Best US Liveaboard Locations

[svpattyd]

All the tax money goes to support the Chesapeake bay. Taxes are the only way we have to keep waterways clean and navigable. I am proud to pay my fair share to help the bay. If we ( cruisers) don't treasure our water home, who will?

[amcgilvray]

Originally Posted by teejayevans

FL requires you to register boat after 90 days, $100-200/yr. No income tax!
NC has personal property tax, depends on what county you are in, figure $500/$100K, and income tax starts at 6.5%
TX has no income tax, don't know their boat laws.
GA supposedly has laws against liveaboards
Tom

Texas is boat friendly! Other than original registration and keeping your tags up-to-date every few years, life is reasonable. I'm out of Corpus Christi and it is a great place to stay. Slips are from $200-300/month + electric but showers/laundry etc are are in excellent condition. Very friendly marina staff.

[hellosailor]

"FL requires you to register boat after"
Do they treat it like they treat a car? There's a stiff extra fee to transfer your title to Florida (mandatory) AND your registration expires on your birthday, so if you come in two days before your birthday to register a vehicle? Congratulations, you'll pay for a full year that expires in only two days! No pro-rata, no credit, no nothing.
They figure, if you're bringing it in, you're not a resident yet, you're not a voter yet, you're a tourist ripe for the plucking. By the time you can vote...apparently folks think of it as an initiation fee, for such an exclusive club. After all, they'll never have to pay it again, someone else will.

[pandora]

There is the opportunity for a couple to live aboard and work as a "dockmaster/caretaker" of the private marina-dockominium in Key Largo, Florida (I keep my sailboat there).
Reasonable slip rent rates. No deep draft boats (4'6" max.)

If someone is interested pm me at jypogo:dot:at:dot:yahoo:dot:com

Yakov

Bayfield-29 "Pandora", Key Largo, Florida

[jSnyder]

Originally Posted by starfish62

There are still lots of places where you can be a full-time cruiser, but you have to know the Federal laws--and be able to cite them--in some areas.

I currently live on my sailboat and was wondering when i read this if there is a link to these so i can memorize them thanks.

[thepotlady]

Hello,
I am looking for a marina in the Phoenix, Arizona area that allows liveaboard. I am interested in a marina that is secure (as secure
can be on a boat) and have nice facilities. I would be interested
in your comments and advice. Thank you!

[zeehag]

Originally Posted by thepotlady

Hello,
I am looking for a marina in the Phoenix, Arizona area that allows liveaboard. I am interested in a marina that is secure (as secure
can be on a boat) and have nice facilities. I would be interested
in your comments and advice. Thank you!

didnt know there were any there. is mostly a trailer sailor place. my dad kept his trailer sailor in his carport and lived in his house when he had a sailboat there.

[thepotlady]

Thank you for your prompt e-mail...I have been living aboard in California, however, had to relocate back to Phoenix area...was hoping to find a nice marina here...

[avb3]

Originally Posted by thepotlady

Thank you for your prompt e-mail...I have been living aboard in California, however, had to relocate back to Phoenix area...was hoping to find a nice marina here...

I've only been to Phoenix twice, but where do they even have a body of water large enough to have a sailboat out anywheres near there (other than Theo. Roosevelt Lake)?

Now, they do have a lot of nice beach some people call a desert!

[thiago1979]

Originally Posted by RickD

To be totally honest, ladies and gentlemen, Captains and Crews....

I know PRECISELY what you mean, which is PRECISELY why I want to do this. Or, I should say, one of the major reasons I want to do it.

After 30+ years of working for the government, being in the military, playing the politics games and dealing on a day-to-day basis with people who have no business running ANYTHING, let alone our government, tax collecting or anything else... I'm interested in getting the hell out... soon.

JoAnne and I (my First Mate of 31+ years) have decided that retirement should not be "quitting" or "retiring" but moving on to a new adventure.

I'm tired of local governments trying to put things like "fees" on you for the amount of rain that falls out of the sky and on your property... that's called an illegal tax. Anyway, sorry to wax politically, but that's how I feel about it.

