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The following represent the best resources to locate bank repo boats for auction within the U.S. Other smaller boat auction sources exist but these will cover them all and then some. I haven’t listed any dedicated Government auction websites since Police or Coast Guard auctions rarely offer a vessel that is worth bidding on.

Since I have pursued bank owned boats at auction for a little over six years, I’ve come to recognize that often times a great deal on a used vessel is more gratifying than the shine and smell of a new factory product.

Based on the last few years as well as our current economic condition, boats and jet ski’s liquidated at auction will only continue to offer as much as 25%-40% discount compared to dealer owned vessels. Banks simply don’t have the luxury of time on their side, it’s too expensive for them.

Regardless of whether you’re a DIY’er or you’re in the market to find a well conditioned repo boat for sale, the sites below are currently recognized as some of the most detailed boat auctions sources available on the internet:

Top 5 Boat Auctions Sales Sources

1. BoatAuctionsDirect.com — This website regularly updates and checks out nearly every boat auction source across North America and compiles them for easy access. It’s extremely comprehensive listing boats, pwcs, rvs, atvs, and marine equipment assets as well. I use it because it weeds out all the riff-raff sites.

2. BoatAuctionsInfo.com — This website offers a free listing of about ten of the top boat auction houses for free. You won’t find half of what’s out there; however, it’s a good point to start.

3. YachtAuctions.com — National Liquidators is the largest boat (mostly yachts) auction house on the planet and regarded as one of THE ‘go to’ sources lenders and the Government rely upon to liquidate repo boats in south Florida. Generally, they will have a minimum of 300-350 bank repossessed yachts at any given time.

4. GovernmentBoatauctions.org — All those “Gov’t” auction membership sites just aren’t worth it especially when they simply pull all their listings from the same 3-4 Government agency sources. You can access the same Government seized assets here for free.

These sites will more than give you a head start. Frequenting these sites will land you in the right place at the right time without having to sift through the search engines for days.

The year 2009, has been one of THE best years for buying boats and water toys at state or local bank liquidation auctions. As a frequent boat auction enthusiast myself it’s typically accepted that a repossessed or seized sold at auction will deliver a 15-20% discount compared to book value.

That’s not bad, especially when considering larger vessels retailing over $100K..the savings can be really be significantAdd to that boat auctions has only served to inflate that percentage to well over 20%.

Boats auction in the U.S. — especially in the hardest hit (Florida, California, New York, and Arizona) are seeing banks and credit unions more aggressive in their re-marketing strategies of non-performing assets. SunTrust Banks Senior V.P. Don Parkhurst states with regards to their repossessed boat inventory, “You’ve just got to lower the price to where you can move it. You’ve just got to take the hit.”

The continued escalation in auctioned boats across the U.S. with most every lender has attracted new boat buyers who can now literally buy a late model vessel for significantly less than what a new boat buyer paid 3-4 years earlier for the same make and model. Boat auction liquidation sources like National liquidators and Boat Auctions Direct have reported that with the value decline of the U.S. dollar coupled with the rise of repossessed collateral shrewd international investors particularly from Australia, UK, and Canada taking advantage of this high tide.

So how can you take advantage as well? The key is regularly reviewing what’s out there. Staying in front of boat auctions, online listings, classifieds, and dealer liquidations. Only by comparing asking prices and recent sales of similar models of the type of boat you’re interested in can you see savings of 50% or more. It’s really not much luck as it is smart shopping with the right tools.

If you have been in the market for boat auctions at all online then you’re probably well aware of the often touted boat bargains available from Uncle Sam. Government sources like the U.S. Marshals Service or the General Services Administration (GSA) regularly inventory only to quickly liquidate surplus or seized boats as well as about any type of forfeited or surplus asset via. internet or via. state or local auctions houses.
What’s usually the case however, is that many of the sources the Government uses to liquidate their assets are what I call ‘transparent’ market places. These types of markets unfortunately easily permit bidders to compare the particular asset with a similar asset and thereby decide very quickly about how much they will bid. And often times they overbid. For example one of the transparent sites you regularly find government boat auctions is bid4assets.com Since there are already hundreds of other non-government yet similar assets being auctioned away on this site to the general public it’s difficult to really get a legitimate bargain since everyone has clear view of the market.
What I’ve tried to do is to find state and local Government auctions close to home that auction off boats Live, on site and with few attendees. Especially local Police and DEA auction events. The reality is that most don’t realize that each day across the U.S. a landlord, business owner, or some creditor is issued an order from the court directed to the sheriff, requiring him to seize the debtor’s asset or property so it can be promptly liquidated at auction. The intent of course for the proceeds isto pay down the creditors as much as possible. I’ve found that whoever attends these ‘must sell’ one-time auctions (and they come and go all the time) will typically have opportunity to walk away with an extremely discounted asset.

If you need help finding these Government boat auction sales take a deep breath…you can try and keep up with sales events on your own. Agency websites and newspapers advertise when they are scheduled to occur. However, there are legitimate membership auction database sites that regularly keep you on the cutting edge on a daily. I’ve found them a big time saver. These sites offer members access to their regularly pruned auction data bases for a nominal, one-time fee.

I’ve subscribed to several of these sites since most tend to focus on a specificwide or deep range of assets. Alternatively, others focus on particular types of auction venues. Strangely many membership sites are strictly Government related ..which in my opinion is too limiting since there are so many other types of auction venues to take advantage of.

In the end the key with any auction is to once and for all pick your particular asset, focus on it by regularly exposing yourself to listings so you can make suitable comparisons and offers. When it comes to finding a diamond in the rough at any Government auction sale or repo boat auction event, you have to be able to really know when you’ve come across a a great offer. And you can only do that by constantly comparing assets so as to recognize an undervalued asset when everyone else just passes it up.