All roles/Shoreside/Yacht Sales Broker
Shoreside
Yacht Sales Broker
A yacht sales broker lists, markets and sells superyachts for owners and finds the right yacht for buyers. You negotiate deals worth millions and steer them through survey, sea trial and closing.
- Department
- Shoreside
- Reports to
- Head of Sales / Sales Director
- Yacht size
- Shore based
- Contract
- Permanent, shore based
- Starting pay
- €40,000 a year plus commission
What the job is
A sales broker works for a brokerage house and earns most of their money on commission. On the selling side you win a central listing from an owner, agree an asking price, then market the yacht through photography, specification sheets, MLS listings and your own network of other brokers. On the buying side you act for a client, shortlist yachts that fit their budget and plans, and arrange viewings in marinas across the Mediterranean, Florida and the Caribbean.
Once a buyer is serious, the real work starts. You draft the offer, negotiate price and terms, and agree a memorandum of agreement, usually on the MYBA form. You then coordinate the deposit into escrow, the out of water survey, the sea trial and any condition repairs found. You work closely with surveyors, lawyers, flag registries, the captain and the yacht manager so that closing happens on the agreed date with clean title.
The job runs on trust and memory. A sale can take months or years from first conversation to closing, and many buyers come back to the same broker for their next, larger yacht. Expect boat shows in Cannes, Monaco and Fort Lauderdale, long phone calls across time zones and plenty of travel. Brokers who know yachts from the inside, often former captains or crew, earn respect quickly with owners and captains.
What makes a good one
- Negotiation and closing deals
- Technical knowledge of yachts
- Building long-term client trust
- Market and pricing analysis
- Discretion with high net worth clients
A day in the life
- 08:00Check overnight emails from clients in the US and Asia. Reply to a buyer's broker asking for engine hours and the last survey report on a 45m listing.
- 09:00Sales meeting with the team. Go through new listings, price reductions across the market and which buyers are active this month.
- 10:00Call an owner to discuss a price adjustment after six months on the market. Back it up with recent comparable sales.
- 11:30Drive to Port Hercule to show a 50m motor yacht to a buyer and their captain. Walk the guest areas, crew quarters and engine room with the yacht's chief engineer.
- 13:30Lunch with the buyer to talk through their thoughts. They want a second viewing and a look at the refit history.
- 15:00Back at the office, draft the offer and the MYBA memorandum of agreement for a different deal. Send it to the client's lawyer for review.
- 16:30Agree survey dates and a haul out slot with the shipyard and the surveyor for a yacht under offer. Confirm escrow details with the closing agent.
- 18:00Update the CRM, refresh two listings with new photography and send a shortlist to a new enquiry from Florida.
- 19:30Drinks with a captain whose owner is thinking of selling next year. Listings often start with relationships like this.
Pay by country
Annual base salary for a junior to mid-level sales broker at an established brokerage, before commission. Most earnings come from commission, usually a share of the roughly 10% fee on each sale, so established brokers often earn well into six figures. No charter tips apply.
- France and Monaco
- €40,000 – 70,000
- Spain
- €30,000 – 50,000
- Italy
- €30,000 – 50,000
- United Kingdom
- £35,000 – 60,000
- USA (Florida)
- US$50,000 – 90,000
- Caribbean
- US$40,000 – 70,000
- UAE
- AED 180,000 – 300,000
- Australia
- A$70,000 – 110,000
- New Zealand
- NZ$60,000 – 95,000
Required
- Right to work in the office country
- Full driving licence
- Florida Yacht and Ship Broker licence (if selling in Florida)
Recommended
- CPYB (Certified Professional Yacht Broker)
- RYA Yachtmaster Offshore
- STCW Basic Safety Training
- Second language such as French, Italian, Spanish or Russian
- Previous superyacht crew or luxury sales experience
Visas
- Right to work in the country of the brokerage office
- Schengen visa for travel to European boat shows and viewings
- US B1/B2 for Fort Lauderdale and Palm Beach shows if not a US resident
Where it leads
- Deckhand
- Bosun / Boatswain
- Chief Officer / First Mate
- Yacht Captain
- Yacht Sales Broker
Yacht Sales Broker jobs open now
Questions crew ask
Do I need to have worked on yachts to become a sales broker?
No, but it helps a great deal. Many brokers are former captains, officers or crew, while others come from luxury property, cars or private banking sales.
How long before I earn commission?
It varies, but most new brokers take 12 to 24 months to close their first significant sale. That is why junior roles usually come with a base salary while you build your network.
Where are the main jobs for yacht sales brokers?
Monaco, Antibes, Palma, London and Fort Lauderdale hold most of the large brokerage houses. There are smaller markets in Dubai, Sydney and Auckland.