Financing a Yacht
Four numbers decide it: how much down, over how long, at what rate, and how long it takes. Here they are, with what lenders ask for and where a marine loan actually falls down.
The numbers
What a Marine Loan Looks Like
| What | Typically | Worth knowing |
|---|---|---|
| Deposit | 15 to 20% of the price | The usual ask. Well-qualified borrowers are lent up to 90 per cent by some marine lenders, and older or unusual boats attract a larger deposit because the lender is watching the collateral. |
| Term | 10 to 20 years | Longer terms are available on larger loans. The term drives the payment far more than the rate does, which is worth remembering before shopping on rate alone. |
| Rate | Roughly 6.5 to 9%, 2026 | By loan size, term, credit and whether it is fixed or variable. Bigger loans get better rates. Ask a marine lender for today's figure rather than trusting any published one, including this. |
| Credit score | 700 and above | The threshold for the better rates. Below it, finance is still available, usually with a larger deposit or a shorter term. |
| Time to fund | 3 to 4 weeks | Application to closing, running alongside survey and sea trial rather than after them. It is the step most likely to add time to a purchase. |
| Her age | Under 20 years, generally | The condition most likely to end the conversation. Most banks will not lend on a vessel over twenty years old at all, whatever the borrower looks like, because the collateral is what they are lending against. Specialist marine lenders sometimes will, on their own terms. |
| Loan security | The vessel itself | A marine loan is secured on the boat, which is why the lender orders a survey and a valuation and why she will need to be documented rather than state-registered on most larger loans. |
Rates move, and a stale figure quoted confidently is worse than none. Treat the range above as a bracket and get a current quote from a marine lender before you offer.
Four ways to structure it
Which Loan, and the Catch in Each
Fixed-rate marine loan
- Suits
- Most buyers. A predictable payment over 10 to 20 years, secured on the boat.
- Watch
- Check the prepayment terms. Boats get sold sooner than the loan term, and an early-repayment penalty can outlast your ownership.
Variable-rate marine loan
- Suits
- Buyers who expect to sell or refinance inside a few years and want the lower opening payment.
- Watch
- Model the payment at a rate two points higher before you sign. If that number is uncomfortable, take the fixed.
Jumbo marine mortgage
- Suits
- Yachts over about a million dollars. Longer terms and finer rates, from lenders who do this size regularly.
- Watch
- The underwriting is closer to a property mortgage. Expect fuller financial disclosure and a longer run-up.
Portfolio or securities lending
- Suits
- Buyers borrowing against an investment portfolio through a private bank, rather than against the boat.
- Watch
- Rates can be excellent and the boat stays unencumbered, but a market fall can trigger a call. Take advice from your own people, not from a broker.
Have it ready
What the Lender Will Ask For
Gather these before you apply rather than after. The paperwork, not the decision, is what usually holds a marine loan up.
- Two years of tax returns
- Recent bank and brokerage statements
- Proof of income, or accountant's letter if self-employed
- A personal financial statement
- Formation documents and operating agreement if buying through an LLC
- The purchase agreement, once you have one
- Survey and valuation, the lender orders these
- Evidence of insurance, bound before closing
Straight answers
The Questions Buyers Ask
How much do I need as a deposit?
Fifteen to twenty per cent of the purchase price is the normal ask on a marine loan. Some lenders will go to ninety per cent of value for a strong borrower on a newer boat; older hulls, unusual types and one-off builds attract a larger deposit, because the lender is lending against the collateral rather than against you.
What rate should I expect?
Through 2026 marine loans have generally run somewhere between six and a half and nine per cent, depending on the loan size, the term, your credit and whether the rate is fixed or variable. Larger loans price better. Treat any published rate, this one included, as a bracket rather than a quote. Ring a marine lender for the figure that applies to you this week.
Should I use a marine lender or my own bank?
A marine lender, almost always. They understand yacht valuations, documentation and survey conditions, they price the risk properly rather than treating a boat as an oddity, and they close on the timetable a purchase actually runs to. A general bank will often quote a worse rate simply because nobody in the building knows how to value the collateral.
When should I get pre-approved?
Before you start looking seriously. Pre-approval tells you the real budget rather than the one you hoped for, and it makes your offer worth more than an unfunded one when a seller is choosing between two. It also removes the step most likely to add three weeks to a deal at the point where a seller has stopped being patient.
Can I finance an older boat?
Twenty years is the line, and most banks will not cross it. They are lending against the boat rather than against you, so a hull older than that is a collateral problem no amount of income fixes, and plenty of general banks decline it outright. Specialist marine lenders are the ones who will look at it, usually with a larger deposit, a shorter term and a clean recent survey as conditions. Above thirty years it becomes genuinely case by case and the survey decides it. Find out where a lender stands on age before you fall for the boat, not after: it is the most common reason a purchase that felt agreed comes apart.
Does the boat have to be USCG documented?
For most loans of any size, yes. Federal documentation lets the lender record a preferred ship's mortgage against the vessel, which is the security the loan rests on. Smaller loans on state-registered boats exist, but if you are borrowing to buy something substantial, expect documentation to be a condition.
We Will Point You at the Right Lender
We take no fee from any of them, which is exactly why the recommendation is worth having. Tell us the boat and the shape of the deal and we will say who to ring.