Purchasing a Boat; advice

The OP is asking for suggestions. That means he's likely to get varying views and opinions. Capt J and Pascal have suggested SF's merit consideration. You've mentioned one boat. However, it seems it would be better to make one's own suggestions rather than just criticize those others have made.

I asked the OP what speed he's looking for and waiting for that answer to offer my advice. I also asked what was meant by "cost effective marina" as I'm guessing perhaps it's some combination of marina cost and cost of getting to cruising destinations from it. I also asked if he's truly talking Caribbean or just Bahamas. A lot of people think incorrectly that the Bahamas are in the Caribbean.

I'm was waiting for some of those answers before offering my suggestion. I'd suggest something like a Sunseeker or Princess or Sea Ray might fit his needs well if cruising Bahamas and coast. I'd definitely choose and SF over a trawler for the Bahamas. However, I do think a Krogen Express is worthy of consideration. If he's talking the Caribbean then he might need to either consider larger or go to a trawler if he wants to stay in the size range.

As to cost effective marina, many move north to Stuart or further. That's great for dockage costs but means speed in getting to and from the Bahamas becomes more important.

We can all make suggestions and recommendations totally independent of each other as we all have different boat interests. I personally wouldn't own anything that wouldn't cruise at 20 knots or more, but I'd still recommend such boats for owners they fit.

I was thinking the same ad Judy. Cruising the Caribian I'd want range and comfort. That's a M/Y, and not a fast one.

The OP isn't capable and does not have the experience to do an overnight trip safely, nor will he anytime soon, doesn't even have the experience to do it in daylight at this point. IF YOU were a Captain or knew anything about the cruising areas the OP is talking about, there would be multiple overnight passages in anything without a 20 knot cruise (or more) and 185NM safe range (OR MORE) and usually very rough ones at that.

BUT, Perhaps as a broker, you should read what the OP wrote. "Want's a boat to EASILY shoot over to bimini and other Bahamian islands. I have had multiple small boats 21' to a 34' up here on Lake Ontario."

For shooting over to the Bahamas almost anything will do, but he also mentioned "using South Florida as my base for Caribbean cruising and live aboard for 3 months each year." That's long range cruising and a SF won't cut it. Also he might find it confining. He mentioned nothing about wanting to fish, and that's what they're geared for not living aboard for 3 months. As for his capabilities and experience he says he's owned multiple boats. Beyond that we know nothing.

A 50' Post SF is a VERY roomy 3 stateroom boat. Has plenty of speed and range. A 325 NM range at 27 knots with plenty of reserve. A 45' Hatteras EX has a 225 NM range at 35 knots cruise. SO please tell me, how a sportfish will not cut it? At 45-50' it's about the only style boat to have the seakeeping, speed, and range to do the legs necessary to get to the Carribbean without resorting to long overnight passages.

Please tell me what Motoryacht between 45-50' has that kind of range with a 20 knot or better cruise speed and seakeeping abilities to do 180nm T+C to Puerta Plata, Puerta Plata across the Mona Passage? I've known many people that lived on SF and were very happy. It's easy to board due to the side walkway being different heights. Easy to carry BBQ grill, bicycles, motor scooters, dinghy, and all sorts of stuff in cockpit.

Who said he wants to do 20 kts+ and what's wrong with overnight passages when you're living on a passage maker? The range of a 52' Nordhaven is over 2,000nm, and she's a lot more comfortable to live aboard (just one of many options). He could cruise that all over the Caribbean and never have to worry about taking on bad island fuel or paying island prices for it. Another thing we don't know about the OP is what style of cruising he's looking for. Does he want to sit in the cockpit of a boat at a marina and once in awhile spend a bunch of money running over to the Bahamas or does he want to cruise relaxed and see more far flung places while not having fuel send him into bankruptcy. He was talking about renting a slip and leaving it vacant 50% of the time. That's a lot of wasted money on dockage, and running a SF for 45 days is a lot of money spent on fuel.

The OP isn't experienced enough to do the daytime passages, definitely not experienced enough to do overnight ones. He stated he wants a boat to EASILY go to Bimini and further Bahamian islands. 8 knots isn't easy, can't make it between marina's during daylight hours, many legs anchoring isn't an option at that speed due to depth. A 50' Post at 8 knots is just as efficient as a 52' Nordhavn (for example). Docking a single screw with 6' of draft and a ton of windage is NOT easy for someone coming from a 34' with twins. Plus if you're doing that trip with a single engine, you better know how to fix stuff. Because one leg on the 36HP get home motor at what 2-3 knots, would get old really fast.

