Thinking about selling everything and buying a yacht?

I agree, the slip would eat the $12k a year in South Florida right there, then you've got a bottom job once a year, engine maintanence, fixes, a/c repairs, etc etc.......plus the soft goods......you're looking at $40k a year in expenses if you do most all of the work yourself, and it's a cheaper boat.....

What I said only applies if you don't go south and don't have a well insulated boat. But seriously my plan involves bacon, no one hates bacon ... that is to say that individuals who have bacon are non-persons.

Wow, are you in for a surprise. Plus, unless south Florida has suddenly changed, it's not easy for a new resident to find a steady job that pays descent money for a couple of years. They look on new people as a revenue source; dreamers who will be gone when the money runs out. It's the first place I was ever referred to as a "body" (as in interchangable with the next one that comes along cheaper).

welcome...

i moved aboard 6 years ago from the typical florida condo. what is called a luxury condo on the water with pool, marina, valets, concierges, and a 200 page RULE BOOK... $6000 tax a year, $900 maintenance/association fees a month, insurance, etc...

as a lifelong boat owner, living aboard actually saved me money but even if i had not owned a boat before, it still would have been cheaper.

in this market, you should have no problem finding a comfortable, quality, older boat in the 100/150k range and 50/60'. a six figure job should be nore than enough to cover your expenses.

for instance... if we go out for the week end and anchor out somewhere on the bay, at hull speed we burn at the most $100 worth fo fuel, incl. generator. compare that to the typical evening out for dinner, a movie maybe, etc..

but, i think that you have to move aboard to enjoy the lifestyle. to enjoy just dropping the lines and taking the boat out. to enjoy a nice cup of coffee on a sunday morning on the hook somewhere watching dolphins and sunrise.... or a nice sunset and moon rise. If you come to boating/living aboard strictly to save money because it may be cheap housing then it's not going to work.

i don't think it's easy to find good jobs anywhere these days... New York, Illinois or Florida. Life is much cheaper in Florida actually, less taxes, less costs of living overall. moving is always a gamble, one that must be approached carefully, probably by finding a good job / business first then worry about moving and a boat, but there are opportunities everywhere.

for instance, you can find very nice luxury condos for rent in great locations for about $1500 (1500+ sq ft 2/2s with pool,etc...). makes it pretty easy to come down, settle down, then get a boat to live on if that's the lifestyle you're looking into.

Isn't there a marina near you? Why not wander down and talk with some of the owners.
Then spend a few bucks on a trip to where you WANT to live and and do the same there.
Look at the boats and the sizes they live in get a Idea of how much boat you really need to live in.
I have friends in the LA area that live on 27 foot sailboats. not a lot of space but some are comfortable on it.
I have been living on a 37 footer in mid IL this winter , far more space than my lifestyle demands but most would be cramped.
Personally with $200,000 Id buy the boat I wanted fix it the way I wanted and invest the rest and have enough to live on the rest of my life. Obviously my expenses are minimal
You might want to look into places where its cheaper than south FL say AL MS or what the heck maybe NOLA is the place you want to be next Mardi Gras. Mexico? Argentina?
Personally part of the attraction of a boat is mobility. Anchor up in Peoria for Christmas, NOLA for Mardi Gras, spend the 4th of July at Fort Mchenry In Chesapeake bay then See the fall foliage in Maine before a run to the Bahamas for the winter.

Just a thought, because it’s been rolling around in my head... why not get a job aboard a boat for awhile and learn that way, so you get paid to learn? I’ve read about people dumping Wallstreet for a deckhand and they haven’t looked back.

As for the job market across America, take it from someone who well knows, don’t drop a job before you have one, and don’t put too much trust in the new job (as in don’t get too comfortable). I’ve seen so many people get dumped off, hired, and then dumped again because they were the most recent hired in an unstable economy.

I myself have been unemployed programmer for longer than I’d like to say (too embarrassing). I’m back in school and doing it all online, so I recently got the idea of maybe looking into the feasibility of finishing school while working aboard. Any thoughts on this?

You can't just walk out and get a job on a boat most of the time, you do need some level of education in order to get one.

Minimal? You'd have to develope a taste for cat food (the cheap brands).

Or how about the taste of fish?

And crab, lobster, scrimp?

I tried living in a small boat once, and I lasted exactly one night. The problem was that it wasn't quite big enough, and where I had to moor it permanently did not give a good view (Chiswick Marina in UK - then tidal to mud).

