In a bad economy, the joy is often with the repo guys.

For James Hedrick, that means it’s a busy time in his line of work. He’s one of those dreaded repo guys.

He spends his days in megayachts scan, yoles sailing and fishing, as he guided his dinghy by a marina west of the city of skyscrapers, in search of a piece of the American dream.

The piece is a white, 65 foot Hatteras with two bedrooms, two bathrooms and a full kitchen with kitchen cabinets teak wood look. The owner is $ 35000 for its 1.5 million U.S. dollars vessel.

Hedrick is a national liquidator, as the experts in the industry to be one of the largest marine equipment repo companies. The Fort Lauderdale company has tripled its activities over the past three years, and now in the possession of around 200 vessels per month in Florida, Ohio and California. The company from competitors also say they have similar increases in the business world.

“They will contribute to the car, they will contribute to the house. But they go on the boat,” said Hedrick, employers, the number doubled in two years to 85 repo agents to meet the demand from the banks and lenders.

It is not just about the boats: repo agents say, banks and lenders have been associated with the call, restore, off-road vehicles, motorcycles, aircraft, snowmobiles, half and trucks, courses, cars. Repo sessions vehicles by 10 percent in the year 2007 compared to the previous year, said Tom Webb, an analyst for Atlanta on the basis of Manheim, the largest auction company in the nation.

A boat dealer from whom the company is also the recovery for banks and donors, as I said, the boat before the takeover, which usually real estate boom, or as brokers, workers in the construction industry or the broker in mortgages.

“A lot of this himself. It is someone who three years ago to $ 50 - $ 60000 and not too often,” said Ray Jones, the owner of Long Beach Yacht Sales in California. “They thought that the income would never end. But the income deductible and toys has disappeared.”

The rise in gas prices have also hindered by the owner, in its budget for excursions by boat. Diesel fuel in the sea is of more than $ 5 per gallon in some places, which means a period of five hour trip on the water can easily cost $ 250 for some gas-guzzling yachts. Last year, marine diesel costs about $ 3.40 per gallon.

“Since about a year, he was for the rest good guys,” says Don Mashak, the owner of the First National repossession in Minneapolis.

Overall, the maritime industry is poor. Dire Bankers Association new boat ready to decline. MarineMax, the nation, the largest ship retailers with headquarters in Clearwater, said in April that sales decreased by 28% for the second quarter.

As prices for ships below, customers can buy back up to 60 vessels foot, to so little that 40 percent of what the new ship cost, said Robert Toney, national liquidators “. From more than ships the less can be because their owners are rich in a better position than the weather forecast for a slowdown of the economy, Toney said.

Sometimes the owners of the vessels round in the pension organizations, if they realize that they are no longer able to pay. But other times, they hide vandals or the ships that they can not be detected, said Megan McQuaide, the owner of repo Yacht Sales in San Diego. She is on board vessels with oil splashed around the cabin, deliberately overheating of the engines and faeces on the bridge.

“Sometimes it is really malicious things,” she said.

On a recent June afternoon, Hedrick finds no surprises on board the 65 foot Hatteras. He and his assistant board the yacht, photos and the complete catalouge of personal property. There are not many on board, and the boat is exceptionally clean, except for a Six-Pack Diet Coke, and a video of the child in a video recorder.

From time to time there are the remains of the parties: bikinis, bottles of champagne and even drugs. He calls the police if he is nothing illegal.

Above all, it tries to avoid confrontations. He wears a knife on the belt to quickly and Kai-a company of the credit card portfolio in the cases that he needed to pay late Kai costs. If the owner, Hedrick will politely leave and let the lawyers, donors and the owner of the ship this problem.

“I am not ‘Dog the Bounty Hunter” says Hedrick. “We have paid that they are not the problem. But it bothers me sometimes? You bet.”