"All of which is a long way of saying you have to watch our for yourself, the broker's motivation and goals do not line up well with your own."
Excuse me for being blunt, but that's an obnoxious statement of gross generalization. You didn't even say "may not line up."
My goals as a broker are: (1) Get the boat sold and at a price and conditions agreeable to the Seller. (2) Find a boat with a price and conditions agreeable to the Buyer. (3) Conclude a deal that is win-win-win for all three: Seller, Buyer, and Broker are all happy.
As long as I bring a price that the seller and buyer are happy with, I don't see a conflict of interest. I represent the buyer and seller on the majority of my boat sales. I had a complaint from a client about 15 years ago on a boat where she had a buyer's broker and I represented the seller. The complaint didn't involve me (it was because the owner stripped the boat.) Other than the one client, I am quite confident that all of my hundreds of sellers and buyers would validate their value in using me as a broker.
I apologize if this seems like a self-promotion, but I could not let the DDW accusation go unanswered. And if someone reading my post thinks it is a self-promotion, then email me and I will recommend other brokers whose motivations and goals are just as honorable as mine; it's not even a matter of honor: treating people fairly with fiscal responsibility and honesty is just plain good business.
And yet I stand by that statement. It isn't an "accusation" as you characterize it, but an observation. A transaction does not take place without an agreed price by a willing seller and a willing buyer, broker or not. You leave out goal number 0 which is to make money, and predicates the others. Brokers are just people, people have varying degrees of allowing money to bend principal. Just like doctors, half of them are below average. Just like doctors, I watch them closely because their interests are not mine exactly, and their attention is split among many. I'll admit I've seen more instances of incompetence among brokers than outright dishonesty, but surely you cannot deny that both exist in your profession, and not at a marginal rate. A very few will have the occasion to find a good broker they trust, and return to them many times. For most, though, it is pot luck, you get who you get at random, and you'd better watch them. Just like real estate brokers, except without the regulation.