There is also the luxuries of a house that we take for granted - like a 100A mains supply, a 4" bore sewer system that you never need empty, cheap gas laid on with pipes, a garden to put stuff in, rooms big enough to stand up straight in even if you're 6'2" tall, shelves that things do not roll off of, mains water piped straight in etc.

I quickly realised that holidays in boats at the seaside were a world away from living on a boat for these and other reasons - so my idea for a perfect nautical life (ok I haven't got this far - but bear with me - the theory is sound!) is to buy a house near the sea, withing a reasonable drive to a couple of good marinas.

Then when you live within 30 minutes of the boat you buy a boat that will allow you to live comfortably for an extended weekend (4 days) without too much discomfort. After all it's supposed to be more fun than checking into the nearly waterside hotel and spending the day on the beach..

In that case you'll be spending the majority of your house sale cash on a new house (rent at the start so if you cannot find work you are mobile) and then buy either the biggest trailerable boat you can (saves berthing fees, bottom scrubbing etc) or go for a sub 30' boat to allow you some money to have fun with.

In this way you still have the big advantages of a house, and get to live on a boat for a big chunk of your time (every weekend if you like!).

ETA: If your main interest becomes the boat you can just rent a room or buy a place and part rent it out.

Hi,

Where in the UK can you get 100 Amps in your household electricity supply?

Don't forget, in Florida it's stone crabs not blue claws and the lobster don't have claws. Worse still, I don't like fish (I know, what kind of captain can I be.) Seriously though, all very good points which is why most people don't live on their boats. It's roughing it in a big way until you get into very serious boats, and at that point you'll still find the boat is a cottage compared to their house (so for them it's still roughing it). Moving onto a boat is a serious financial and lifestyle change that should take a lot of forethought to avoid a lot of regret later. Luckily, most of the questions one should ask have been answered in these threads on YF.
BTW, no 100A in the UK? Most new houses here are going in w/200A these days. Don't know that I could live on less than 100. Guess I'm just getting old and soft.

The late Tom Fexas used to write a column in a magazine, one of which discussed his theory of boat use being an inverse or negative correlation to distance. Boats kept at a dock in the backyard (the Florida "pool sandwich") get minimal use, they are home decoration objects. Boats kept a 2-3 hour drive away get a lot of use. If you're a 30 minute drive from your boat and it starts raining, you'll want to head home. If you're a 30 minute drive and the a/c goes out, you'll head home. If any issue crops up, you'll just head home for tools or forgotten items... and get back to the boat "next weekend."

If you're 2-3 hours away, the boat will beckon you like a siren song. You'll pack the car up and go as often as you can. If you've forgotten something, you'll do without. You'll learn which tools are must haves on a boat, and which are just nice to have. You will immerse yourself in the lifestyle, and get maximum enjoyment.

My family found this to be true. When the boat was 10 minutes from home, it was a floating cottage. When it was a half hour, it was a dinner cruiser. when it was 2.5 hours away, we took it on weekend trips, weeklong trips, sometimes a few weeks of cruising at a time. The time spent on the boat was valued far more when it was distant enough to be a treat rather than a matter of course.

My 2¢.

I agree with the back yard statement. The 2.5 hour only works for people with a lot of liesure time or dedicated fishermen though. I've found that the average person needs convenience where they can wake up, find a sunny Saturday and decide 'let's go out for a couple of hours'. These people may take one of two trips a summer. If it's not close, it gets no further use. Remember, except for fishermen, it's usually the wife that controls the weekends and the malls are only minutes away.
It's been awhile since Fexus wrote that. These days boaters aren't boaters. Their "tools" are a cell phone and the # for the yard.

LOL Obviously you have no Idea of inexpencive living. FOOD is one area where even on a minamal budget you can enjoy soom of the greatest life has to offer.
How ever some times my plane and mercedes have to share a garage.

My house has a 100A fuse just before the meter
I can switch on a 3kW immersion heater, a 2.5kW kettle and a 3kW electric fire - each (switch-on event) without even causing the lights to dim even slightly...

The national grid - hard to fault
I have quite a good gen-set that's about 2.5kW IIRC, but compared to the national grid - it's not even close...

I take what Seafarer says about the distance thing, but I used to travel 3hrs away from my boat - after a couple of 5hr trips we decided to sell up and wait until I lived nearer the sea. If I only lived 15minutes away I'd still go for weekend trips - just I'd aim to travel in the boat during that time to visit places - rather than the car. I love weekending on boats - haven't done it enough recently though

If I did weekends enough because I was nearer I suspect I'd end up buying a yacht to save fuel and give me more to do on the way