Services · 01
The complete picture before you sign.
Buying a boat in Palm Beach County? A pre-purchase survey is the one inspection that answers for the whole vessel, before the money moves.
About this survey
Purchasing a vessel is a significant investment, and a pre-purchase survey is one of the most important steps in making it an informed one. It identifies existing deficiencies, deferred maintenance, safety concerns and likely repair costs before ownership changes hands. That is the difference between buying the boat in front of you and buying the boat you were told about. Center consoles, sportfish, sailboats, motor yachts and commercial vessels are all surveyed to the same standard.
Every pre-purchase survey is performed with a meticulous, unbiased approach: structural integrity, machinery, electrical and plumbing systems, safety equipment and overall condition.
You receive a detailed, professionally organized report documenting condition, observed deficiencies, recommended repairs and maintenance considerations. It gives you what you need to proceed with confidence, negotiate repairs or price and understand the vessel before you complete the purchase. Typically needed by buyers, and the lenders and insurers behind them.
What a typical pre-purchase survey may include
- Hull, deck, superstructure and structural components
- Mechanical and propulsion systems
- Electrical systems (AC & DC)
- Plumbing, fuel and sanitation systems
- Steering and running gear
- Navigation and electronic equipment
- Safety equipment and regulatory compliance
- Moisture testing where appropriate
- Thermal imaging when beneficial
- Ultrasonic hull thickness testing (steel/aluminum), when applicable
- Sea trial and haul-out inspection (when arranged)
Most reports land in 48 hours. Seventy-two at the outside. The surveyor who did the inspection writes the report, usually the same night.
Straight answers
What do moisture testing and thermal imaging actually find?
Moisture meters read water that has got into a cored deck or hull laminate: the problem you cannot see, and cannot price, until someone opens it up. Thermal imaging shows the same trouble as a temperature difference across a panel, and it also finds electrical connections running hot.
Will lenders and insurers accept the survey?
Yes. Our principal surveyor is a NAMS Certified Marine Surveyor, and NAMS-CMS certification is accepted by marine insurers and lenders. The listing is publicly checkable in the NAMS member register.
Do you sea trial and haul out the boat?
When arranged, yes to both, plus operational testing of the systems aboard.
Before you sign
The survey is what you negotiate with.
Every deficiency we find is a line on the list you take back to the seller. Book before the deposit goes hard, and go into the negotiation knowing what the boat is actually worth.