Purchasing/shipping boats from the US
Submitted by Stev0 on Wed, 2009-10-28 16:08
Has anyone had any experience in purchasing and shipping boats from the US? I have been chatting with a few family friends who have mentioned that because of the GFC the boat market is pretty appealing, although they were talking about the larger variety (40ft +) I was interested to know if anyone has done it here for smaller ~25ft CC's. If anyone has, what kind of shipping costs, loading/unloading from ports and so on, import duty (apart from gst) did you have to pay or any catches to look out for.
Cheers.
Stevef
Posts: 478
Date Joined: 27/02/08
PM sent
PM sent
scotto
Posts: 2470
Date Joined: 21/04/08
the feds
my oldest bro is the international manager of one of australias bigger freight-forwarding companies, and has looked into it many times.
our really good friends - the local and federal government, have made it hard to try and get something a bit cheaper. they have these things called TAXES.
i cant remember exactly how many different taxes he told me they hit you with, or the exact ins and outs he described, but basically, they will tax you on your freight, and they will tax you on your boat when it arrives in australia. you will then pay import duties, they will tax your tax, and your taxes tax, to a point where its just not viable to do. they effectively do what governments do best, and make it cost as much as it can, so they end up with more.
in a nutshell, even with my brother using his own business, and using his massive staff discount, it worked out only marginally cheaper. but with that being said, he would then have to fork out for a boat he hasn't seen, or tested, etc and could therefore be a lemon, and in effect, a complete waste of money.
apparantly, the only forseeable way to do it cost effectively, is to buy TWO boats.
you must have a trusted contact in the country you are buying from, that can inspect the boats to make sure they are ok and worth the money, and then you have to get 2 boats, into one sea container, to minimise taxes and import duties.
till
Posts: 9358
Date Joined: 21/02/08
Scotto has the hard luck
Scotto has the hard luck version of the truth and not that its untrue, other people do ok.
Its certainly expensive and fraught with problems, but you can pick up some crazy bargins on occasions. I remember awhile back you could get a brand new trophy pro 17' cc for $15-$20k less than it cost here, even after import duty and shipping.
Stev0
Posts: 113
Date Joined: 19/12/07
Thanks for that Scotto, not
Thanks for that Scotto, not sure that you would be able to fit 2 boats in a 40ft container anyway. Was your brother looking at new or secondhand boats, as you mentioned a staff discount? although the price of new boats would too be dropping my assumptions are based on the fact that people are trying to flog of their second hand boats for a lot less.
scotto
Posts: 2470
Date Joined: 21/04/08
nah mate,
he was lookin at importing second hand boats, as they were heaps cheaper. he would use his staff discount to save on the freighting costs.
his logic was, if he could bring in 2 smaller boats in a container (one on top of the other), then he could sell the other one to recoup his freight costs and taxes. you actually CAN get 2 boats in one container.
there are some people that are doing it at the moment, but they are removing the outboard engines in the states, and re-fitting new(er) ones here, then selling the whole unit and making a profit, but its just making sure you're getting the right boat for the right price.
one of his regular clients, is a dude that brings in heaps of second-hand american outboards, with low hours on them (i think the u.s. might have some emmision policy with engines and hours?), gives them a good service, and flogs them off pretty cheap. he is based in perth, but 90% of his sales go to the eastern states.
there is a way to do it, but from what he has told me, there is a large outlay of money, plus the gamble factor. but, as i said, there are people doing it at the moment.
till
Posts: 9358
Date Joined: 21/02/08
Containers are the way to
Containers are the way to go, as long as the boat fits, LCL is a lot more expensive, not only because of the lousy cubic rate you pay, but because it has swags of charges attached to it as well.
In the bigger sizes, I think a lot of the US boats may be too wide to be containerised =(
Stingray
Posts: 188
Date Joined: 05/01/07
TAX
I had a boat imported from NZ. I got hit with a huge tax bill - not just the value of the boat, total delivered value = boat, container cost, insurance, shipping charges, import rep charges - I was lucky to not have to pay duty (NZ)
Tax on tax, the container was already taxed!! - So my boats got over 22.5%gst in it :-(
Protects Aussie industry I guess.
scotto
Posts: 2470
Date Joined: 21/04/08
mate,
you nailed it.
the government doesnt want average joe to cut out the middle men (boat dealers, etc). otherwise everyone would be doing it, and there would be no need for dealerships. we could just buy everything from overseas cheaper. however, if we did this, boat dealers, etc wouldnt have jobs.
alfred
Posts: 3097
Date Joined: 12/01/07
Talk to Jersey before you
Talk to Jersey before you decide to do it on your own, he has a great Grady White CC in the size you are looking for.
Ball park for shipping is US$160 per cubic meter, calculated at Max LXBXH, which means lots of wasted cubes.
Shrink wrap, think it is about $35per liner foot
Ground transport, US$7.50 per mile yard to port
Port handling charges on both ends
Insurance for ground transport - you cant get shipping insurance, if there is damaged, tough.
If there is no trailer, there is a lifting fee.
Port charges here
Clearing charges
Customs inspection fee
Quarantine inspection
Fumigation if it is a used boat
Port clearance broker fee
GST
If you have a trailer, you need a import permit BEFORE it is on the ship. This is an easy one, just fill the form and it's always approved. They don't ask for measurements, but if you want to register it here, that is a whole different ball game.
alfred
Posts: 3097
Date Joined: 12/01/07
GST is based on total
GST is based on total cost.
There are very few boats that are 25' long that will fit into a container. The door width is 7'10.5 inches. The only way I have seen it done is with the boat in a cradle, sitting at a 45 degree angle to use the x10' height of the container. Cradles are expensive and then there is the lifting fee.
