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Old 19-09-2016, 16:41   #16
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Re: Opinions on relocation for sailing purposes.

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Good thoughts! What about boat buying and sailing opportunities? Why the PNW? What is the sailing season like there?
Boat buying: plentiful and reasonably priced. Typically better shape because they aren't exposed to the heat and UV of southern states and Mother Nature provides a fairly constant fresh water rinse.

Sailing season: year round for cruising and racing. No reason to haul out here, other than the occasional bottom prep.

You mention "get a couple jobs". We don't know what your profession is, but Seattle is one of the hotter economies in the country. Plenty of openings and opportunities for skilled or professional labor.

The not-so-goods: 8 months of grey skies and drizzle, ridiculous traffic, housing prices soaring.
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Old 19-09-2016, 16:51   #17
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Re: Opinions on relocation for sailing purposes.

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The wife, the 12 year old and I will be moving in the next year to expand our sailing experience. The Mrs. and I are in our late 40s. We have extensive sailing/racing experience but only on lakes/dingies big and small. We have very limited keel boat experience. Our options are limited to continental USA.

The plan is to get a couple of jobs (again), buy a house (again), then a coastal weekender sailboat and spend the next 5 years enjoying it. Eventually we will cruise full time. (Going now is not an option)

For the sake of discussion let's limit the options to Chicago, Houston, Tampa Bay area, or the coast of North Carolina. I have some experience in all these areas. I can think of a few +/- for each location. I am interested in the sailing community's thoughts.

Chicago- Love the idea of sailing the Great lakes. But, why move to sail to a place where sailing is only an option 6 months out of the year?

Houston, Tampa, NC- Would you buy a waterfront house in a place where the water front will advance (potentially a lot) over the next 50 years?

Where would you move to and why?

Sounds like you are in a VERY similar place to where we were a few years back (and now), ready to go but waiting for a child to finish high school first.

I can't comment on any of the areas you are likely to live, my exposure to the USA has been only San Francisco, Los Angeles and Palo Alto.

But, with the benefit of hindsight, we moved to as good a place as we could hope for in terms of sailing preparation. Year round sailing is possible here in Adelaide, there are some reasonably sheltered conditions close to home, but some more serious stuff only a half day away. A couple of good overnight destinations plus some more ambitious multi day trips.

A few pretty active yacht clubs if racing is your thing too.

All in all perfect conditions to shake down a boat and crew for a longer journey.

So I would prioritise year round sailing highest, followed by somewhere with overnight locations in weekend range and finally a range of challenging conditions being available.
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Old 19-09-2016, 17:00   #18
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Re: Opinions on relocation for sailing purposes.

I didn't catch if you are buying or renting a home or living aboard but renting in a place like San Rafael is not that expensive and it's only an hour of sailing to the slot. 20 minute drive to the SF ferry.
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Old 19-09-2016, 18:18   #19
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Re: Opinions on relocation for sailing purposes.

Why not the east coast of Florida? Jacksonville, in my opinion, is better than cities I have lived in (Pittsburgh, Columbus Ohio).

Miami would make a great area to sail the Bahamas, Caribbean.

Tampa would also make a great launch point for some great sailing. No State Tax in Florida....can't day that about the tax happy west coast.

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Old 19-09-2016, 18:24   #20
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Re: Opinions on relocation for sailing purposes.

[QUOTE=tuffr2;2216784]Why not the east coast of Florida? Jacksonville, in my opinion, is better than cities I have lived in (Pittsburgh, Columbus Ohio).

Yeah well JAX is up a river, pretty far from the ocean.
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Old 19-09-2016, 18:37   #21
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Re: Opinions on relocation for sailing purposes.

South Fla, warmer than Tampa in the winter and cooler in the summer with sea breezes. Has racing and easy shot cruising to Bahamas.
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Old 19-09-2016, 19:11   #22
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Re: Opinions on relocation for sailing purposes.

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The not-so-goods: 8 months of grey skies and drizzle, ridiculous traffic, housing prices soaring.
I love that weather. Nothing like sailing under gray skies, after flying offshore in the GOM, I hate the sun!

Port St. Lucie is quite cheap these days, Vero Beach, Stuart, Jupiter are all good Florida destinations. Winters are paradise...

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Old 19-09-2016, 19:31   #23
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Re: Opinions on relocation for sailing purposes.

I can't say what it's like of late, but MD was great for sailing when I was there. Be it Annapolis, or anywhere on the Chesapeake. Probably VA in some areas too, but I can't speak for them firsthand.

The comments about SF, & San Diego are pretty much on target. And the PNW's nice too. Though as to the climate, there are hundreds upon hundreds of micro climates, so that what it's like from one place to the next in winter, varys by quite a bit. In terms of temp, winds, days of sunlight, wind, etc. So do your homework.

