Florida Yacht Broker Bond$25,000 for Brokers, $10,000 for Salespersons

F.S. §326.004 sets the two amounts by the level of authority each license carries. A broker (or Employing Broker) can independently transact business, hold client funds, and operate a brokerage — so the statute requires the larger $25,000 instrument. A salesperson works under an employing broker’s license and doesn’t independently hold escrow funds, so the exposure — and the bond — is smaller at $10,000. Both figures are fixed dollar amounts, not scaled to transaction volume or sale price.

Per DBPR’s published licensing requirements, a Yacht Salesperson becomes eligible to upgrade to Broker or Employing Broker status only after completing the first 2 consecutive years under an active salesperson license. The upgrade can be filed at any point after that milestone — at your biennial renewal or mid-term — but it always requires posting the $25,000 broker bond in place of the $10,000 salesperson bond before DBPR issues the new license.

Under F.S. §326.005, a broker must place any funds received in a yacht transaction — deposits, purchase money, trade-in proceeds — into a trust account at a Florida bank, savings and loan, or trust company with a net worth over $5 million, and hold it there until proper disbursement. The broker must also keep separate records of every receipt and disbursement and provide both parties an itemized closing statement. The $25,000 bond is the financial backstop if a broker mishandles or misappropriates funds sitting in that trust account — which is why the bond and the escrow duty are functionally one obligation, not two.

Chapter 326 defines a yacht as a vessel exceeding 32 feet in length that is manufactured or operated primarily for pleasure, or that is offered for lease or charter for pleasure use. A 28-foot center console or a commercial fishing vessel falls outside the Act. A 45-foot Hatteras being sold, brokered, or chartered for pleasure use falls squarely inside it, regardless of whether the deal closes in Fort Lauderdale, Miami, or the Panhandle.

Yes. Chapter 326 does not reach a private owner selling their own yacht, attorneys acting in that capacity, court-ordered or foreclosure sales, transactions involving new yachts sold through the manufacturer or its dealer network, or an out-of-state yacht professional who executes a deal jointly with a Florida-licensed broker. If none of those apply and you’re accepting compensation to sell, buy, or negotiate a yacht transaction in Florida, the license and bond requirement applies.

DBPR will not issue or renew a license without a bond or letter of credit on file, so operating without one means operating without a valid license. Separately, F.S. §326.006 authorizes civil penalties for violations of the Act — the penalty may be assessed for each day a violation continues, but the total penalty for any single offense cannot exceed $10,000. Unlicensed brokering also exposes the business to direct claims from the harmed party with no bond standing behind it.

The bond or letter of credit has to stay current for the full licensure period and gets refiled — or a continuation certificate issued — at each biennial renewal, same as the license itself. F.S. §326.004 additionally requires the bond to remain on deposit for one full year after a broker or salesperson ceases doing business, so closing your brokerage doesn’t release the bond immediately; the one-year tail exists specifically to cover claims that surface after you stop transacting.