Byron Shirley

We recently purchased our Hunter 41 DS expertly guided through the process by broker Byron Shirley. From touring various sailboats in order to shape our vision of what type would be best suited to our needs, to the final steps leading to ownership, Byron was completely on point. There are many systems and processes that make up a modern day sailboat and he has well mastered all of them. Also, he exhibited a great deal of patience in answering all of my husband's incessant questions assuring clarity on all issues. They enjoyed communicating in their native French. Byron sailed with us through the Ballard Locks and south to our home slip sharing his vast knowledge of seamanship and helpful tips along the way making it a very enjoyable time for all. He truly wants buyers to be satisfied and is not simply eager to make a sale. We highly recommend Byron to anyone considering such a purchase.

Joyce and I are both Real Estate Brokers and know the value of having Buyer specific representation during a sales transaction. When we walked into the Denison Yacht Sales and met with you about buying a motor yacht, we felt a good connection. You organized showings of different boats that could match our needs and price range. You were smart about our choices. I always felt you were on our side and not on the seller’s side of the deal. The end result is (with your consul), we picked the right boat for our needs. You followed thru on all details especially the inspections and final purchase price negotiations. Our decision to use a Boat Broker rather than listing broker or Boat-trader or even Craigslist was absolutely the right course for us.  We would highly recommend you to our friends or anyone who is going to buy a boat whether it is a power boat or sailboat. We love our new to us Trawler and appreciate the expert and friendly guidance you gave us. You will always be welcomed aboard.

Buying a boat can be an intimidating experience - especially when moving up to more complex boats that stretch your expertise as was the case when we bought Kraken, our Beneteau First 36.7. Byron helped make this experience much less daunting than it might have been. He knew the boat well and got the answers we needed to make it a smooth process. When it came to that first voyage, bringing Kraken to her new home south of LA in a small weather window (almost) ahead of approaching rain Byron kindly volunteered to help, proved himself invaluable and despite the cold and dark start unflappable and a pleasure to sail with. At the end of the experience I had gained a significant amount of knowledge about the boat and confidence in my ability to sail her that might otherwise have taken much longer to achieve.

I've had some amazing life experiences in the past year of sailing, and it started with great advice, support and follow through from Byron Shirley.

In the beginning I was searching for the right kind of boat; a live aboard as well as a boat that I could comfortably single hand. Byron took the time to understand my needs and not only suggested the correct boat for me, but recommended the outfitting and upgrades that have enabled me to
enjoy the experience post purchase. I ended up taking his advice, and purchasing a new Sense 43'. Byron stayed close through the outfitting process, and the attention to detail on many of my custom requests (extending the main berth, Apple upgrades for a mobile office, diesel heaters and outfitting for cold weather live aboard, etc.)

Not only did Byron help with early suggestions, and attention to details through the purchase process, he also followed through by delivering the boat with me to San Francisco and helped ensure everything was perfect. I've heard that Yacht purchases are not for the faint of heart, but with Byron's support, from the choice of boat, to attention to details, and follow through made it rather simple and enjoyable.