Another thing to consider, not yet mentioned, is that in different locales, the boat markets can vary greatly. Such as in FL you'll find a lot more multihulls than most other spots in the lower 48. So if they'e what you're after, then choose where you live carefully.
This also relates to finding dock space, as on the W. Coast it's tougher to find in general, & much more so for cat's & tri's (sic).


PS: Other than the PNW, cruising's pretty limited on the W. Coast.
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Old 20-09-2016, 03:51   #24
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Re: Opinions on relocation for sailing purposes.

I second the suggestion for the Chesapeake Bay.

With all it's tributary rivers and tidal creeks, you could cruise non-stop the rest of your life and not drop anchor in all of them. Since you're planning on buying a home and having jobs, I think you'll find more opportunities on or near the Bay in Maryland or Virginia than in NC. The only downside is the hot, humid and generally windless conditions in July and August, but you could always head north then.
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Old 20-09-2016, 04:14   #25
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Re: Opinions on relocation for sailing purposes.

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, John.
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Old 20-09-2016, 04:22   #26
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Re: Opinions on relocation for sailing purposes.

If I was moving for the sailing.....it would not be Houston. I live in the burbs of Houston, the traffic is nightmarish, the sailing is great, but there are very limited options on places to go. If racing or casual evening sailing is what you're wanting to do....the. Head on over!!
However if you want to hop on the boat and go anchor somewhere nice for a weekend your options are limited to 2-3 spots. Do those a few times and you're going to be looking for more.


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Old 20-09-2016, 05:28   #27
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Re: Opinions on relocation for sailing purposes.

This won't help on the where, but might on the "how". Unless your financial resources are deep, I would not buy if you are going cruising in 5 years. The closing costs (at both ends, buying and selling), the agent's commission when you sell (especially a higher priced home, as waterfront tends to be), and money spent on maintenance and/or upgrades all represent money that can be put into the boat purchase, its outfitting, and/or the cruising kitty. For waterfront property, consider also the cost of potential repairs from storm damage along the coasts.
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Old 20-09-2016, 05:54   #28
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Re: Opinions on relocation for sailing purposes.

I'm heading back to Nap town for the boat show. I will say I've never considered Virginia or MD as relocation places. I'll have to take anothwr look when we go.
Sail monkey ur points on Houston are well taken. Unless I was interested in viewing oil rigs.... lol
SFD every house I've owned was purchased in need of extensive repair and sold for top $. And most of the work I do myself.
As for jobs the Mrs and I are both in a allied medical field. If where we move has a hospital I am confident we can get a job.
Florida looks like it really pulling ahead here. I lived in St. Pete a long time back. Never thought I'd be back.

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Old 20-09-2016, 06:37   #29
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Re: Opinions on relocation for sailing purposes.

Interesting, if you buy a boat in Va. in certain counties the sales tax is capped at 2%. At least this was 1 year ago in Deltaville Va. I was thinking Deltaville would make a great home base but realized it gets real cold in the winter. There would be very no sailing in Nov, Dec, Jan, Feb and half of Mar.

Maryland would get colder yet.

In Florida you will get chilly weather a few times but for the most part you could sail year round.

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Old 20-09-2016, 08:06   #30
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Re: Opinions on relocation for sailing purposes.

My wife and I are in our mid-50s and decided to take up sailing prior to retirement. We bought a waterfront home outside Oriental, NC about a year ago, bought an older 27 foot boat and are learning to sail. We limited our search to the Oriental/Pamlico County area primarily because this would be a weekend home for us and we wanted a reasonable commute. These are my impressions of the area:

-there seems to significant support for the sailing community with a number of sailing clubs and race events. Presently, we are doing things on our own but we will likely join a club in the future.
-there are many boat yard and marina resources to draw upon. There are a fair number of less utilized marinas where slip fees may be more reasonable.
-Oriental is nice little town but I would not say it is vibrant. Pamlico County has little industry and the locals make their living with agriculture, seafood, and the service industry. Oriental has about 6 to 8 restaurants, several of them have very good food at reasonable prices.
-July and August are hot. The mosquitos are certainly present but they are not as bad as I thought they might be.
-The seems to be a fair number of houses on the market over the entire market range. Prices have not fully recovered from the highs which seemed to have peaked 7 years ago or so. Storm flood level is 7 to 9 feet depending where the house is. If you buy a house that did not flood during Irene/Isabell, you are probably pretty safe. Houses with water depths greater than 4 feet are far fewer.
-The area has great access to the NC sounds and is a fairly convenient base for cruising north or south.

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