Visit our Popular Forums

kb79 · 21-07-2010, 16:03

doodles, you're my hero.

zeehag · 21-07-2010, 16:08

hay --at least hayden did what he WANTED to do , not what he was TOLD to do or what every one else said he SHOULD do !!! financial and economic and political philosophy is IRRELEVANT because ANYONE can be sailor--not just jolly non commie non wtf souls..LOL....he had balls and went and did what he WANTED to do ----LOL not sit in a marina waiting... gotta have respect for that.

Doodles · 21-07-2010, 16:17

Quote:

Originally Posted by kb79

t
so to somewhat rephrase the questions:

do you all manage to come up with these large sums of cash too?

if you aren't coming up with piles of money, how do you make it work?

In my case, I sold a house in the burbs and an interest in a business. With that I was able to buy a boat and a retirement home in Thailand where I live off Social Security payments basically. The rest of the $$ is invested.

Others make it work without piles of money by buying smaller boats to start with. That's the big ticket item. You don't need a 36 footer and $70K invested in it. Plenty of example out there of young couples cruising on smaller boats costing $20K or less. Dave Martin did it with a couple kids on a Cal 25.

kb79 · 21-07-2010, 16:27

yup.

i think the most relevant point to pick out of all the noise here is the fact that given our means, we probably overspent on the boat. dunno how much i would change that - having mrs. b "on board" is priceless. then again, she didn't exactly come out demanding pressurized water. who knows.

good advice for next time, i guess

Therapy · 21-07-2010, 16:38

Quote:

Originally Posted by kb79

thanks, therapy, for allowing me to restate the question(s). reading back over this thread, i'd agree that they were poorly worded at the outset, and maybe that's what's gotten this thread so off track.

here's what i meant:

i don't (or didn't) see how we could have done this for a whole lot less money. people have had some interesting insights into the boat price, so maybe that's an area we could have saved a little Agreed, that is always an argument - what boat at what cost with what equip, etc etc.... but basically, doing this at all required coming up with $70,000, and doing it right (according to many of the posters here) would have required coming up with an additional $10K for repairs (the CC debt), an additional $40.5K for the boat, a cushion of $20k for reentry and additional year of kitty money - let's just call that $15k (forget the student loans - that's my own unique position, and maybe others don't have that problem).

that all adds up to $155,500 for a two year cruise. Yep

i think there are precious few people out there who can put that kind of money together. i can because i'm "rich" - leveraged with a high income may not be rich to you, but i remember being a kid where my christmas present was a trip to toys-r-us where we put a GI joe action figure ($3) on lay away so that i could play with it in january. to me, the ability to take a trip that requires this much money (regardless of how it's procured) puts me in the astronomically wealthy category. agree or disagree with the definition of rich - i don't really care about the semantics. i used the word "rich" because i knew it would provoke a response, which it most certainly has.

Yes it has. I only note that once you start you are leveraged with no income, so your estimates may work out or not. That, to me, seems how most all of cruising is from all (a lot) that I have read. No doubt having a plushy account or blocks of rental changes all that because that I guess would be filthy rich.

so to somewhat rephrase the questions:

do you all manage to come up with these large sums of cash too?

Many do I guess but no one usually tells their finances as openly as you did. It tends to upset both those that think you are too rich or not rich enough.

if you aren't coming up with piles of money, how do you make it work?

I ain't no expert as we cruised the month of April and had a lifetime experience. We found for us that we have too many anchors ashore and will not be able to cut them loose for extended periods. Nothing to do with money.

Cruising is done by many with a budget that is tight.

Like I said. I don't consider you rich but mostly in debt. That however is not a good enough reason to not go with what you have and the way you have it set up. If it gets to be too much, you just come back. From what I have read (again, a lot) there is a high percentage that "can't hack it" for whatever reason and quit at around the 6 month mark.
Go ahead and see how it works out.

But I am of the camp that grew up sort of similar to you only maybe not so bad. Where that directed me to stand where I stand now is in the place that says, "Don't ask for a bail-out using MY money because of YOUR choices. That's all. Not that I am mean, but I did what I did for mine and am willing to "help" but not "hand over".

All the best to you and your "agreeable" wife.

PS. I also think any eggs over 30 are "old".

