29 Oct How to Buy a Superyacht: New Build vs Brokerage, Costs and the Buying Process (2026)

How to Buy a Superyacht: New Build vs Brokerage, Costs and the Buying Process (2026)

To buy a superyacht you either commission a new build, which for yachts over about 40 metres typically takes three years or more, or buy a pre-owned yacht on the brokerage market, which can be yours within weeks of a sea trial and survey. Either way, plan for running costs that the industry’s rule of thumb puts at around 10% of the yacht’s value a year. This guide explains both routes, the contract steps, flags and taxes, and the questions to ask, as of October 2026.

Yacht purchases involve complex legal, tax and regulatory issues that vary by country. Nothing here is legal, tax or financial advice; use a specialist yacht lawyer and tax adviser.

New Build or Brokerage?

Commissioning a New Build

Leading builders include the Italian groups Benetti, part of Azimut-Benetti, which says it has built yachts “since 1873”, and Sanlorenzo, founded in 1958, as well as CRN, part of the Ferretti Group. The Dutch yards Feadship, building custom yachts since 1949, and Oceanco, founded in 1987, and the German yard Lürssen, founded in 1875, are also among the best-known builders of the largest yachts.

BOAT International’s Global Order Book 2026 counted 1,093 yachts over 24 metres on order or in build as of September 1, 2025, with Azimut-Benetti the largest builder by number of projects. Press Mare reported in June 2026, citing Fraser, that top yards were “at full capacity” and delivery times were getting longer.

How the Contract and Payments Work

• Stage payments: payments are usually tied to building milestones, such as keel laying, laying the hull, engine installation and interior work, or to the percentage of the yacht completed, according to a long-standing BOAT International guide.
• Protect what you pay: a yacht consultant writing in BOAT International notes that without a secured interest in the yacht for the money paid so far, a buyer “stands only as an unsecured creditor” if the yard goes bankrupt. Ask your lawyer about security or a refund guarantee before you sign.
• An owner’s representative: YachtBuyer says an owner’s representative checks that “the correct progress is made ahead of stage-payment sign-offs” and should send you regular reports.

Buying a Pre-Owned Yacht

Many large brokerage sales use the MYBA Memorandum of Agreement (in the U.S., the YBAA form is also used). According to the law firm Stephenson Harwood and the broker Berthon, the steps are:

1. Checks on you: know-your-customer and source-of-funds checks come first.
2. Sign the agreement and pay a 10% deposit, “held by a stakeholder (typically a broker or lawyer).”
3. Sea trial: if it is unsatisfactory, you can walk away and recover the deposit; Berthon notes the MYBA agreement allows rejection only within 24 hours of the trial.
4. Condition survey: the yacht is lifted out of the water and surveyed at your expense. After this, Stephenson Harwood says you can reject only for a “serious defect,” and if you miss that window, “you are committed to complete.”
5. Closing: the balance is paid to the stakeholder, the bill of sale and delivery documents are exchanged, and your insurance must start on completion. Closings often take place in a tax-neutral location, such as international waters.

A brokerage buyer is usually represented by their own broker. Established brokerage houses include Burgess, Fraser, Edmiston, Northrop & Johnson, YCO, Camper & Nicholsons and Ocean Independence.

The brokerage market has been active: BOATPro data reported by Monaco Life showed 281 yachts of 24 metres and over sold in the first half of 2026, with last asking prices totalling €4.05 billion, up from 272 sales and €3.61 billion a year earlier.

What a Superyacht Costs to Run

YachtBuyer describes the industry’s “10% rule” as running costs of “roughly 10% of a yacht’s value or purchase price,” and Fraser says benchmarks put annual running costs at 10 to 15% of purchase value. Treat this as a rough guide only: in an October 2026 SuperyachtNews article, Will Christie of Christie Yachts called it “one of the least useful” rules of thumb, because an older yacht can be worth less but cost more to run.

• Crew: Fraser calls personnel “the largest cost category” for a crewed superyacht. Ocean Independence, a broker, estimates 8–10 crew for a 40m yacht at “approximately USD 500,000 to USD 600,000 annually.”
• Insurance: Fraser estimates 0.5–2% of the yacht’s value a year.
• Maintenance and refits: Fraser estimates maintenance at 5–10% of purchase value a year, with a major refit every 5–7 years.
• Berthing: Ocean Independence says the most exclusive berths in places such as Portofino can cost more than USD 10,000 a night in high season.
• Depreciation: Ocean Independence estimates a new yacht may lose around 10% of its value in the first year and 6–8% a year after that. These are broker estimates, not guarantees.

Flag, Registration and Chartering

Your yacht’s flag decides which rules apply. IQ-EQ, a fund and corporate services firm, says the Cayman Islands is widely regarded as the leading offshore registry, with an estimated 50% of yachts over 30 metres, and that its Yacht Engaged in Trade scheme lets private yachts over 24 metres charter for up to 84 days a year in designated European waters, including France and Monaco. The Marshall Islands and Malta also run well-known yacht registries. If you plan to charter your yacht, choose the flag and registration with that in mind.

In the EU, the European Commission issued a guidance note on April 30, 2026 on the customs and tax treatment of pleasure craft. Sovereign Group notes that temporary admission for non-EU yachts owned by non-EU residents is “up to 18 months,” and that buying a new yacht in the EU “can involve significant VAT exposure.” Get specialist advice before you buy or cruise there.

Owning a Yacht in the U.S. and Florida

• Carrying passengers between U.S. ports: under the Passenger Vessel Services Act, a vessel “may not transport passengers between ports or places in the United States” unless it is U.S.-owned with a coastwise endorsement, so a foreign-flagged yacht cannot be chartered between U.S. ports.
• Cruising licence: yachts from listed countries can obtain a U.S. cruising licence “for a stated period not to exceed one year,” and the yacht “shall not engage in trade.”
• Florida sales and use tax: the Florida Department of Revenue says “The maximum tax on the sale of a boat or vessel is $18,000.”
• Nonresident buyers in Florida: a nonresident buying a boat of 5 net tons or more from a Florida dealer can avoid tax by removing it from Florida within 90 days, extendable to 180 days in total for a fee.
• The 20-day rule: under Florida’s rule 12A-1.0071, a boat on which Florida tax has not been paid may stay “a total of 20 days in any calendar year” without owing use tax, with time at a registered repair facility excluded if documented.

Questions to Ask Before You Buy

1. For a new build: how are stage payments tied to verified progress, and is the money I pay secured if the yard fails?
2. What is the realistic delivery date, and what happens if the yacht is late?
3. For a brokerage yacht: which contract applies, and exactly when do my rights to reject end after the sea trial and the survey?
4. Who holds my 10% deposit, and on what terms?
5. What do the classification records and the last major survey show, and what work is due next?
6. Which flag, and private or commercial registration? Will I charter, and under what scheme?
7. What is the yacht’s VAT and customs status, and which Florida tax rules will apply if I keep it there?
8. What is the realistic annual budget by line item: crew, insurance, berthing and maintenance?

The Bottom Line

Choose between waiting three years or more for a yacht built your way and buying one that exists today. Either way, protect your payments with a specialist lawyer, survey thoroughly, decide on flag and tax status before you buy, and budget line by line for running costs rather than relying on the 10% rule.

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• How to charter a superyacht
• Private jet charter vs jet card vs fractional vs ownership

Last updated October 29, 2026. Facts come from the sources listed above, checked on that date, and may change. Not legal, financial, tax or investment advice. Full disclaimer