Despite a sluggish year for the larger superyachts on the market, Lürssen’s 66m M/Y Ester III looked set to be a momentary re-sale listing from the second her central agency listing was assigned to David Legrand of Fraser Yachts in August this year.

Now, after less than four months on the market, she has been sold, with Burgess’ Peter Brown bringing the buyer. Her final asking price – and original listing price – was €79.5 million, making her the most valuable re-sale of the year based on disclosed final asking prices.

“It was the work of Espen Øino that was the key to the sale,” begins Legrand. “The buyer fell in love with the lines. He didn’t want an 80m or a 90m – he wanted a ‘human-sized’ vessel and this is a vessel of exceptional quality and the only Lürssen of its size on the market.”

Ester III, delivered in 2014, is the only sub-85m Lürssen to be delivered in the past five years and while the German yard maintains its 60–220m build scope, Lürssens of this size are increasingly scarce.

Commenting on the larger brokerage yachts on the market, Legrand says “They are overpriced, it’s as simple as that. The economic and political climate has generated buyers that are much keener to build new than second-hand. There is not enough quality on the market at the moment – and the offers being made on those that are good quality, are at a much lower level than the asking prices.”

It just goes to show how quickly these vessels can sell with a serious seller and a realistic price-point – the experienced seller is the former owner of a 36m motoryacht and later the 51m Codecasa, Ester II.

Ester III is the third and largest Lürssen to sell this year after 58.6m Capri’s pre-Monaco Yacht Show price reduction came to fruition in November and 40.9m Blind Date was sold in September.

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