The selling of About Time was an interesting process for Jimmy and me. Not only did we figure out the process of selling a boat by owner, but we also got to meet some great people along the way.
For Sale by Owner
As mentioned in other blogs, like the 5-year plan (https://sondrawinter.wixsite.com/in-the-lee/post/the-five-year-plan) , Jimmy and I decided to purchase a larger boat for our full time cursing adventure, and before buying that new boat, we felt we should sell About Time, our 1985 32’ Sabre centerboard. When we purchased her in 2016, she was listed with a broker who lived on the dock where About Time resided, at Green Turtle Bay Resort in Grand Rivers, Kentucky. However, four years later, we listed the price under $30,000, making it a bit too low of an asking price to list with a broker.
In early 2020 we realized that all of the recent upgrades we made to About Time, like new sails and a fresh bottom paint job, might make it a good time to go ahead and list the boat. We started to prepare a listing description, but stalled the advertising because we thought that it would not be a good idea to list the boat as the world began to shut down during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic. By August 2020 we realized how wrong that thought was, and we moved forward with listing the boat (thanks John M. for helping with the wording!), and advertised it on the following:
· Craig’s List
· Sabre Forums
· Sailboat Listings
· Facebook, on several different group pages
· Sailboat Cruising
· Good Old Boat
· Sailboat Guide
· The bulletin board at our yacht club
Now that we had the advertisements up, it was time to wait. Even with the COVID boat buying spree of 2020, we still thought that with this price range, a listing by-owner, and our remote Florida location, it would take a while to sell About Time.
It was not a long wait for the scammers to reach out to us. When someone sends a message that says they will pay full price and pick it up in the morning or asks if I can have it delivered, without asking a single question about the boat, it defiantly smells funny. Several times I wondered if they even realized that it was a boat in the water that I was selling.
Next came a lot of messaging with people curious about the boat, as we tried to sort through real inquiries and scammers. A few of these turned into phone calls with potential buyers, and some turned into viewings of the boat. In general, we would show the boat to anyone that asked, especially to anyone local to the area. We figured that you just never knew who might actually be interested in buying the boat or would know someone else that may be interested. I suppose word got out locally because I recall one day while out sailing someone yelled out to us asking “is that the boat that is for sale?”
The One Odd Message that was Not a Scammer
One day I received a Facebook message that said something like “That used to be my boat!” Of course, my first thought was yeah right, another odd Facebook message about the boat, what scam angle are they going to use?
Since About Time was USCG registered, it was easy for me to look up her past owners, and low and behold, the guy messaging me is on the list of past owners. As Scott and I continued to message back and forth, I learned that he and his in-laws co-owned the boat in Texas. Eventually his in-laws (David and Joyleen) purchased Scott’s half and later sold it to the person we purchased the boat from. This was a fun find for Jimmy and me, especially since we never met or communicated with the person whom we purchased the boat from.
One day Scott said that his in-laws would be passing through my part of the state, and asked if it would be okay for them to visit the boat. When they stopped by, I thought it might be a quick visit, perhaps 30 minutes at the most. I did not expect to meet such a delightful couple that entertained me for three hours as we sat in the salon of a boat that captured all of our hearts.
I heard a lot of stories about her that afternoon that I would have loved to have heard when we first purchased her (like I said, we never exchanged a single word with seller). We learned that after David and Joyleen sold the boat, the new owner changed the name from Forget Me Knot to About Time. Scott, David, and Joyleen raced her a lot out of the Galveston area with several entries in the Harvest Moon Regatta. In fact, they sent me a link to a video of Forget Me Knot in a race. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=z0-2xHMXOME It was so exciting to watch this video, even if I was about to sell the boat. I learned that there was a rescue performed by helicopter when a crew member fell and hit his head on a winch. This explained the dent in the port side teak combing, which was caused by the basket being dropped out of the helicopter hitting the boat upon landing. Then another fantastic bit of trivia was learned when David and Joyleen informed me that they completed The Great Loop in that boat!
Today Scott and I still message back and forth, keeping each other updated with boating news.
Matchmaking Completed
After a few months of talking to scammers, curious people, and even a few serious lookers answering many questions about the boat, meeting David and Joyleen, one person indicated that they would like to drive over from Mississippi to look at About Time. Richard had recently retired and had not sailed in about 15 years but had wanted to get back into sailing. He made an offer in early February, returning to Shell Point in late February to move her to her new home.
As we got to know Richard, we felt that this was an ideal match. About Time and Richard was a perfect pairing. I did fear that someone would purchase her, move her over to the marina behind our house and let her rot. We’ve seen it happen many times over the years. About Time was in such good shape, fun to cruise in and good racer, it would be such a waste if the new owner did not use the boat. This was not going to be the case.
Richard’s son dropped him and a friend off at Shell Point after we exchanged the title at a bank in Tallahassee. They brought a bunch of provisions for their weeklong trip back to Pascagoula and spent the afternoon getting settled into Richard’s new boat for the night. Due to the skinny waters of Apalachee Bay, our plan was to move About Time out to the bay during high tide, then Richard would begin his trip after sunrise.
About 4:30 in the morning, Jimmy knocked on the hull and about 30 minutes later we pushed off the dock. I enjoyed piloting About Time out to the bay one last time, even with the additional challenges of doing this in the dark while towing a 15’ Boston Whaler. Once out at the tripod we dropped the anchor, went over a few boat items, then simply sat there, and enjoyed the sunrise. When Richard was ready, Jimmy and I climbed aboard his Boston Whaler and got dropped off at the boat ramp. I felt that he could find his way back out from the boat ramp much better than doing so from our house. As Jimmy and I walked home, we took one last look over our shoulder and waved goodbye to our girl.
It was so much fun getting updates from him as he pointed About Time to her new home. They started out with two light breeze days; perfect days for him to get reacquainted with sailing. This was followed by two incredibly sporty days that really tested his prior skills. Richard made a comment that the boat did fine, but he thinks his hair may have gone totally grey during those days. It seemed that his last two days into the Pascagoula area went nicely for them. Over the next few months Richard would send Jimmy photos of About Time’s new family and her new adventures.
During the purchase I had explained why we decided to keep her named About Time. A few weeks after getting her home, he let us know that he also has decided to keep the name. We have an invitation to go visit her sometime. Perhaps we will get a chance on one of our future trips to come visit family.
In the end, selling About Time was a good experience for us and we are thrilled that Richard is her new owner.
2024 Update: About Time now resides with a new owner in the Pensacola area.
23-34
Kommentarer