So many people have so many things they can no longer afford. This is an excellent time to be a repo man.
When a boater defaults on his loan, the bank hires Jeff Henderson to go seize, or repossess, its property. The former U.S. Army detective tracks the boat down in a backyard or a marina or a garage and hauls it back here, where he auctions it off. After nearly 20 years in the repossession business, Henderson has never been busier.
“I used to take the weak ones,” he said. “Now I’m taking the whole herd.”
Boating was traditionally the pastime of the well-off, but the long housing boom and its gusher of easy credit changed that. People refinanced their homes and used the cash for down payments on a cruiser, miniyacht or sailboat. Between 2000 and 2006, retail sales for the recreational boating industry rose by more than 40 percent, to $39.5 billion, while the average loan size more than tripled to $141,000.
I think there was an old Ferengi Rule of Acquisition from Star Trek that went, “No matter how bad things get, someone somewhere is making money.”