Bank Repo Boat Auctions

"My Repo Boat Auction Sites Review...

Bayliner Repo Boat at Auction

After wading through Google, Bing, and Yahoo for repo boats being liquidated at boat auctions within North America, I was given the run-around between several 'repo auction' sites that I highlight below...

I was specifically bargain shopping for a smaller aluminum fishing boat and a pair of jet skis. I wasn't looking for any manufacturer as much as I was looking for a great buy...

The local and even regional dealers were high (I thought) so after hearing from a friend who bought at auction--I thought I'd see what's available online. I've heard boater frequently comment that repossessed boats are all abandoned derelicts that you don't want to waste your time and money on. However, I've seen boats up for auction before and in reality some boats are not only newer they often only need a hard cleaning and maybe light cosmetic work. There's a lot of banks and credit unions and even dealers out there that are simply motivated sellers.

Here's what I found in a nutshell...

PoliceAuctions.com: Government auction sites just don't deliver a lot of marine assets. Period. My experience with these "Gov't" auction membership sites is a broad array of mixed assets. I like asset specific auction sites where I can find bank repo boat auctions...quickly. Found mostly jewelery and other odd and ends...but surprisingly, very few boat repos -- just links to a FEW obvious boat auction sites. This is indicative of a lot of other Government auction scraper sites out there as well. There's just not a lot of boats (that are newer than 1980 and seaworthy) worth looking at on these Gov't sites unless your interested in boat salvage. GovDeals is a free Gov't resource that will give you a good idea as to what you can expect and it's free...

RepoDirect.com: All the 'repossessed' assets I found here seemed to be scraped from other retail boating sites like Boat Trader. So, I wasn't able to find any bank repo boats. I emailed support but got no response. Next..

YachtAuctions.com: This is a really legit resource and even though its the largest it's limited to a little over 300 boats. And as the name would suggest....mainly larger yachts and sailboat auctions with a few smaller fishing boats and pontoons for auction. And vessels here have a reserve price so it's not really an absolute (no-reserve) auction site. You basically make an offer and see what happens.

BoatAuctionsDirect.com: I really didn't get a good first impression but found more boats for auction here than all the other repo sites... combined. You have to join as a member for a one time charge. Wasn't sure I was ready to pay BEFORE viewing but once in I could see why they're protecting their data base from tire kickers. It's a pretty easy setup to find local or regional boats, pwc's, motor, equipment, rv's...etc. up for auction. The above link has come a long way from where it was years ago.. it aggregates and categorizes by state and I hear this summer they'll be offering quick little drop down menus so you can search, save, and watch auction listings...

Overall it's not lightening fast right now but it's smarter and more efficient than wading through irrelevant search engine results all day for a boat auction site that lists the type or manufactured boat you're interested in. I don't particularly search for repo boats for sale at insurance auctions or salvage boat auction sites as it's typically a big mess of time and money to have to deal with. But if you don't the whole restoration process you can find repos at salvage auctions here: boat salvage auctions. Copart is also a site worth checking out as well.