Chapters of one viewing

Six services, each with its price

Each one carries its own scope and its own price, and the figure beside a description is the figure a written reply confirms.

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  01

  Viewing appointment

  $75 per appointment

  One hour alongside at Chandlery Wharf with a broker. The paperwork, the survey history and the engine hours are set out on the table before anyone goes aboard, and questions are answered from the documents. Shoes with soft soles are asked for on deck. This website does not say which boats are for sale; the reply to an enquiry does. Send the preferred date through the contact form first.

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  02

  Sea trial

  $350 per trial

  Up to two hours underway with a skipper. The boat leaves the moorings under the skipper’s hand and the helm is handed over once it is clear, so turns, speed and handling can be judged at sea rather than at the dock. Up to eight people may come aboard. The skipper decides on the morning whether the weather allows a fair and safe trial.

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  03

  Trade-in valuation

  $250 per vessel

  An inspection of one vessel alongside, followed by a written valuation that lists what raised the figure and what lowered it: hull, rigging, sails, engine hours and the inventory aboard. The valuation is an honest figure for a trade-in, not a promise of a sale price, and the owner keeps the written report whether or not anything is traded.

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  04

  Survey coordination

  From $600 per survey

  Three independent surveyors named for the buyer to choose from, the haul-out booked at the yard and the report passed on unedited. The showroom does not carry out the survey itself. The fee starts at six hundred dollars for a boat up to thirty feet and rises with the length; the figure is confirmed in writing once the boat is known.

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  05

  Brokerage listing

  From $1,500 per listing

  A boat photographed at the wharf on a calm morning, listed with the comparable sales written down beside the asking price, and every viewing reported to the owner in writing the same day. The fee starts at fifteen hundred dollars and rises with the length of the boat; the figure is confirmed in writing before the listing goes out.

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  06

  Charter enquiry

  Custom quoted in writing

  A charter week or weekend for a named party, answered with a written quotation that states the amount and what it does and does not cover. The price depends on the dates, the size of the party and whether a skipper is needed. Nothing on this website holds a boat or a date; the enquiry opens a conversation by email or telephone.

Foredeck, sail and saloon

The four people on the wharf

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  Eleanor Wrenfield

  Founder and principal broker

  Eleanor Wrenfield opened Wrenfield Yacht Showroom on Chandlery Wharf and still takes most of the viewing appointments, setting the paperwork and survey history out on the table before anyone goes aboard. Enquiries about a viewing or a listing are read by this role, and the reply says plainly what can be shown rather than inviting a buyer to hope.

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  Tom Hadley

  Sea trial skipper

  Tom Hadley takes every sea trial out and hands a buyer the helm once the boat is clear of the moorings. Turns, speed and handling are tried where the buyer can feel them, and the skipper decides on the morning whether the weather allows a fair trial. Charter questions about skippered days are answered by this role before the date, not after it.

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  Marcus Pell

  Valuations and survey coordinator

  Marcus Pell inspects boats for trade-in valuations and writes the figure up with what raised it and what lowered it. The same role names independent surveyors, books the haul-out and passes the report on unedited. A boat that needs more than a survey can settle is said so in the first reply rather than surveyed anyway.

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  Ruth Calder

  Office and charter coordinator

  Ruth Calder answers the contact form, keeps the appointment book and prepares the written quotations for charter enquiries. This role holds no booking system: an enquiry opens a conversation and a written reply follows during opening hours. Nothing sent through this website books an appointment on its own.

What clients wrote

• I asked for a trade-in figure on a twenty-eight foot sloop and had the written valuation four working days after the inspection. It listed what raised the number and what lowered it, including the tired sails I had hoped nobody would notice. The fee was the fee printed on the Services page, and nothing was added to it.

  Callum V. Trade-in valuation

• I booked a viewing hour expecting a sales pitch and got a quiet walk through the paperwork, the survey history and the layout below deck instead. My questions about the engine hours were answered with the logbook open on the table. I left with notes in writing and no pressure to decide anything that week.

  Ines B. Viewing appointment

• The sea trial ran exactly as the page describes: the skipper took the boat out, handed me the helm once the boat was clear of the moorings, and let me run it through turns at speed. I asked to stay out longer to test it in a building breeze and that was simply arranged. The price was the price beside the description.

  Kwame C. Sea trial

• I wrote about a week of charter for six people and had a written answer the same afternoon, with the amount spelled out and what it did and did not cover. Nothing was held until I agreed in writing, and I was told plainly which dates could not be promised. The figure on the invoice matched the written quote.

  Lorna R. Charter enquiry

• I had never arranged a survey before and did not want to choose a surveyor blind. The showroom gave me three independent names, booked the haul-out and passed the report to me unedited. The figure was confirmed in writing once the length of the boat was known, and the invoice matched it.

  Emmett H. Survey coordination

• I listed a family cruiser I had owned for eleven years and I asked a great many questions about the asking price. I got straight answers with the comparable sales written down. The photographs were taken on a calm morning at the wharf, and every viewing was reported to me in writing the same day.

  Bettina E. Brokerage listing

Questions buyers ask