Are you planning to buy a sailing yacht in the next 3 years?"
This was one of the questions we asked our readers in a large-scale survey. The results were compared with the data collected two years ago. The good news: there are still many people interested in sailing who are also considering buying a yacht. The less good news is that there are fewer of them and buying a yacht will take longer than before.
Buying a boat in the next three years?
The results in detail: Just under 56 per cent of participants in the survey responded to the initial question that they were not considering buying or changing a boat in the next three years. In 2021, the figure was just under 52 per cent. The intention to buy is therefore declining slightly.
As many as 44.2 per cent are considering buying a yacht, 27.4 per cent of them are still undecided and 16.8 per cent would like to buy for sure. However, the trend is also declining slightly among those who have made up their minds, with the intention to buy falling from 20 per cent to 16.8 per cent compared to 2021.
When to buy in the next three years?
The time of purchase is shifting into the future for many prospective buyers. The intention to buy within a year fell by around 5 percentage points from 15.5 per cent in 2021 to 10.8 per cent. On the other hand, the intention to purchase a boat in the next one to two years rose by over 4 percentage points to 28.8 per cent. By contrast, more than half of prospective buyers intend to wait around three years, a figure that has remained the same.
One in ten apparently wants to wait and see what happens in the current rather uncertain general situation. However, almost one in three prospective buyers assume that the situation will have normalised in two years at the latest. For shipyards and used boat sellers, however, this means that a deal could take longer than before.
Buy new or used?
Nothing has changed here in the two years between the surveys. 21 per cent of potential buyers would like to buy a new yacht, while 79 per cent would like to buy a second-hand yacht.
What type of boat should it be?
Little has changed when it comes to the type of boat. 74 per cent are interested in a cruising yacht, while the proportion of those interested in a performance cruiser has increased by one percentage point to 24.6 per cent. Catamarans (6.9/9.2 per cent) and trimarans (2/3.8 per cent) saw more significant increases.
How big should the boat be?
A more differentiated picture emerges here. Interest in yachts up to 7.5 metres in length has shrunk by four percentage points over the past two years (12.6/8.7%). There has been a small increase in the length segment up to 10 metres (30.5/31.9%), the greatest interest is in the length segment between 10 and 12 metres, although this has fallen slightly from 42.9% to 40.2%.
In contrast, interest in larger yachts between 12 and 15 metres has increased significantly. Here, 25.4 per cent are currently interested in buying, compared to just 21.5 per cent in 2021.
Are there differences in size when buying a new or used boat?
While the desire to buy boats up to 7.5 metres in length is roughly balanced between used and new at around 8 percent, the wishes diverge significantly with increasing boat size. The ratio is most significant in the 7.5 to 10 metre boat length segment. 16.7 per cent would like to buy a new boat, while 36 per cent would like to buy a used boat.
The length segment between 10 and 12 metres is almost balanced, with a slight increase of 40.7 percent in used boats compared to 38.1 percent in new boat purchases.
At over 12 metres and up to over 15 metres, interested parties are apparently less keen on second-hand boats. Here, only 24.5 per cent are still interested in a used yacht and only 33.3 per cent in a new boat. At over 15 metres, only 8.6 percent are still interested in new boats and just 1.5 percent in used boats.
There is therefore great interest in used yachts up to a hull length of 12 metres. However, the larger the boats become, the newer they should be.
Which brands are the most interesting?
Here, the favourite brands for used boats and new yachts differ significantly.
New purchase top 10:
- Bavaria
- Beneteau (First, Oceanis, Sense)
- Saffron
- Sirius
- Hanseatic League
- JPK
- Hallberg-Rassy
- Dragonfly
- Vaan Yachts
- Jeanneau (Sun Fast, Sun Odyssey)
Used boat Top 10
- Bavaria
- X-Yachts
- Hallberg-Rassy
- Beneteau (First, Oceanis, Sense)
- Jeanneau (Sun Fast, Sun Odyssey)
- Dehler
- Saffron
- Hanseatic League
- Moody
- Pogo Structures
Over 7,000 YACHT readers took part in the major 2023 market survey, providing insights into their experiences and habits. The results provide insights into developments in the industry, which are indeed showing some changes and trends. The survey is conducted every two years.
The reader survey was carried out by the market research institute Market Research from Neuhausen near Stuttgart. Detailed results are now available at: DK-MEDIASALES.DE/WATERSPORTS-MARKET-STUDY
