Many players on the market
There are a multitude of organizations in the auction market. The auctioneers' offices have logically been established on the market for a very long time and represent a majority of the sales. Some are specialized in the nautical sector and propose sales in a recurring way, like the Thierry Lannon office, located on the port of Moulin Blanc in Brest.
The sales of the domains propose more occasionally pleasure boats. This organization puts up for sale units that belonged to the state services, or goods resulting from seizures or judicial liquidations. They take place on the whole French territory, and are open to all.
Finally, several websites offer online auctions, the majority of which are conducted from individual to individual.
A heterogeneous fleet
The profile of the boats offered for sale is very diverse. You can find everything on an auction: sailing or motor boats, generally from 5 to 20m. But it also happens that lots of equipment or fittings are put up for sale.
More unusual boats are also proposed, such as old pilotines or kayaks of the Gendarmerie.
Become a homeowner at a lower cost
As the bids are very low, there are real opportunities for a buyer with a small budget. Except on voluntary sales or concerning exceptional properties, the price at the time of the auction is often lower than the real value of the property. Moreover, a sale carried out by an auctioneer assures you to have a property purified of all debts.
For an owner wishing to dispose of his boat voluntarily, the use of an auction via a specialized study also ensures him against bad payers.
What are the constraints of buying at auction?
The boats presented can be visited before the auction, but will be sold without any guarantee, and cannot be tested. Most of them have not sailed for some time, and will need to be refitted. With some work, the boats offered for sale will be able to go back to sea. With rare exceptions, no "wreck" finds its place in a sales catalog. Finally, when bidding, don't forget the 14.28% tax included fee on top of the amount bid. The place where the boat is stored must also be vacated quickly.
An opportunity for professionals to free up spaces
Since 2016, the formalities for professionals to sell abandoned boats have been simplified. In case of abandonment or non-payment of invoices, a formal notice and then the seizure of a judge leads to the auction of the boat within a reasonable time.
Based in Martigues, Maritima Courtage has been organizing sales since 2020, allowing to free up several dozen places each year. The boats sold then find a second life, and allow the local economy to function.
"About 80% of the boats offered for sale have found takers in previous editions," assures us Mr. Mondoloni, in charge of the sale.
But what happens if a boat does not find a buyer?
"If there are no bids for the boat, it will be put up for sale again at the next session. If it really doesn't find a buyer, the recyclable elements will be recovered by a certified professional, and the hull will join the deconstruction network."
A practice that will become recurrent
Abandoned boats are commonplace in dry and dry ports. But these boats are less and less accepted by the harbourmasters' offices, which are keen to make places available to boaters on the waiting lists. The harbourmasters' offices pool their "burden" in order to regularly supply the sales catalogs.
