Boating Membership (Pacific Boating Group)

[haydensydney]

Hi Everyone

My partner are looking at a mob called Pacific Boating Group who offer members a form of "time share" on a number of boats. We've checked out the website and it looks quite attractive.

Pacific Boating Group

Apparently it works off a "points" system whereby a standard membership gets you 300 points, and whenever you take a boat out you get charged a set number of points (weekday = 10 points, overnight is 5 points, weekend day is 15 points etc)

Has anyone tried this type of facility before?
How much is the membership usually?
Are they reliable and is availability OK?

 

[RB]

I believe I have read about this (and similar arrangements with exotic cars) in the Sydney press in the last few years. I think the last press report highlighted the impact the economic downturn was having on these groups.

 

[Homer]

Until last November I was a customer of one of the competitors to Pacific Boating Group called Sydney Boatshare. It operates a bit differently, however, in that it is a shared ownership product, ie each boat is owned by a company with the customers being shareholders in the company. There are usually 10 owners per boat, so you pay 10% of the cost of the vessel up front, plus annual maintenance, insurance and berthing fees and then at the end of the syndicate (typically three years) the boat is sold and the sale price, less any fees, is divided among the shareholders so you get some of your capital back. As for usage, we received 33 days per year divided into three four-month blocks of 11 days per block.

The supposed advantage of the shared ownership scheme over a purely rental scheme is that the boat users actually own the boat so they take better care of the boat, etc. However in my experience this wasn't always the case. Also towards the end of our syndicate, when it is difficult to sell shares in a boat that will only be in the water for a short period of time (eg the final 12 months) I understand that some "non equity" shares were sold at a discounted price and that this changed the makeup of the syndicate members to our detriment. That said, we absolutely loved the first couple of years on our 43 foot Italian sports cruiser.

Other than the issue of an ownership versus rental system, I think you mostly just need to think about how you will use the boat. I think this type of thing really works for people that can use the boat during the week, not just on weekends. I have my own company and I only go to the office occasionally so we didn't have any problems getting days out on the boat because we could go any day of the week. If we had been restricted to weekends then we might have only been out one weekend day per month, at the most.

These types of leisure businesses are suffering, as RB pointed out, above. Several similar operations have shut down in recent times and, while I am not making any specific comment about Pacific Boating Group, generally speaking I'd be a bit nervous about paying a large sum up front in the current climate. At the very least I'd be looking to do a great deal.

Lastly I think the boating lifestyle, particularly in a city like Sydney, is pretty hard to beat. If you think you'd like to have a boat of your own then this is a pretty cost-effective way to test the waters.

 

[haydensydney]

Homer - thanks heaps for writing about your experiences.... sounds much better than a rental scheme! Although a 10% share is likely to be reasonably pricey!!

 

[serfty]

Having been across boat ownership over the years, the two best times you have when owning a pleasure craft are as follows:

2nd Best: When you buy it ....

Absolute Best: When you sell it!

 

[bossreggie]

I'm with Serfly. I purchased a boat and in 12 months I have been on it 3 times. I have now taken it down to the beach house and it is stored there.

It's often been said... The best boat... Is your mates boat!!!

 

[Bundy Bear]

Unless you have a very flexible work schedule then I can't really see it being of great value.

Yes I have heard of this group so the idea might work but I am not convinced.

I think you are better off flying away somewhere; example the Whitsundays and hiring a boat there. That way after 1 week you get to return it and fly home.

Really having 1 or 2 mates with boats is much better. :idea:

 

[Groundfeeder]

I think you are better off flying away somewhere; example the Whitsundays and hiring a boat there. That way after 1 week you get to return it and fly home.

I find that we are doing more bareboating in Whitsundays and Hinchinbrook than using our boat in BNE. I'm trying (with Mrs Groundfeeders strong assistance!!) to make up my mind to sell the boat but I know I'd miss it out on Moreton Bay - sigh.

 

[Bang4Buck]

...Really having 1 or 2 mates with boats is much better. :idea:

Even better are "neighbours". A family cruiser is less than 5 mins away (via water at 6 knots) while my immediate neighbours are also very generous with sharing their craft. IME, the only people that care about whether you own the float or not are not that "important". Do whatever makes most financial sense for you, considering how often/ dedicated you are to it.