Making the jump....

[tspear]

Hello all,

I am considering moving from landlubber status to a live a board.

Background:
-- When I was younger my wife and I always talked about living on a boat. But she had motion sickness which got worse as she got older. Now that she has passed away a few years ago, I have started to consider this option again.
-- It would be my youngest (10 yr old daughter) and myself the majority of the time with visits from my two college age kids.
-- I would based new Portsmouth NH (relatives and friends there) and my daughter would go to school with her cousins.
-- I am a private plane pilot so I am confident in my ability to learn how to handle a power boat. (Not much interest in sailing)

My questions:
-- How do you handle legal address?
-- What about driver's license issues?
-- Mail?
-- Voting?
-- Taxes?
-- Is it more important to get a boat which requires more MX and is easier to sell if this plan does not work? Or would you go all in and do the upgrades to make life easier knowing that you may lose money doing it? (e.g. install a water purifier so no need to top off tanks).
-- What else am I missing?

Tim

[letsgetsailing3]

This isn't an administrative question related to cruising, this is a life question.

I'd be more in favor of you getting a boat for fun, and raising your youngest daughter until she's an adult.

I know that isn't what you asked, but it's by far the more important pressing issue.

[chuckr]

we have been out over 6 years -- and currently in the med --

we orginally used a mail box with postal plus but that became a bit of a problem getting our mail once son got married and had less time to deal with dads sutff

we now use st brendens isl in green cove springs fla -- make us fla residents for taxes which we file on line, and vote - via absent -- we also have fla drivers license as we lived there before we set off --
by the way we own no dirt

they are good folks and have a variety of programs that really work and easy to work with -- if they can get us our mail in tunisia they can get it to you anywhere

good luck and welcome aboard and it is an incredible lifestyle

[dannc]

I would suggest reading a few books about living on a boat. I just read, "The Art of Living Aboard a Boat" by Lisa and Al Fittipaldi and found it very informative about boat costs.

What does your youngest think about living on a boat?

We have thought about moving to a boat but space for two teenagers is problematic. In OUR case, pulling the kids out of school would be a very difficult decision. The school is a perfect fit for our kids and I just do not think we could find a school this good anywhere else. If our kids were going to just a regular, nothing special school, moving would be more of an option.

Living on the boat and being able to head out on a short or long trip when we felt like it would be good for the kids and would teach them quite a bit of valuable skills and provide them opportunities for serious responsibilities which should build confidence.

I think having kids on a boat is like finding a particular boat, a compromise. There are good and bad points for both approaches and each family has to decide which is best for them.

Later,
Dan

[autumnbreeze27]

My questions:
-- How do you handle legal address? Your marina typically will provide you with a mailbox, otherwise you'll have to pay somebody for a PO box/private mail box.
-- What about driver's license issues? you don't need a driver's license for a boat
-- Mail? Isn't this the same as the address question?
-- Voting? Doesn't change
-- Taxes? You still have to pay them
-- Is it more important to get a boat which requires more MX and is easier to sell if this plan does not work? Or would you go all in and do the upgrades to make life easier knowing that you may lose money doing it? (e.g. install a water purifier so no need to top off tanks).
You are better off spending money on a popular boat that will be easy to resell. If you buy a fixer with no previous boat ownership experience you will likely just get a hole in the water you pour money in. It's much easier to top off your tanks from a hose than pay for, operate, and maintain a water maker.
-- What else am I missing? Too much to list.

[tspear]

letsgetsailing3,

Sorry, I might have been more specific. I have read enough threads and books on the philosophy side; I was not asking that question. Between friends and family I am sure I will get a lot it. I know I did when my daughter and I moved to an airpark in the middle of Tennessee two years ago. She and I are both ready to move again, we spend a lot of weekends traveling by plane, and are looking for something different.

Among everything I have read, it all deals with boat issues (e.g. get diesel vs gas engines or power versus sailing, or generators...). I have yet to find, see information on dealing with the practical other side of stuff; which was the intent of my questions.

Dan,

My daughter thinks the concept is cool. We have a friend who is doing the Loop now, and she loves his boat. She knows we will have to get rid of a lot of stuff, but we have been doing that for two years now.

autumnbreeze27,

First, thanks for the replies. By mail, I was asking how to get it forwarded to you. chuckr response basically shows I was making this more complicated then I needed too. I just need to find the personal equivalent of the virtual office solution I use for my consulting practices. I detest it when I miss something simple; especially when I am already doing something similar.
As for what else am I missing, I was focused only on the legal, practical stuff; nothing to do with the boat. I still have more research and learning to go there before I know what are the questions to ask.

checkr,

Thanks. That was what I was looking for.

Tim

[harmarty]

I have only one regret about livingaboard and that is I didn't do it sooner

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