Kinda tired of a certain neighbor who calls the "local code enforcement" on me I get a weed in the yard or it gets over 4 inches or I forget to bring the trash can in one night. /sigh.

I also AM IN AGREEMENT with you! Like yourself I have been in the Army for 3 years and the rest in IRR to complete 8 years. I am just about SICK of everything being about MONEY! NOW I undestand what Christ mentioned in the Bible "I will be there with you when you are in Prison." There are lots of GOOD people out there who just want to enjoy and feel part of Nature, but all this things turned into Dollar signs. One day YES they will Tax the AIR we breath, because the ground we walk on already has it's Tax. Most people don't realize that we are doing this to our selfs. I just want to be in peace with all things. I am sure we all need to recharge from this world's limbo mary go round.

[CaptHead]

I lived aboard for over 25 years in the Los Angeles harbor and I couldn't be any happier about that. For one, it has the best climate anywhere, it was very well protected from storms, no hurricanes, no bugs, no humidity and very nice people. I met people who planned and outfitted their boats for long range cruising. I met people who came back from years of cruising. Ports like Fiji, Marshall Islands, Australia, Mexico, Costa Rica and Panama to name a few.

Off the coast 20 miles is Catalina Island and the Channel Islands are not much farther. I don't know how you beat that.

Today getting a liveaboard slip isn't easy. The port regulates how many slips in a marina can be assigned as liveaboard tenants. In the LA Harbor it varies from 5 to 10% of that marina's slips. There are long waiting lists as a result.

Once you get liveaboard status, your boat has to be inspected. They send an inspector aboard and inspect for almost everything the coast guard inspects. Holding tanks are a must. No overboard discharge but the good thing is there are pump out stations conveniently located and if you want there is a pump out service that will clean your tank weekly for a fee.

Each year your boat has to pass inspection. It's a no brainer and they don't want trailer trash living in non operating junk boats. I don't want that as a neighbor either.

Real cruisers love it here. There is nothing you can't find for your boat here and there are many fabricating companies near the harbor also.

Cheers and keep living the dream

[zeehag]

i loved lost angels and san diego so much i sailed south, where it is really NICE and air is free and clear and warm. so cal is NOT warm. nor is it inexpensive.

[kingwoodie]

Starbolin and bstreep: Corpus Christi Tx? For a liveaboard? Not a good idea!!! I can't believe it! I hope you are not recommending the T Heads. There are thousands that walk and drive the T Heads every weekend. They are mostly drunk, loud, and looking for something to steal off your boat. Born and raised in Corpus went to Ray High School and in the 1950' 60' and even the 70's the T heads were a nice place to dock your boat. But Now??? very dangerous. Port Aransas is a nice place to live if you can get your head around the town. My parents took us kids there to get doughnuts from the baker just outside of town. Doughnuts beyond good. Starbolin and bstreep must be part of the chamber of commerce of Corpus that's the only way the T heads could be recommended. Now there are a few good marinas around Corpus bay and the ICW but be careful of the water depth. The ICW would not be a good choice for me as it's a long way to the open waters of the gulf and Corpus bay can be very rough to cross.

[MapleSugarMan]

Southport Marina in Southport, NC is a great place. $290/monthfor a 40' slip + shore power. Free water, showers, dock boxes. On-site laundromat and storage lockers. Very friendly, helpful staff. And Southport is a wonderful little town. Compare that slip cost to paying a house mortgage and property taxes, not to mention the cost of maintenance, repairs, and utilities. Suddenly, it doesn't seem so expensive any more.

Scott Hendrickson

[Kettlewell]

Can't remember if I have noted this in this thread before or not, but keep in mind there is a lot more to living aboard than the marina: do you like the boating opportunities in the area, how do you like the town or area, are there land things to do you like, are you close to other people you want to be close to, what is hurricane season like, etc., etc. Before making a long-term commitment I highly recommend trying a month or two in a spot to get some idea of these things and more.