What To Expect ?

[Bash]

The more you defer maintenance, the costlier it becomes. What you want to do is keep the boat's condition up to the point where you only have to do "maintenance," rather than "restoration."

We've all seen the ads where a boat is being sold for $20,000 after having gone through $200,000 in "restoration and upgrades" in the past decade. Ouch.

I had a buddy once who installed an $4,000 engine into a $2,000 boat, and was shocked to discover that he could only sell the boat for $2,000 thereafter. The moral here is that when somebody tells you to expect to pay 10% of the boat's value per year in maintenance, he's for certain not talking about an older boat.

[Hudson Force]

Originally Posted by stevensuf

No matter what people say, the age of a boat makes a big difference,the older, the more probs, many people out cruising full time are on older boats! The ten percent thing is nonsense, as a boat ages its value decreases, but maintenance costs increase.............

I agree with this statement for a limited term of years until you reach an equilibrium. I've been maintaining my current 39 year old boat for 27 years and my expenses have "flatlined". I definitely agree with Don Lucas' statement that the costs depend on how you maintain and use your boat.