You can't get down to the Carribbean and back on a 2000 NM range without fueling IN the carribbean and with a 6' draft on a 52' you're starting to restrict places you can even get into down there. DID you forget that the OP wants to get down to the Carribbean. cruise the Carribbean AND get back in a 3 month time period and island hop?

Have you been on a 52' Nordhavn? How do you know it's more comfortable? The boat has staircases everywhere, short/steep steps from the salon going forward, 5 of them to be exact, and there isn't a single room in that boat that doesn't have steps in it. Roomy yes, but comfortable, I guess if you like climbing steps all day.

How much cruising have YOU done in the Carribbean??? I've taken fuel in darn near every godforsaken Carribbean island and fuel dock and have NEVER gotten bad fuel. I've even taken fuel everywhere throughout Central America on the Atlantic side and never got bad fuel. Not once. A lot of it is a falacy, the Bahamian fuel docks have bad fuel story has been going around forever. What it is/was is they had a more refined (low sulpher) diesel and it would knock the algae off of the tank sides of the algae most people already had in their tanks from offroad diesel and lack of use.

I'm sorry J I didn't realize that this was a relative of yours and that you had intimate knowledge of his experience, needs and desires, or is it that you get a commission for selling sport fish boats? A SF may be exactly what he needs or ends up buying, but our responsibility is not to sell him. It's to educate him and present him with options based on the limited info he gave so HE can chose what best suits HIS needs.

Don't worry Ralph. You're correct that he'll probably not want to be an active and contributing member here or share his knowledge and get pushed around by people who think that their way is the only way, but he gets the emails when a comment is posted. So at least he'll learn some things in between the sales pitches.

My recommendation is based upon what he wrote. When someone says they want to EASILY go to Bimini and further Bahamas, it means they want to shoot over to Bimini in a few hours, not take all day to go 50 miles. When someone says the largest boat they had was a 34' express cruiser that they did some boating in lake Ontario with, they're not an experienced bluewater sailor. You're incorrigable.

I think you read a lot more than was written and ignored some. I read the easily go to Bimini as relating to where to put his home base, not necessarily that he wants to make the trip in 3 hours instead of 6. I also DK if the "34' cruiser" is an express, but that's not really relevant. What might be relevant is has he been running these boats for a year or 30 years, has he run in fog or at night and how often. Lake Ontario can kick up like an SOB, and if you can't navigate well it's rocky bottom is very unforgiving. It's also a fairly safe bet that if he goes over 50' his insurance company will require him to hire a captain for a period. I also wasn't recommending a 52 Nordhaven, just using it as an example. You seem to have missed "(just one of many options)". Maybe a M/Y like a Princess or a Azimut would suit his needs. Maybe he is a fishing fanatic and a SF would be perfect for him, but we can only go by the info he provided.

He won't necessarily get emails -- I don't when a comment is posted. It depends on how he has his account set up.

So, Capt Ralph is worth repeating:
"Once again; You meat heads have chased away the O P with 26 post after his only one (1)..
Must be a record..
Pat yourselves on your backs for another fine job.

FUVM" (I don't know what FUVM means, but I'm sure any sailor worth his salt would say it aloud. )

Rest easy. I will not be chased away!! I have posted on another thread but this one seems more to the point. I am retiring in about 2 years or at least will be working part time and cruising 5 to 6 month a year. I have a bunch of questions . First, l am looking for a boat 60 ish to cruise the Bahamas and cross to the Caribbean. A SF like viking or hatt have been mentioned with enclosed bridge for confort. I would consider other options as well. Second,i am based in ontario and navigate on lake ontario that can become very nasty very rapidly. I aslo have good experience in ocean navigation. I have navigated in the Caribbean and the Bahamas as well as the St lawrence river. l would want to bring the boat back up north for the summer. How long of a trip from Florida to New York days only??Third,budget is appx 800 thousand, considering somewhat inflated prices on Yatchworld and other sites,what should i be looking for realisticaly. Fourth, wife wants aft kitchen. Can some of the SF be modified to change mid to aft kitchen without changing handling abilities?? And for what price appx if it makes sense??And finally for now, can anybody recommend a person/ broker who knows the market and can find me such a boat in florida or the north est . Answers will be appreciated and i will not scare away. DONTWORRY...

Are you Peter J, the OP (original poster) of this thread?

Nop Peter is from Toronto, i am from Montreal but we probably sail the same Oantario Lake .

I think you'd do well to send a PM to JWY. She's got a good reputation here and could probably help narrow your search.

Generally Sportfish have the galley in the front of the salon because the front of the house has no windows, so it's a perfect place to put the cabinets. The salon is aft because there are windows on 3 sides. It's not very far from the cockpit door to the galley, so I'd leave it where it sits. People usually don't come very far off of their number if it's a good boat on yachtworld.