000. That same boat could safely take you around the world. As an owner you have access to a lot of knowledge, many other owners, and even your own racing class at Cowes Week.
Plus One, 2008 Swan 82. A substantial cruising yacht that has also raced (ex-CrackerJack). Major refit including new deck and carbon rigging, service etc August 2023. Lying Hong Kong – price heavily reduced.
“The bottom line is that buying and then doing loads of work will bring you to a price that would have been cheaper with the work already done on a more expensive boat, but you will find Contessas that are genuinely fantastic value in the mid-range, and a lot have been well looked after without owners going over the top.
“There are also owners that have done absolutely everything and then sell – who know fully well that they won’t get all they have spent back when they go to market, so a real bargain can be had there too sometimes.”
If you are one of the many boat owners who buys with cash, then great – you can saunter on…
Long way from home
Norman Weber’s search for his catamaran took him all over the world. “We’d lived aboard a 35ft monohull for three years in Europe, and come back ashore [thinking] we were done with living afloat, but then decided life on land wasn’t as great as we’d remembered. Though it had to be a catamaran for us to sail away full time.”
Searching while the market was still very active in 2021, Norman started looking far from his home in Germany, researching extensively online, realising if he was prepared to travel that he might find something good.
Carbon sprits and custom tillers are among the upgrades devoted Contessa 32 owners opt for. Photo: The Solent Boat Butler
“Looking for boats in less developed places is not for the faint hearted. You need to have a different attitude and be prepared to get on a plane quickly. Then, when you get to wherever it is and find the first boat is rubbish, you need not to be deterred!”
Weber travelled from Germany to the Maldives to find a catamaran that looked great online but had been damaged severely by being abandoned in a hostile climate. “The humidity does enormous damage very quickly to an unventilated boat. The interior was in a terrible state, and the engine was affected as well. I learned a lot from that trip. It emerged that four others had made similar journeys to see her to find the same as me.”
Some of the risk of buying so far from home can be alleviated before flying, explains Weber. “Ask for a video walkthrough, high resolution images and as much as you possibly can get hold of before you get on a plane. Having someone at the end of the phone that’s used to showing boats over video can really help. In one case an owner was not that tech savvy, and we didn’t really get the insight we needed, but many brokers are now used to spending a good bit of time on a live video call.”
His search involved three long-haul trips, but the third bore fruit when he found an unusual Schionning that suited his and his partner’s needs perfectly in Asia. “It also meant we started our cruising in somewhere very interesting, we’ve been here ever since” explains Norman.
Regional variation
But if you are looking to buy in the UK, does location influence market price?
“While it is true that a seller can increase their chances of finding a buyer quickly by locating their boat in one of the UK’s main yachting centres, thanks to Brexit, which has created a market separation between the UK and Europe due to the need for UK-based buyers to pay 20% VAT on import of European-purchased yachts and vice versa, there is a much smaller selection of yachts to choose from,” explains yacht broker Alex Grabbau.
This 1984 Contessa 32 is a classic example well set up for racing or cruising.
“We are seeing that buyers are more readily prepared to travel around the UK to view what is on offer. Coupled with this is the effectiveness of digital marketing platforms helping buyers get a decent overview before deciding to travel. Long gone are the days when you might be able to find a bargain hidden at the back of a small boatyard in some far-flung location.”
Peter Webster runs Euroyachts brokerage in Troon and has seen the difference between prices in the north of the UK and the south coast level up over the past decade. “Largely due to the internet, there’s little difference in prices now between the south of the UK and Scotland, especially as stock of quality used yachts has fallen recently.”
The cancelled plan
In the bluewater market especially, there have always been yachts diligently prepared for an adventure that doesn’t happen. As with the Contessa class, where devoted racers will lavish their 30-year-old yacht with expensive sails and carbon bowsprits, despite knowing they won’t get the money back, those planning voyages further afield often spend disproportionately in relation to the resale value when preparing for a bluewater adventure. Strike at the right time and the savings, and saved effort of a refit, can be huge.
“The classic opportunity, certainly in the bluewater yacht market, has been the unforeseen change of plans. We have often seen occasions where a yacht purchased through our brokerage, comprehensively refitted and upgraded for a planned bluewater adventure, is placed back on the market due to an unforeseen change of plan or circumstance. While some of the investment made by the owner will be recoverable, a large percentage will not.
Looking Good II, 2019 Kraken 50. The only Kraken 50 available on the used market, lying Australia. Antifoul, service and rig inspection 2024. One owner since new.
“Coupled with the systems and equipment being ‘in date’ and ready to go, these sorts of yachts represent genuine bargains. Consider also the time factor in refitting and preparing a yacht for bluewater adventures, and the value for money with the boats becomes even more significant,” explains Grabau.
Odd one out
An ex-Vendée Globe Open 60 might seem only suited to one thing: ocean racing. The owners of NV, a 1990-built Nandor Fa design that had been extended to 66ft, had different ideas though, turning the racer into a family cruiser with a difference.
Jo and Timo Hutchinson bought the Open 60 in New Zealand and refitted it in Fiji, overcoming some unusual challenges along the way (and documented the project on their YouTube channel Sailing NV). “Her draught is well over 4m. In one yard we had to dig a pit to accommodate the keel bulb!” Timo explains.
The things that made her unusual however, also meant she was keenly priced, especially where they found her – far from a major centre of ocean racing.
With more than 4m of draught, refitting an Open 66 for family cruising was challenging.
Jo and Timo both came from backgrounds in relatively traditional yacht ownership, having previously had a Tayana and a Moody respectively, making for a very different experience to converting NV.
“We’ve made her almost entirely open plan. She’s refitted for our needs, not for anyone else’s, and the reality is that an Open 60 has quite a lot of internal volume if you are clever about how you use it. A lot of the items on a racing yacht have a shelf life when the yacht is being used competitively, but that’s much less the case when she is being cruised fast.
“She also represented good value because we were prepared to take on the work, especially with carbon fibre, that others wouldn’t. Our repurposing of her involves a lot of imagination to think how she could work well for us, rather than seeing her as a racing yacht where we had to keep everything the same.” he explains.
Top tips for finding a bargain
Broker Alex Grabau shares his advice:
1. Be flexible on location: prices can vary by region, but Brexit has reduced the overall yacht selection. Digital platforms make it easier to find deals nationwide.
2. Watch the market trends: the post-boom slowdown hasn’t led to falling prices, but high new-build costs make second-hand yachts more attractive.
3. Consider older, well-built yachts: classic designs with solid construction and good seakeeping can offer great value, especially as bluewater sailing gains popularity.
4. Build a relationship with brokers: the best deals often sell before they hit the open market. Staying in touch with brokers gives you an early heads-up.
5. Look for ‘change of plan’ sales: some owners invest heavily in refitting a yacht for adventure, only to sell due to unforeseen circumstances – offering a ready-to-go bargain.
Salamander of Lymington, a Nauticat 521, circumnavigated and was then coded for charter, meaning a lot of money has been spent, yet she is available for under £300,000. Photo: Alex Grabau
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