Judge gives lender 60 days to exercise purchase option for former presidential yacht Sequoia

A Delaware judge has given a lender 60 days to buy the former presidential yacht Sequoia from its current owners.

The 104-foot Sequoia, built in 1925, is the longest-serving presidential yacht in American history. It was the official yacht for presidents from Herbert Hoover through Jimmy Carter.

Designated a National Historic Landmark, the vessel now sits rotting in a Virginia shipyard amid a legal fight over what it's worth and who should pay for repairs.

Because of a loan default by Sequoia Presidential Yacht Group, lender FE Partners LLC can exercise an option to purchase the yacht for $7.8 million, minus certain attorney fees and outstanding liabilities.

But FE Partners has refused to exercise its option, saying the liabilities far exceed estimates given to the court by an independent counsel.