Future liveaboard sailor seeks advise from experts

[Gunny]

I've decided to fulfill a dream I've had for a long time and buy a liveaboard sailboat after New Years. I have been doing research on vessels, sizes, and features as well as taking sailing lessons and learning as much as I can about the pro and con of living aboard a sailboat. I would like to get some guidance from you experts as far as:

1. Budget of $20K, what type of vessel would you recommend? Single dad with a 10 year old daughter. Planning on getting a spot at either Dinner Key Marina, Crandon Park, Black Point,or Matherson & Hammocks.
2. Should I contact a broker directly or just do the search on boat listings online and go By Owner route?
2. Planning on weekends trips to the keys or along the ICW until I get more experience and in a couple of years venture further from the coast.
3. Knowledge base w/ regards to sailing and vessels is Pre-K level.

Thank you for your advise. This is a good starting point so I can start pointing my sails in the right direction.

Gunny

[CSY Man]

Budget is a bit tight for a 2-person live aboard.
You may end up with a dirty boat in rough shape, or you
Could find a small jewel.
Start looking on you own, The Internet is your friend, boat trader, yachttrader, eBay, Craig's list.
Catalina 30s are good beginner boats.
Also check out CSY 33s and a bunch of other older/midsize sailboats.

[Gunny]

Thank you. I've read nothing but good things about the Catalinas. I guess they are very solid vessels.

[CSY Man]

Well, they are built okay and makes for a good beginner boat.
But so is many other brands.
There is a few brands that are built poorly, but not going to mention any here, then a firestorm will start with finger pointing and name calling.
CSYs are built like tanks with good quality hardware, but they are getting old and more maintenance is needed.
The best of course is to find a high quality, well equipped, well maintained newer boat, but then you can easily spend $200k.
This is an expensive sport using life saving equipment in harsh conditions.
To start out cheap you will have constant work with upgrades, repairs, maintenance, breakdowns and head aces.
Been there, done that.

[leftbrainstuff]

Many marinas auction yachts with unpaid slip fees. You dont often see liveaboard sized vessels though.

Note that most marinas have minimum criteria for liveaboard. 35' and a head with holding tank for example.

You might also encounter the liveaboard waiting list.

$20k is a super tight budget. I can't imagine many brokers being interested in such a low commision.

Nearly all boats require corrective maintenance and all require preventative maintenance. This will consume time and money.

Doing any significant work while living aboard gets old quickly.

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[Gunny]

I am realist when it comes to this new endeavor. It is not going to be a cake walk but put a price on the freedom of living your life under your own terms and not going along with the rest of society.


Is there a waiting list for most of the liveaboard marinas here in South Florida?

[Alec H]

"living life on your own terms" will not happen on a 20K boat, unless you would also be happy in cave. You will be spending too much money and time on maintenance, parts, rebuilds. Instead of a constant flow of money into an old, too small boat; save that money until you can afford something more in keeping with your ideals. You might look into building a boat from a kit/plans. Then you would be spending on something with a longer life expectancy.
Best of luck.

[skipmac]

Originally Posted by Gunny

I am realist when it comes to this new endeavor. It is not going to be a cake walk but put a price on the freedom of living your life under your own terms and not going along with the rest of society.
Is there a waiting list for most of the liveaboard marinas here in South Florida?

I agree that $20K is a very, very tight budget. Miracles do happen but more than likely make it work on that budget will take a lot of work, patience and a bit of luck.

Most likely you will have to go small or get a serious fixer upper on that budget.

Finding a not expensive live-aboard slip in south Florida is like finding a cheap apartment in Manhattan. You might get lucky and find something but the cheaper places will likely have a waiting list. Even then cheaper is a relative term.

I would consider further north or west coast Florida if you have a tight budget.

[Valmika]

A couple of thoughts:

Craigslist-Brokers don't like to mess with anything that low budget.

Marina Auctions--You buy someone else dream that didn't have the tenacity you do. Be careful they may have found something out about the boat they won't tell you.

Pay the money for a good survey even on a low cost boat. Unless you really know what you are doing. You will get an honest assessment of what you are in for and a negotiating tool on the price.

SHOP! the more boats you see the better you will know market price.

Catalina 30- over 9000 built and Catalina still supports them. Huge user groups

Erickson 35-30 Better sailing then Catalina but a but smaller below (at least the 30)

Islander 36- Hey Zack Suderland made it around the world in one.

