Tuesday, Jul. 22, 2008

Boaters are scaling back

Some boat owners are selling their crafts because they can't afford the upkeep and payments anymore, while others are trading down to more fuel-efficient models.

And, similar to the housing market, there are repossessions and short sales.

"Those who can't afford boating have already pulled them out and put them up for sale," said Charlie Price, the harbormaster at the Twin Dolphin Marina, at 1100 First Ave. W. in Bradenton.

"What started last year to force people out of boating is insurance, the cost of maintenance, the cost of storing the boat at a first-class marina, and the cost of fuel," he said. "The discretionary dollars just are not there."

Yet owners of larger luxury vessels seem not to be affected so much by the economy, experts say. The marina is at 90-95 percent capacity for boats larger than 40 feet, Price said.

But it has lost about 30 percent of its smaller boats, he said. The exodus includes those whose boats have been repossessed, customers who have sold their vessels - some at a loss - and those who may have moved to a marina with lower docking fees, he said.

"This is the deepest I've seen the market in the 18 years I've been in," Price said. "We're in the downturn cycle, really hit hard with the downturn in housing and jobs. When it comes to the recreational business, it's very difficult to make ends meet."

Yet others reported boaters are just scaling back.

"We might be seeing downsizing but people are not willing to give up their boating lifestyle," said Capt. Tyler Daugherty of Sara Bay Marina, 7040 N. Tamiami Trail. Large boats more than 25 or 30 feet in length are not selling, but less than 25 feet continue to sell well, he said. "We thrive in a small-boat market; we're selling two or three boats a week."

He compared it to motorists trading gas guzzlers for smaller, more efficient models.

"We've got lots of repeat business, and right now, it's strictly people downsizing to single engine, smaller boats," Daugherty said.

The only change at Catchers Marina is that its customers are not buying as much gas, said John Evans, dockmaster at the marina at 5501 Marina Drive, Holmes Beach. The only change Evans has made is to charge more for charters to recoup high gas prices.

At the private Tropic Isles Marina, 509 Marina Drive, Palmetto, recreational fishermen are keeping boats they already own, instead of buying new ones, and are taking shorter trips, said Jerry Quesenberry, a marina employee.

"They're buying $50 worth of gas, just enough for today," Quesenberry said.

Wealthier boat owners continue to buy new boats and run them wherever they like despite higher costs.

It's the bigger boats, those more than 120 feet long, that are selling well in Fort Lauderdale, said Frank Herhold, executive director of the Marine Industries Association of South Florida, a nonprofit organization promoting recreational boating.

"What we're seeing in the Fort Lauderdale area is the larger the boat, the stronger the sale," Herhold said. "In other words, at 120 feet, the cost of fuel is really quite secondary to the overall cost of running a vessel."

"We're talking about a lifestyle, and I think it's going to take a lot more than $4 a gallon gas to separate the Florida boater from his favorite weekend pastime."