SaltyMonkey · 21-07-2010, 16:41

In my case, second time around/third boat....yes I have:

- saved enough to buy a used 36-45 boat in full - income from work only.
- have enough saved to outfit it for the same amount.
- have enough saved to pay off my student loan in full.
- have saved 3 years of cruising kitty.
- nave no CC debt or car payments (paid off).
- still retain some sibilance of retirement (well not much sadly).

I'm using the time now to:

- Save a bit more for re-entry and emergencies.
- Holding out till a better seasonal time to buy and leave (most likely winter-spring).
- Want to improve /refresh my skill sets during the winter and get some others down.
- Continue learning and improving my understanding of what exactly I want and plan a cruise in more detail.

I look at this period as just as important and apart of the cruise as being physically out there. Although I could easily leave in the spring, I'll see what happens when I get to that point. I'm totally flexible and may take my time just outfitting and shaking down things. Its as if I already left and am just visiting here for a while, and it's a blast every day I'm working on my boat stuff and planning. I don't let the desires own or chain me. I work w the moment I've been given. Maybe because this is the third cruiser I've owned or too much zen. I dunno.

VirtualVagabond · 21-07-2010, 18:01

A brand new game.

Here's the challenge....

Who can start a thread and get it to run the longest... by letting SaltyMonkey run, uninterrupted?

Ok.. if he starts to lose a bit of pace, the thread starter can inject a controversial post to get him going again, but not more than, say, 3 per page...

SaltyMonkey · 21-07-2010, 18:24

Thats all you got VirtualVagabond? Your boat sucks

Windgeist · 21-07-2010, 18:28

I need to get some more popcorn

LMFAO

VirtualVagabond · 21-07-2010, 18:53

Quote:

Originally Posted by SaltyMonkey

Thats all you got VirtualVagabond? Your boat sucks

I know, but it's the best I can manage...

Hell, when I started out, I had to tramp to school through snow, with holes in my shoes... and I was lucky... my brother never even had shoes..

and some of our schoolmates never even had feet....

but I was smart, and I had a dream... etc,etc..

your turn Salty

Stillraining · 21-07-2010, 19:46

I better sell my boat ...I aint rich enough

SaltyMonkey · 21-07-2010, 19:50

VirtualVagabond - slow going. I was gonna use that tag mud myself a few posts back because it felt so bad yakkin' about the "way".

Where I grew up it was so hot the trees would chase the dogs, but you don't wanna know that backstory

pras · 21-07-2010, 20:36

Neither of us regret the decision (ask us again in 2 years with a family hopefully on the way). That does not mean I do not pontificate on the whatifs and think about the future. We are hoping to start a family when we return and money is ALWAYS a concern as I'm fiscally conservative almost to a fault. The primary decision I would have done differently would have been to buy the boat sooner and not felt the need to hurry the timeline. Of course if I had, common sense might have kicked in and we would have not left the dock

As your question was regarding the financial aspects, I'll leave the other aspects of cruising for other threads. I do not care for posts with advice given in "absolutes" so I'll limit my advice. From our experience, you'll spend more money during the early stages and kick yourself later when you realize how much you could have saved if you had to do it over again. Also, have enough in savings to be self sufficient yet don't be stubborn enough to not ask for help and give it.

Uncle Buck · 21-07-2010, 20:41

Quote:

Originally Posted by SaltyMonkey

In my case, second time around/third boat....yes I have:

- saved enough to buy a used 36-45 boat in full - income from work only.
- have enough saved to outfit it for the same amount.
- have enough saved to pay off my student loan in full.
- have saved 3 years of cruising kitty.
- nave no CC debt or car payments (paid off).
- still retain some sibilance of retirement (well not much sadly).

I'm using the time now to:

- Save a bit more for re-entry and emergencies.
- Holding out till a better seasonal time to buy and leave (most likely winter-spring).
- Want to improve /refresh my skill sets during the winter and get some others down.
- Continue learning and improving my understanding of what exactly I want and plan a cruise in more detail.

I look at this period as just as important and apart of the cruise as being physically out there. Although I could easily leave in the spring, I'll see what happens when I get to that point. I'm totally flexible and may take my time just outfitting and shaking down things. Its as if I already left and am just visiting here for a while, and it's a blast every day I'm working on my boat stuff and planning. I don't let the desires own or chain me. I work w the moment I've been given. Maybe because this is the third cruiser I've owned or too much zen. I dunno.

Try buying a boat and going sailing.......makes saving all that money much harder..........

. Definitely like the debt-free before you leave approach though.