How to Buy a Used Boat From a Private Seller in Florida

Most used boats in Florida change hands in a driveway, not at a dealer. That can save you thousands, but there is no finance office checking the title, no dealer standing behind the paperwork, and nobody to call if the seller turns out not to own the boat. Here is the order to do things in, so the problems show up before you pay instead of at the tax collector's counter.

1. Check the boat before you drive out

Ask the seller for the hull identification number (HIN) before you go look. It is the 12-character number on the starboard side of the transom, and it tells you more than the listing does: who built the boat, the model year, and whether the format is real. A HIN that doesn't decode, or a model year that doesn't match the ad, is worth a question before you spend a Saturday driving to see it.

Search the builder's Coast Guard safety recalls too. Open recalls are free to fix but the seller rarely mentions them. Our free HIN check decodes the number, names the builder from Coast Guard records, and lists open recalls and any Coast Guard vessel records in one step.

2. Make sure the seller can actually sell it

Ask to see the title, and check that the name on it matches the seller's photo ID. If someone is selling for a friend, a relative, or an estate, stop until the owner is there or has signed a power of attorney. If two owners are listed with "and" between their names, both have to sign.

Then look for a lienholder. A Florida title shows any lender on its face, and a loan stays attached to the boat after you pay the seller. If a lender is listed, you need the signed lien release in hand, or you pay the lender directly from a written payoff letter. Our lien check walkthrough covers where to look, including unpaid marina and repair-shop bills.

3. Ask your questions in writing

Has it ever sunk or had an insurance claim? Do you owe anything on it? Where has it been kept and serviced? Exactly what's included in the price? Ask by text or email rather than on the phone. A written answer is a record if something turns out not to be true, and sellers tend to be more careful with a buyer who asks this way.

4. Inspect it in person, and run it

Walk the hull and deck pressing for soft spots, look along the bottom for blisters and patches, and push hard on the lower unit to check the transom doesn't flex. Start the engine cold, check the water stream from the telltale, and look at the lower unit oil. If it's milky, water got into the gearcase. On a trailer, check the VIN against its paperwork, the tire date codes, and the wheel bearings.

Run it on the water if there is any way to do it. A seller who won't allow a sea trial, or an inspection by a mechanic, is telling you something. For a larger purchase, hire an accredited marine surveyor. A few hundred dollars is small next to a wet transom or a tired engine.

5. Pay safely

Never pay before you've seen the boat and the original title. Never wire money, send gift cards, or pay a "shipping agent" or an escrow company you didn't choose yourself. Those are the most common boat-sale scams. A cashier's check made out to the person named on the title, handed over when you receive the signed title and keys, is the simplest safe way. If the deal needs a deposit held while a survey happens, use a real escrow arrangement.

6. Sign the right papers

Florida's rules make the bill of sale do double duty. When it includes the boat's make, length, propulsion, HIN, Florida as the state of principal use, both parties' names, the buyer's address and signature, and the date of sale, it works as your temporary registration for 30 days (Florida Statutes s. 328.46). Keep it aboard until you register.

The seller signs the transfer section on the back of the title with the price and date, with no cross-outs or white-out. They should also file a notice of sale on the title or on form HSMV 82050 within 30 days, which takes the boat out of their name. A separate bill of sale for the trailer is wise, since Florida titles trailers separately.

7. Title and register within 30 days

Take the signed title, your bill of sale, your ID, and a completed Application for Certificate of Vessel Title (form HSMV 82040 VS) to any county tax collector's office. Florida charges a late penalty after 30 days. Trailers weighing 2,000 pounds or more need their own title. Coast Guard documented boats follow a federal transfer through the National Vessel Documentation Center instead, but still register with the county.

You pay sales tax when you title: 6% of the price, capped at $18,000 of tax on a boat, plus your county's surtax on the first $5,000. The tax collector calculates the exact amount, and a price that looks too low for the boat will get questions, so put the real number on the paperwork.

The short version

Check the HIN and the title before you go. Inspect and run it before you pay. Pay the owner, in a traceable way, only when you get the signed title. Then title and register within 30 days. Almost every bad private boat sale skips one of those four.