Anchors Away! Yacht Brokers See Rising Inventory in South FL

After a client bought a 43-foot Midnight Express high-performance center console yacht, Mordy Miltz, managing broker for the Miltz Maritime Team at United Yacht Sales, wanted to show them how easy it was to travel to the Bahamas. So he traveled with them on their boat to the Bahamas for lunch.

“They were absolutely amazed,” Mordy said. “We docked, checked in, had a nice lunch with Bahamas fresh conch salad. We hung around a little while. I noticed the weather was going to turn a little bit. We hopped in the boat and rode out. That was a memorable trip for them.”

While Palm Beach is pure Florida, it’s also a daytrip from the Bahamas by boat and a center for boat owners. Local yacht brokers are busy matching boats with buyers and enabling a boating lifestyle.

The numbers speak for themselves. Florida is heaven for boats with about 1 million of them, and Palm Beach County has its share. With 47 miles of Atlantic Ocean coastline, providing deep-sea fishing in the Gulf Stream, scuba diving in nearby reefs, sailing in the protected waters of the

Intracoastal, Palm Beach County is “a boater’s paradise,” according to the Business Development Board of Palm Beach County.

“I love fishing as much as I love cruising. I love being on the water,” Miltz said of his belief in boats. “I’ve been up and down the eastern seaboard from Barbados all the way to Booth Bay Harbor, in Maine.”

The Palm Beach International Boat Show recently took place in Downtown West Palm Beach with hundreds of boats on land and in the water, ranging from 10-feet-long to 200-feet long. Displays along Flagler Drive from Banyan Street to Okeechobee Blvd and boats in the water near a 923,000-sq. ft. temporary floating dock marina turned Palm Beach County into boat central. Miltz displayed a 72-foot yacht there.

“Florida is year-round boating. That’s why a lot of people bring their boat down during the winter. They may take them to other places during the summer,” Miltz said. “A lot of my business is snowbird business. But as my clients get older, they find themselves in Florida more frequently.”

Even with the show over, Palm Beach County is boat country. Boating is a lifestyle that lasts all year long.

“Essentially, I sell real estate. Only it’s a floating asset,” Miltz said. “Prices are down slightly. It’s a buyers’ market. It comes down to what boat you’re looking at, but inventory is up.”

BOATING BIZ

Boating in Palm Beach County is a big business. A study by the Marine Industries Association of Palm Beach County found that the boat industry in Palm Beach County has a $4.7 billion in overall economic impact, employing 22,000 people, or $18.5 billion for the tri-county area, employing 141,000 people.

There are about 37,000 registered boats in Palm Beach County: 97% are “pleasure vessels,” heavily weighted toward open motorboats. Additional boats are registered around the United States and the world with cruising permits.

While the coastline is part of the attraction, a lot has been spent to make the area boat-friendly. More than $104 million has been invested in Palm Beach County’s waterways in the past 34 years, “generating significant economic impact,” the study found.

Boating is also a big tourism driver. Visit Florida in 2022 reported 137.6 million tourists visited Florida, including 8.1 million visiting Palm Beach County. About 6% of those generated more than a half a million waterway-specific visitors, the study found.

“The luxury yacht market that produces substantial employment and value added to the local economy, but generates half of its revenue from foreign customers,” according to the study.

HOW TO BUY A BOAT

Miltz said you can evaluate boat value by comparisons, including size, make, model, amenities, features, vintage (year), hours with the motor in the water and condition. Video makes it easier to show boats to prospective buyers.

“The video play on showings has gone through the roof, due to Covid,” Miltz said.

While video can start the process, seeing in person is believing rather than buying off videos. “I don’t have any clients who don’t see their boats (in person) before they buy them, except for international clients who have a representative act on their behalf,” Miltz added.

He said listings are up about 72% and sales down about 25% over last year, which means a lot of options for buyers. Before you buy a boat, you should have an inspector inspect it. Miltz said some sellers hire inspectors to evaluate boats. “It’s a proactive measure,” he added. “Not all sellers do it. I suggest a quick in the water survey so you’re aware of any issues around before a potential buyer.”

LUXURY LIFESTYLE

Miltz said boats range from ordinary recreational to luxury with many rooms and options based on color, power and engine. Miltz specializes in boats selling for $500,00 and up.

You can have almost anything on a yacht that you have on land, including a gym, pool, spa, Internet gaming room, coffee shop, pool bar and cabana. A 225-foot-long boat will have 22-25 crew members while a 390-foot boat will have 60, according to the marine industries association study.

Mechanical equipment such as a Seakeeper “gyro” can keep the boat flat, avoiding rocking back and forth. You can set a boat on autopilot and go fifty-miles-an-hour and be in Bermuda in an hour or so.

Boats often can be put into limited liability companies and written off if they meet criteria. You can also charter your boat out, which offsets costs. “You can be cash flow positive on the boat if you operate it properly,” Miltz said.

It’s a long way until the next Palm Beach International Boat Show, March 20-23, 2025 along Flagler Drive in downtown West Palm Beach, but yacht brokers are busy all year long.

“There’s no specific demographic. If somebody has the wealth and the resources to buy a boat and enjoy that time on the water, they will,” Miltz said. “We’re starting to see the uptick we normally see in the spring.”