Vessels & Due Diligence

Vessel classes, survey checklists, classification and what to inspect before you buy.

What to inspect, and who should inspect it

Photographs sell boats. Documents and surveyors price them. This silo covers the technical file — timber structure and fastenings on an ironwood phinisi, plate and corrosion on steel, laminate and moisture on a composite catamaran — alongside the paper file of title, certificates, permits, inventory and crew contracts.

It also covers the questions that only matter in this region: what classification does and does not give a traditional wooden hull, where phinisi and liveaboard stock actually surfaces when so little of it is publicly listed, and how to decide between refitting an older vessel and replacing it once downtime is priced properly.

This desk does not write survey reports. Independent inspection is commissioned by the buyer and reported to the buyer, so that the person assessing the vessel has no interest in the transaction closing.

Guides in this silo

• Catamaran for Raja Ampat Cruising: Buyer’s Guide (60–80ft)
  Buying a 60 to 80 foot catamaran for Raja Ampat cruising: draft, power and water, tender capability, survey priorities and the import position.
• Refit or Replace? When Upgrading an Older Phinisi Pays Off
  A framework for deciding whether to refit an older phinisi or replace it: structural condition, revenue ceiling, downtime cost and residual value.
• BKI Classification for a Wooden Phinisi: What Buyers Must Know
  What classification means for a traditional wooden phinisi, why an unclassed hull and a classed hull are different assets, and what buyers should verify.
• Where to Find Phinisi & Liveaboards for Sale in Raja Ampat (Listings Guide)
  Where phinisi and dive liveaboards for sale in Raja Ampat actually trade, why most stock is never advertised, and how to reach the private market.
• Pre-Purchase Survey for a Phinisi Liveaboard: The Buyer’s Checklist
  A buyer's checklist for surveying a phinisi liveaboard: timber structure, fastenings, machinery, dive plant, safety gear and the documents that must accompany the report.

The desk standard is set out on pre-purchase due diligence; browse hulls on yachts for sale.

Back to the full guide library, or talk to the broker desk.