Hunter 34_ early 80's version check for compression post issue but it a nice sailing with a true aft cabin.

Working on your boat with your 10 year old son could be a life experience you and he will treasure your whole lives. Any of these boats you get for under 20K will require work but there is no better way to get to know your boat well. Just get something that is sail able so it is not just about the work.

[FamilyVan]

Originally Posted by Alec H

"living life on your own terms" will not happen on a 20K boat, unless you would also be happy in cave. You will be spending too much money and time on maintenance, parts, rebuilds. Instead of a constant flow of money into an old, too small boat; save that money until you can afford something more in keeping with your ideals. You might look into building a boat from a kit/plans. Then you would be spending on something with a longer life expectancy.
Best of luck.

I happily lived aboard for a boat under $20k. She's by no means a cave, has beautiful interior wood work, reliable Perkins 4.108, 2 private cabins each with over 6' of standing headroom, a workshop, a nice galley with double sinks, a functional rig. I didn't live on her in south Florida either, I lived aboard in Canadian winters.

I no longer live aboard, but sail every other week end with longer 7-14 day cruises a couple times a year when I have the vacation time. I have maintenance issues from time to time, but who doesn't?

I consider her safe enough to travel 50 or100 miles offshore, but wouldn't attempt an ocean crossing without spending some doe.

I can't recommend a specific boat, because so much comes down to condition and equipment, but if you do your homework, you can find something suitable in your price range. I'd go for a 2 cabin model with a 10 year old daughter, which unfortunately rules out a lot of designs, but not all.

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[redhead]

My advice is to keep on dreaming - with occasional breaks of reality.

We searched online for 6 years (we had very specific criteria) we spent vacations traveling to look at boats, we spent $$ on airfare, hotels, etc.

The biggest single unpleasant surprise was....(surprise) people lie. I mean I can exaggerate with the best of them, but this was mind-boggling, stupendous, Lie- for-the-Olympics type lying. Mostly condition issues. And I'm afraid that at $20K you are in that market.

So, since you're in one of the biggest boating areas in North America I suggest you do the Boat Trader, Yacht Finder, online thing, but keep your search criteria to within a reasonable driving distance from your home.

All the best, just leave the rosy glasses at home. It's being done all the time, but be your own advocate and don't automatically infer a certain level of honesty to the sellers/agents. Good luck!

PS. That being said, we did find our dream boat 3500 miles from home and are currently living aboard and refitting, cruise date is May 2016.

[a64pilot]

I'd say that for 20K, you may well be better off doing a lot of dock walking, talking, helping out and making friends, real deals do come about sometimes and sometimes as a person gets older and can no longer sail, they will take a lot less for their boat than it's worth, knowing it's going to a good home, but it's not often and these deals usually go to friends of course.

[FamilyVan]

Originally Posted by a64pilot

I'd say that for 20K, you may well be better off doing a lot of dock walking, talking, helping out and making friends, real deals do come about sometimes and sometimes as a person gets older and can no longer sail, they will take a lot less for their boat than it's worth, knowing it's going to a good home, but it's not often and these deals usually go to friends of course.

Bingo! I got my boat for less than 1/3rd the original asking price ($60k USD), from a retired lady who was moving over seas in a couple of weeks. It was autumn, stuff was starting to freeze and nobody was interested in buying a boat at that time of year.

I'd stay away from brokers in that price range.

Edit: I made an unconditional cash offer, no survey (which I wouldn't recommend for everyone). Hard cash on hand and the willingness to strike when the irons hot can go a long way.

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[Scout 30]

I have to agree with FamilyVan. Your daughter will need her own cabin so you will need a 2 cabin boat to make this work which is going to be tough for $20,000. There are no 30 footers that will fit this bill. A center cockpit design with an aft cabin is probably the way to go. A few to look at: Morgan Out Island 41, Irwin 37, Oday 37. These are lower priced boats but at $20,000 or less you'll still need to budget for repairs.

[Scout 30]

A quick Craigslist Miami search showed these 2 cabin boats for sale in your price range. I would expect all of them to need a considerable amount of work. Cheap boats are usually the most expensive boats to buy.


https://miami.craigslist.org/mdc/boa/5174874269.html


https://miami.craigslist.org/mdc/boa/5103778212.html


https://miami.craigslist.org/mdc/boa/5151835544.html