Yacht Sales Buoying Local Boat Merchants
By John Gittelsohn, The Orange County Register, Calif.
Apr. 8–Newport Boats never before had a year like 2005. The yacht and boat vendor, established in Newport Beach in 1979, saw sales jump 135 percent last year, buoyed by low interest rates, cash from home equity and fleets of people with a yen for the sea.
Overall sales have cooled slightly so far this year, said John Woolley, a Newport Boats salesman since 1998, although bigger yachts continue to sail out the door.
“To have a condo on the water, you can spend $500,000 for a yacht instead of $3 million for the house behind it,” Woolley said.
Newport Boats’ smaller craft — no larger than its 32-foot Sea Ray Sundancer 320 — are on display at the 14th annual Orange County Boat Show in Anaheim through Sunday, among 200 exhibits featuring about $50 million in boats and accessories.
Shoppers must wait until next month’s in-water exhibit at the Newport Boat Show to see the bigger boats.
Nationwide, boat sales remained flat numerically but increased 8 percent in value in 2005, said Thom Dammish, president of the National Marine Manufacturers Association. About half of sales occur through boat shows, where dealers offer discounts averaging 20 percent, Dammish and others said.
As a market, California ranks third behind Florida and Michigan in the number of boats, although many of the seagoing craft sold in California have fatter price tags, especially in places such as Orange County with an estimated 5,000 slips.
“If you have a boat in the water, it’s easier to get a bigger one,” Dammish said.
Orange County boat dealers said yacht sales — rather than small watercraft — are propelling sales growth.
“We saw double-digit increases in sales and units,” said Dan Klaas, Southern California sales manager for Olympic Boat Centers, which sells Meridian and Maxum yachts with price tags up to $1 million. “Orange County was a highlight last year.” The biggest problem is finding a place to dock. Orange County’s harbors are increasingly crowded by owners from the Inland Empire, Nevada and Arizona whose yachts serve as weekend getaways, marina operators say.
At the Newport Dunes Marina, the waiting list for slips to tie up boats over 45 feet in length is eight years. The cost for those big boats is $34 per foot per month or a minimum $1,530.
Boat shows
Orange County Boat Show
Where: Anaheim Convention Center, Hall D
When: Today, 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Sunday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m.
Admission: $10. Free for children 12 and under.
Information: (714) 765-2000 or www.orangecountyboatshow.com
Newport Boat Show
Where: Lido Marina Village, Newport Beach
When: May 3-7
Admission: $12. Free for children 12 and under.
Information: (949) 757-5959 or www.newportinwaterboatshow.com
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