7739ian
Posts: 948
Date Joined: 25/06/08
Try Craiglist
to see some superb boats for a quarter of the price here. Like the others i have gone a long way down the track and it's touch and go if it is worth it - and i have family in the U.S. and my daughters partner in NY is in international shipping. If you can afford a month in the states, make your contacts beforehand and jam every cubic foot of space with other saleable stuff you may come out well in front. BUT - it's a lot of work. A mate brought in a restoration project car - and covered his costs with a top layered Mustang and a few lawn mowers as filling. Probably too much trouble but look at the boats they have for sale - drool!
kane
Posts: 1752
Date Joined: 07/12/08
so how much tax do you pay,
so how much tax do you pay, what % of the total cost of the boat?
Gooooone Fishin!
Stev0
Posts: 113
Date Joined: 19/12/07
Kane, the gst will be
Kane, the gst will be calculated from the cost of the boat + anything else required to import it, so if the boat is 20k and you pay 15k to import (shipping, duty, insurance..) it you will be taxed gst (10%) on 35k, so $3500. Cheers for the info guys, got a fair bit more to look into now :)
Rick
Posts: 1104
Date Joined: 22/12/06
Import Duty
You pay a total of 15%,being 10% GST and 5% import duty. This is on everything it has cost you to get to Fremantle. Cost of boat,insurance,wrap or cradle,plus total shipping cost.
As a ball park figure:32ft boat with a 10'6'' beam will set you back about $28,400. Thats just to get it to Fremantle. That figure jumps to $32660,when you add the 15%. Then you have all your inspection,cleaning fees etc when it comes off the ship.
Not cheap, but is still done and some good bargins can be found. Make sure any boat you buy is able to be delivered to a major port for loading.
PGFC Member
fisho-ron
Posts: 2539
Date Joined: 26/09/09
mate we imported a 20ft boat
mate
we imported a 20ft boat from the states and had a qoute of $7500 roll on roll of,
be very carefull and read all the fine print... ours ended up costing over $15000 by the time we got our hands on it.
things went missing out of the boat, extra charges when it got to the port, etc etc etc.
without naming the company...total unprofessional w**k**s.
again, get your contract and read every thing carefully.. and any extras or disscussions get them in writing.
it will turn nasty if your not prepaired.
all that aside, with the dollar and the boat prices in the states now is a good time to buy.
get somebody to check the boat out for you in the states.
good luck
Stev0
Posts: 113
Date Joined: 19/12/07
Thanks Fisho, was the
Thanks Fisho, was the discrepancy due to the initial quote not including insurance as i hear it is compulsory but some wont include it in the initial quote and leave it as a gotchya charge.
Rick
Posts: 1104
Date Joined: 22/12/06
Few quotes
StevO the best thing to do is get a few quotes,the more you get the better your understanding of costs will be. Like the old saying goes" if it looks too good to be true.......
The last thing you want is to go through what unfortunately, fisho-ron went through.
Some really good operators out there that will go out of their way to help,but some rogues as well
PGFC Member
Magneto
Posts: 21
Date Joined: 08/01/06
imports
Hi Guys,I know this thread is a bit old but there a wholesale company here in Perth who bring in American boat basically you tell him how much you have to spend,what you would like and he contacts his people over there and comes up with what is available. After you have chosen which boat suits you a full water test and report is made with any amount of photo's When decided,He then has a contract shipping company over there stack the boat and trailer on a special cradle and loaded into a sea container. This is a guaranteed way of getting what you want in great condition and he doesn't try to make a killing on a single sale but works on a large turnover and price wise what you pay for a ten year old boat in the yards you get a two year old boat with a new generation motor in beautiful condition. I have seen them, even get new boats.The yards here are very greedy. Everything including in the price.
Cheers
Stanno
Posts: 27
Date Joined: 15/11/09
Hey Magneto, any chance of a
Hey Magneto, any chance of a PM to let me know who the company is? I am looking to buy a second hand boat myself.
Cheers
Simon
kane
Posts: 1752
Date Joined: 07/12/08
I looked into it a month ago
Got a shipping quote for a 25 foot grady white, 15k. said theyd do it for 5k if i could remove the T top.
Said american made boats only cost you 5% tax as opposed to 15% for other country made boats..
From the quotes i got looks like a total saving on 60% minimum compared to buying local boats.
Anyway it is a good time to buy from the US.
Gooooone Fishin!
Stev0
Posts: 113
Date Joined: 19/12/07
I also have found out that
I also have found out that there is no 5% duty on boats purchased in the US, an Australian/world wide Shipping company advised that its been like this for a few years now. It makes a lot of different if you can take down the Top as it reduces the total cubic area substantially. From the guys i spoke to its better to use a Roll on/roll off (RO/RO) service with a trailer boat as its easier to get on and off the ships and you don't have to organize lifting services to get into/out of the containers. One of the main things to look out for is the location of the boat your purchasing as the costs involved in getting it to the proper shipping yards are fairly high (especially if its not on a trailer), you want to be in Savannah, New York or Baltimore. I've had a few varied quotes from 17k to 7k for shipping but I'm yet to really look into it properly.
Squirmworm
Posts: 10
Date Joined: 25/01/16
I've done it but it's been
I've done it but it's been several years and I don't recall how much the cost was. I used a car shipper and it was relatively affordable if any wants to give them a try--a1 auto transport ships boats internationally. They'll give you an idea of the cost before anything is finalized or agreed upon which is a good way to get a ballpark idea of the cost. It definitely wasn't "cheap" even if they were on the more cost effective side.
Squirmworm
Posts: 10
Date Joined: 25/01/16
Apologies ... didn't catch
Apologies ... didn't catch the date on the original post and now see that this is pretty old.