Luxury yacht seen on ‘Modern Family’ sells at deep discount after federal seizure

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. (KTXL) — A luxury yacht that is docked in South Lake Tahoe and was seen on the television sitcom “Modern Family” sold for over half of a million dollars, Apple Auctioneering Company confirmed Wednesday. 

The winning bid for the 85-foot yacht named the “Sierra Rose” was $520,000 after the online-only auction ended Tuesday. The triple-level cabin yacht is docked at the Tahoe Keys Marina in South Lake Tahoe and was being auctioned off by the U.S. Marshal Service. 

Fred Finney of Coeur D’Alene, Idaho built the triple-level cabin for $4 million in 2005. 

When the vessel was built, it was billed as the largest non-commercial yacht on Lake Tahoe, according to the Tahoe Daily Tribune. In an August 2008 action, the yacht previously sold for $3.25 million, the newspaper reported. 

The luxury yacht includes three bedrooms, 3 ½ bathrooms, and a helicopter pad with hydraulic and motorized handrails and LED deck lights. Photos on the auctioning site show some of the yacht’s inside features including a kitchen and fireplace with a fire pit on the deck. 

According to court documents, the U.S. Marshals seized the yacht in July 2020 and it was auctioned off as a result of a federal civil lawsuit. Court documents said a judge ruled that the owners had a balance of $350,000, plus interest and late charges, totaling $848,062, as of June 1, 2021. 

The owners also have an accrued interest rate of $136.11 per day. 

Apple Auctioneering Co. specializes in the liquidation of seized assets for government agencies, according to its website.

According to the company, the buyer beat out 16 other bids to secure the yacht. The buyer didn’t say whether they’d relocate or keep the yacht docked on the lake, the company said.  

The “Sierra Rose” was featured on the “Modern Family” episode “Lake Life,” which was the first episode of Season 9. The episode aired on Sept. 27, 2017, according to IMDb.com.