FLOATING
ASSETS
Charteryachtownershipisnotonlyagreat
waytosailtheworld,butasensibleway
to invest, asSUE PELLINGdiscovers
T
he yacht charter business
remainsaspopularas
ever with hundreds of
companies throughout the
world marketing a whole
rangeofholidays,fromracecharters
in the Solent to exotic getaways in
theCaribbeanorevenasfarawayas
Belize, Thailand or French Polynesia.
With the chance to holiday not just
on your own yacht but also on others
within the fleet together with family
and friends; the prospect of zero upkeep
and management; and options to suit
all budgets, there are plenty of benefits
to this type of yacht ownership.HOW DOES IT WORK?
Companies offering yacht owner
partnerships generally tend to offer
similar schemes with comparable
costs and returns, which means
getting the best all round deal to suit
your requirements is a key factor
when carrying out initial research.
There are generally two main
options – lease or outright purchase.
Dream Yacht Charter, which offers
five different yacht management
programmes that include a popular
lease purchase system, or an outright
purchase (share of/guaranteed income),
replaces a fifth of its entire fleet each
year,sotypicallythecompanysells
200 yachts per annum. The Dream
Easy programme is the simplest and
most popular option, as Christian
Brewer,DreamYachtCharteryacht
sales representative, explains: “Owners
putdowna35percentdepositonthe
retail price of the yacht; this includesall safety and charter equipment,
commissioning and delivery. For
this, owners get to go sailing for 12
weeksayear,eitherontheirown
yachtoronasistershiplocatedat
any one of our 42 bases worldwide.
“They do not get any income during
thefiveyearperiodbutneitherdo
they have any running costs, Dream
takescareofallofthat;theysimply
pay a turn-around fee each time they
take out a yacht, typically €240 to
€300 regardless of length of charter.”
Attheendoffiveyearsowners
paya25percentballoonpayment
and, once the yacht has received a
full phase out overhaul, take title,
whichequatestoa40percentsaving
on the purchase of a ‘new’ yacht.
For those looking to own a yacht
upfront and earn an income, Brewer
says the company’s Dream Performance
and Dream Guarantee programmes
are good options. Is there anything
tobeawareof?“Thetaxrulesvary
from country to country so potential
ownerswouldneedtoseekindependent
advice on tax and VAT for EU-based
yachts. The earnings potential increases
according to the amount of charter
time. This is significantly more in the
Caribbean, with its 30+ week season.
DreamGuaranteegivesafixedreturn
of up to 9 per cent with less risk and
up to 12 weeks sailing time each year.”
Sunsail is another major holiday
charter company that offers similar
options. The Guaranteed Income
Programme – where it is possible
to purchase a yacht outright – is
available for yachts based in Croatia,Palma, Caribbean, Belize, Bahamas,
Seychelles and French Polynesia and,
in return, owners receive an income
of up to 9 per cent per annum (or 8
per cent in Croatia and Palma).
Sunsail’sOptiontoPurchase
Programme is available on yachts based
in Greece, Croatia, Thailand and French
Polynesia. With this scheme, new
owners make a single payment, typically
45 per cent of the full purchase price
and,attheendofthefiveyearcontract,
theycaneither,payanadditional20
per cent and take title of the yacht
(VATmayalsobepayable)ortakea
20percentbuybackandwalkaway.
Seafarer Cruising & Sailing Holidays
offers a Yacht Partnership Programme
in Greece and Turkey. Founder and
MD, Chris Lorenzo says there has
never been a better time to invest:
“Withguaranteedreturnsofupto9
per cent and free holiday weeks as well,
a yacht in charter management can
be a better investment than a buy to
letatthemoment.Ofcourseayacht
is not an appreciating asset, but at
presentneitherispropertyinmost
places and a yacht is much more fun!”DOING YOUR HOMEWORK
Increased legislation means that
the yacht charter holiday sector is
now generally noted for its extreme
professionalism. Nonetheless, finding
the appropriate company to invest in
willbeoneofthebiggestdecisionsto
make. If you do decide to lease, you
need to be sure that the company is
financially strong and will be around
for five years, otherwise you couldCHARTER OWNERSHIP TRAVEL
C/O DREAM YACHT CHARTER76 Yachts & Yachting March 2018 yachtsandyachting.co.uk